Rep. Carlos Gimenez (R) was booed when former President Donald Trump gave the Republican Congressman a shout-out at his rally in Hialeah last night. But this was not the first time this had happened.
"And your Congressman Carlos Gimenez. You know him?" Trump asked the audience, mispronouncing Gimenez's name using a hard "G".
Upon mentioning Gimenez's name, a chorus of boos erupted along with thumbs down signs from people standing behind Trump.
"Some people say Carlos Gimenez," said Trump, correcting himself on the pronunciation which the "G" is silent. The boos got louder.
"Oh you don't like him?" Trump asked, sounding surprised as the boos got even louder and a man standing behind Trump shouted "RINO!".
"What's going on? Carlos come on! We got to get that straightened out!" yelled Trump who helped Gimenez get to Congress by endorsing him. Gimenez returned the favor, endorsing Trump for President over DeSantis and campaigning in Iowa with Trump in August.
NEW: Mr. Trump is shocked to learn that Floridians are NOT a fan of his close ally @RepCarlos — who endorsed Clinton in 2016 and worked with the Trump administration to impose lockdowns in Miami-Dade in defiance of DeSantis's plan to keep Florida open and free. pic.twitter.com/nIO0JkPxBL
— Ben Puglia 🐊 (@benpuglia) November 9, 2023
"Mr. Trump is shocked to learn that Floridians are NOT a fan of his close ally @RepCarlos — who endorsed Clinton in 2016 and worked with the Trump administration to impose lockdowns in Miami-Dade in defiance of DeSantis's plan to keep Florida open and free," posted Ben Puglia of DeSantis War Room.
Rep. Gimenez signed an Executive Order going far beyond Governor DeSantis's Order, ordering all beaches, parks, and “non-essential” commercial and retail businesses to close because of COVID. Gimenez's order also included a 6 pm curfew for residents. Even when the majority of Florida beaches were open, Gimenez and Miami Beach Mayor Dan Gelber continued to enforce the closure of Miami Beaches. On May 11, resident Kimberly Falkenstine was arrested on Miami Beach holding a "We Are Free" sign.
WATCH! Military Veteran Kimberly Falkenstine is arrested on Miami Beach on the Covid order of Trump surrogate @CarlosGimenezFL
Trump has criticized DeSantis for allowing beaches to close in Florida, but will campaign with Gimenez tomorrow in Iowa. pic.twitter.com/G2bjtGG7Ew
— Chris Nelson 🇺🇸 🏝 (@ReOpenChris) August 11, 2023
Rep. Gimenez also was one of the strictest enforcers of mask mandates in the state, signing an order allowing for prison time for those who violated his order which included an outdoor mask mandate.
This is not the first time Gimenez was booed at a Trump rally. At a rally in the late night hours of September 1, 2020, Gimenez was loudly booed when he was brought on stage by Trump. Gimenez was maskless at the event, even though at the time he had been imposing mask mandates on Miami-Dade county.
‼️FLASHBACK! Miami County Mayor Carlos Gimenez BOOED at Miami
Trump rally on 9/1/20.Gimenez was brutal with mask mandates and attacks on small businesses in the name of Covid.
DeSantis reigned him in.
Trump endorsed him for Congress. pic.twitter.com/FiZzj3vDww
— Chris Nelson 🇺🇸 🏝 (@ReOpenChris) August 10, 2023
Gimenez, fought back against Governor DeSantis when the governor issued an Executive Order in September, 2020 opening up businesses statewide and cancelling fines imposed by local governments.
During the COVID lockdowns, DeSantis left the final lockdown decisions to the Democratic-controlled counties. Blue counties like Broward, Miami-Dade, and Palm Beach, imposed strict restrictions to its residents.
On the other end of the county, the third Republican presidential campaign took place where Gov. DeSantis, Ambassador Nikki Haley, and Vivek Ramaswamy, all had strong debate performances.
Trump, who leads in all of the public opinion polls by no less than 30 percentage points, will not debate because of what the polls indicate.
Publisher Javier Manjarres added to this story.
