Leading Republican investor Foster Friess defended Donald Trump Wednesday from attacks Trump received on the Mexican judge issue, and he aimed dead-on criticism at Mitt Romney and Paul Ryan for not defending Trump.
Friess is a leading figure on the Christian evangelical Right who bankrolled Rick Santorum’s 2012 presidential campaign, as the populist Santorum battled Mitt Romney with a string of Midwest primary wins. Friess is also an enthusiastic Trump supporter, joining a pro-Trump Christian contingent that includes Michele Bachman. Bachman joined Team Trump this week as an evangelical adviser.
Here’s Friess’ comments in a letter he sent out to conservatives with the headline “How could Paul Ryan and Mitt Romney be so misled?”
Criticizing Donald Trump’s concerns of objectivity about a judge of Mexican heritage openly associated with the La Raza San Diego Lawyers Association perhaps stems from people hearing Trump’s use of word “Mexican” rather than “LaRaza.”
Former Attorney General of the United States Alberto Gonzales wrote that Trump has legitimate concerns. Gonzales is Hispanic. He points out President Obama appointed Judge Curiel, whose law firm paid $675,000 in speaking fees to Hillary and Bill Clinton. Perhaps we shouldn’t jump to the conclusion that Judge Curiel embraced that decision
Trump tried to highlight the political prominence of pro-migration groups like La Raza, but he moved on from the issue amid extensive press attacks.
Since the Orlando terrorist attack, Trump has pivoted to focusing on the issue of radical Islam, and on his economic plan.
Trump’s economic plan has attributes that might be appealing to Friess, Santorum, and their supporters. Trump’s plan cuts taxes across the board, eliminates taxes on poor people, and frees small businesses up from a lot of federal taxes. But the platform also saves Social Security and preserves Medicare in their current versions, helped by new revenues from revising foreign trade deals.
The Wall Street Journal reported: “Donald Trump Shuns Social Security Reform, Takes Target Off GOP’s Back.”
Romney and Ryan, on the other hand, tried to drastically change Social Security and Medicare during their failed run, which focused mainly on what their supporters called the “entitlement crisis.” Ryan as Speaker went on to approve President Barack Obama’s trillion-dollar-plus “Cromnibus” budget bill that increased the debt to over $20 trillion including unfunded liabilities.