Grand Rapids, where an illegal immigrant has been arraigned for the murder of a resident less than two weeks ago, was the setting Tuesday for former President Donald Trump’s “Stop Biden’s Border Bloodbath” speech.

Trump’s appearance in Grand Rapids was part of his reelection campaign against President Joe Biden, where he is emphasizing the failure of the Biden administration’s border policies. He was also present to receive the endorsement of the Police Officers Association of Michigan from the organization’s President James Tignanelli.

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In his remarks, Trump highlighted the murder in Grand Rapids of Ruby Garcia. Brandon Ortiz-Vite has been arraigned for the murder, which occurred Friday, March 22. Garcia was shot several times with an illegally purchased firearm, her body dumped in the city’s downtown area, and her car stolen.

Ortiz-Vite had snuck back into the country after being deported during the final months of Trump’s administration.

Although undocumented immigrants only made up 1.2% of Michigan’s population, the crime rate by illegal immigrants in the state has been garnering increased national headlines.

In February 2024, for example, Luis Fabian Bernal-Sosa was convicted of murdering a 22-year-old woman in Kent County. Bernal-Sosa was also in the U.S. illegally when he murdered Leah Gomez as she sat in a car with her 1-year-old daughter with special needs.

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As reported in The Midwesterner, a rash of burglaries in Oakland County has been attributed to gangs from Central and South America. Four male illegal immigrants were charged with committing multiple smash-and-grab robberies in Troy.

Trump also emphasized the growing drug crisis in Michigan. Earlier this year, for example, approximately 180 grams of fentanyl and 92 grams of crystal methamphetamine were seized in Berrien County. In 2021, 73.8% of overdose drugs in the state involved fentanyl, which is the leading cause of death for Americans between the ages of 18 and 45.

Rather than redoubling efforts to stymie the influx of illegal immigrants, Trump pointed out that Gov. Gretchen Whitmer has offered $500 a month to residents who house illegal immigrants in their homes.

Calling Whitmer a “real beauty,” Trump stated that the “only one that was able to go sailing” in Michigan was her husband while everybody else was locked down during the COVID pandemic. “She’s now pushing Michigan families to accept $500 a month to take illegal aliens into your homes,” he said, before calling her a “terrible governor.”

Additionally, he noted the cities and counties in the state that serve as sanctuaries for illegal immigrants.

According to Trump, unchecked illegal immigration is having a negative impact on U.S. civilization.

“It’s destroying our country,” he said. He promised he would seal the border if reelected and “begin the largest domestic deportation  operation in the history” of the U.S.

Following his Grand Rapids’ remarks, Trump disembarked for another campaign stop in Wisconsin.