Raul A. Reyes

Opinion columnist

President Trump had a Hispanic Heritage Month ceremony at the White House — and probably the kindest thing to say about it is that it was weird.

On the positive side, at least Trump held and attended the gathering. These events are completely at the discretion of the administration, and he didn’t have to hold such a reception at all. In June, the White House declined to recognize LGBT Pride Month.

In his remarks Friday, Trump praised Labor Secretary Alexander Acosta, Hispanic veterans and Hispanic small business owners. He shook hands with a Medal of Honor recipient in attendance. Nothing odd there; this is standard behavior for such a ceremonial occasion.

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It was when Trump touched on the crisis in Puerto Rico that things got bizarre. The president pronounced “Puerto Rico” in an exaggerated Spanish accent, three times, to laughter from the crowd. Online commentator Orli Matlow said he pronounced the name of the island “like he was a Jet mocking the Sharks in West Side Story.” But why is speaking with an accent funny?

Americans of all backgrounds speak with an accent, including Southerners and Midwesterners. Our own First Lady speaks with a noticeable accent. For the president to be mocking a Spanish accent at a time when Puerto Rico is suffering is decidedly unpresidential. Not to mention the fact that Trump is not exactly known for warm relations with Latinos to begin with.

In his speech, the president referred to Hispanic Heritage Month as “a great thing” and “big deal.” Yet he couldn’t pass up an opportunity to take a passive-aggressive shot at the Latino community. Referring to Hispanics, he said, “Believe me, they’re very tough and they’re very smart… Sometimes they’re too tough, but that’s okay… I have to deal with it.”

How strange for the president to inject a negative tone into a celebratory gathering. For the record, yes, Latinos can be “tough” when an administration is attempting to take away our health care, taking aim at affirmative action, and putting virtually all undocumented people at risk for deportation. It doesn’t send a welcoming message when the president states that he has to deal with Hispanics as though we are some sort of bother, rather than the country’s largest minority group and patriotic citizens.

And this is a president who needs all the help he can get with Latinos. According to Latino Decisions polling, an “overwhelming majority” of Latinos are “frustrated” by Trump. Three-quarters disapprove of Trump’s performance as president.

At Friday’s event, Trump told those in attendance that “You have a wonderful president in Mexico, I can tell you that.” What? This event was for Hispanic Heritage Month, which celebrates the contributions and achievements of U.S. Latinos. It was not an event about or for Mexican nationals. Many U.S.-born Latinos would likely be hard-pressed to name the president of Mexico, Enrique Peña-Nieto.

It is as bizarre as it is sad that Trump apparently still sees Latinos as foreigners. This comment calls to mind that period during the campaign when candidate Trump insisted that he could not receive a fair hearing from a federal judge because that judge was of Mexican-American heritage. It sure doesn’t seem like Trump has learned much since then.

Perhaps Trump deserves some credit for attempting to establish a bit of goodwill with Hispanics. Yet he basically erased it with his insensitive comments. It is unimaginable that presidents like George W. Bush or Barack Obama would bungle such an otherwise non-controversial event. While the reception was ostensibly to honor Latinos, a recurring theme in Trump’s speech was his own administration’s “fantastic job.”

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Trump’s Hispanic Heritage ceremony was especially notable for what was not mentioned. In his remarks, the president who ended the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program for immigrant youth did not mention immigration in any meaningful way.

Even worse, he singled out a group of young people in the audience and stated that there is “no dream beyond your reach” — which could be read as teasing the idea of some sort of legislative fix for the DACA program. Considering that 800,000 young people now face an uncertain future and possible deportation, these remarks were inappropriate.

Trump’s Hispanic Heritage Month comments were ignorant and embarrassing. His Hispanic supporters in particular and Latinos in general certainly deserved better.

Raul A. Reyes, an attorney, is a member of USA TODAY's Board of Contributors. Follow him on Twitter @RaulAReyes.