Robert Francis O’Rourke’s nickname “Beto” is a “political gimmick” amounting to “appropriation” of Latin American culture in an attempt to appeal to Hispanic voters, determined Mario Duarte, Guatemala’s secretary of strategic intelligence, offering his remarks in a Tuesday interview on SiriusXM’s Breitbart News Tonight with hosts Rebecca Mansour and Joel Pollak.

Pollak asked, “Is the use of the nickname ‘Beto’ in a political sense, do you find that to be offensive? I mean, his roots are really Irish. Do you think that he’s falsely passing himself as Hispanic in the way that Elizabeth Warren once pretended to be Native American, or is it just a lighthearted nickname? How should we regard it?”

“It’s a political gimmick,” replied Duarte, who is also a U.S. citizen. “As an immigrant [to the U.S.] myself … I think it’s a political gimmick to try to endear himself with the Latin population.”

Duarte added, “He’s trying to play a political part. Some people find it cheap. [It is] appropriation.”

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Duarte then responded to O’Rourke’s blaming of America — including “climate change” credited to America’s consumption of fossil fuels — for dysfunctions in Guatemala and broader Central and South America related to migration to the U.S. O’Rourke also promised to end use of fossil fuels “when” elected president.

“You cannot blame the United States for the ills of other countries,” said Duarte. “We are talking about responsibility, and each country has to take responsibility for its own citizens, and they also have to put their citizens first. You are not the police of the world. You are not in charge of the rest of the world. Put your country first, and that’s what President Trump is doing.”

O’Rourke prioritizes the welfare of illegal aliens over American citizens, assessed Duarte.

“Illegal immigrants have more rights than our born citizens [and] our citizens that became citizens the legal way?” asked Duarte or O’Rourke’s political positioning. “It offends people, because people like me — millions of people — have done things the right way to actually earn and deserve citizenship of the United States, and then people come here and expect a handout? It’s not good for the country. It’s not good for anybody.”

O’Rourke and other Democrats denigrating America and its citizens is “insulting,” Duarte said.

“As a U.S. citizen, I will tell you, this is almost insulting, because our country is still the greatest country in the world,” said Duarte. “It’s a country that everyone wants to migrate to, both legally and illegally. Look around, you don’t see people trying to go to Venezuela or Nicaragua or Russia … everyone wants to come to the United States.”

Duarte went on, “Look at the protests in Hong Kong, they want to be like the United States. Now, for someone to say that we are to blame for the problems of other countries, it’s simply false, especially when we have so many people giving their lives for our liberty … to have all the freedoms that we enjoy in the United States. It’s just simply not fair, and insulting.”

Breitbart News Tonight broadcasts live on SiriusXM Patriot channel 125 weeknights from 9:00 p.m. to midnight Eastern or 6:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m. Pacific.

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