Heroic Puerto Rico Mayor – and Top Trump Critic – Carmen Yulín Cruz to Attend State of the Union
Cruz Charged ‘We Are Dying and You Are Killing Us With the Inefficiency’
President Donald Trump’s first official State of the Union address Tuesday night will include many critics – every Democrat that is choosing to attend – and some of the invited guests as well.
Those staring at the President will include the mayor of San Juan, Puerto Rico, Carmen YulÃn Cruz, who will be the invited guest of U.S. Senator Kirsten Gillibrand, Democrat of New York. Trump has done a dismal job of helping the island territory. Many if not most have been without electricity or water after two major hurricanes devastated Puerto Rico last fall.
It’s a bold move for Gillibrand, who many believe may run for the White House in 2020.
I hope Mayor Cruz’s presence at #SOTU will remind the president and my colleagues in Congress of our urgent responsibility to help Puerto Rico fully recover and rebuild. Our fellow citizens must not be forgotten or left behind.
— Kirsten Gillibrand (@SenGillibrand) January 29, 2018
“CNN reported last week that roughly half a million customers on the island still don’t have electricity. The Puerto Rico Electric Power Authority said it had restored power to more than 1 million clients, or roughly 70 percent of its customers,” The Hill notes.Â
In late September Mayor Cruz, who had first tried to be respectful and patient, chose a different path to save the lives of her citizens, and all those on the island.
“I have been patient,” she said before the cameras in late September. “But we have no time for patience anymore.”
San Juan mayor: “I cannot fathom the thought that the greatest nation in the world cannot figure out the logistics for a small island…” pic.twitter.com/R1N0xDT0fz
— NBC News (@NBCNews) September 29, 2017
“So I am asking the President of the United States to make sure somebody is in charge that is up to the task of saving lives,” she pleaded. “We are dying and you are killing us with the inefficiency.”
“I am going to do what I never thought I would do. I am begging, begging anyone that can hear us to save us from dying.”
NCRM will cover Trump’s State of the Union live Tuesday night.Â

Enjoy this piece?
… then let us make a small request. The New Civil Rights Movement depends on readers like you to meet our ongoing expenses and continue producing quality progressive journalism. Three Silicon Valley giants consume 70 percent of all online advertising dollars, so we need your help to continue doing what we do.
NCRM is independent. You won’t find mainstream media bias here. From unflinching coverage of religious extremism, to spotlighting efforts to roll back our rights, NCRM continues to speak truth to power. America needs independent voices like NCRM to be sure no one is forgotten.
Every reader contribution, whatever the amount, makes a tremendous difference. Help ensure NCRM remains independent long into the future. Support progressive journalism with a one-time contribution to NCRM, or click here to become a subscriber. Thank you. Click here to donate by check.
![]() |