Mexican American singer Linda Ronstadt has spoken out against Donald Trump ahead of his rally in Tucson, Arizona, at a venue bearing her name.
In a Facebook post on Wednesday, the 78-year-old Grammy-winning artist said, “Donald Trump is holding a rally on Thursday in a rented hall in my hometown, Tucson. I would prefer to ignore that sad fact. But since the building has my name on it, I need to say something.”
Ronstadt expressed her disappointment, stating, “It saddens me to see the former president bring his hate show to Tucson, a town with deep Mexican-American roots and a joyful, tolerant spirit. I don’t just deplore his toxic politics, his hatred of women, immigrants, and people of color, his criminality, dishonesty, and ignorance – although there’s that.”
She also criticized Trump’s border policies, particularly his family separation policy, which she said “made orphans of thousands of little children and babies, and brutalized their desperate mothers and fathers.”
Ronstadt went further, calling Trump a rapist. “Trump first ran for president warning about rapists coming in from Mexico. I’m worried about keeping the rapist out of the White House,” she wrote, referring to E. Jean Carroll’s allegations that Trump raped her in a department store in the 1990s. Last year, a jury found Trump liable for sexual assault.
In addition to her criticism of Trump, Ronstadt also took aim at JD Vance, who has previously made disparaging comments about childless individuals, calling them “childish cat ladies” and “deranged.”
“I raised two adopted children in Tucson as a single mom. They are both grown and living in their own houses. I live with a cat,” Ronstadt responded. “Am I half a childless cat lady because I’m unmarried and didn’t give birth to my kids? Call me what you want, but this cat lady will be voting proudly in November for Kamala Harris and Tim Walz.”