President Donald Trump, second from right, kisses Cuban-American restaurant owner Irina Vilariño, second from left, during a Hispanic Heritage Month Celebration in the East Room of the White House in Washington, Monday, Sept. 17, 2018. Luis G. Rivera Marín, Secretary of State and Lt. Governor of Puerto Rico, watches at right. (AP Photo/Susan Walsh) The Associated Press
ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (AP) — New Mexico Gov. Susana Martinez has traveled to Washington to attend a Hispanic Heritage Month Celebration hosted by President Donald Trump.
The nation’s only Latina governor attended a White House Hispanic Heritage Month event on Monday, days after Congressional Hispanic Caucus Chairwoman Rep. Michelle Lujan Grisham of Albuquerque strongly rejected Trump’s invitation over his policies and his previous comments about Latinos.
Lujan Grisham, a Democrat who is running for New Mexico governor to replace Martinez, cited Trump’s previous comments he made about Latinos during the 2016 presidential campaign. She also cited Trump’s denial about lives lost in Puerto Rico during Hurricane Maria last year.
Martinez, a once a rising star within the Republican Party, criticized Trump’s campaign rhetoric about Mexican immigrants but has warmed up to him in recent months.
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