On Monday, current Miss Universe Paulina Vega claimed she is not a hypocrite for refusing to give up her crown after she blasted Donald Trump’s comments on illegal immigration. She also said that Trump has never said anything “racist” or “offensive” in her presence.
“The most comical is using the word: hypocrisy. But I think what I’m doing is the least hypocrite thing I can do by using my voice clearly,” Vega, who is also the reigning Miss Colombia, told Latina.com. “By not renouncing my crown has nothing to do with what I do or what I don’t do. I have a legally binding contract and legal relationship with the organization and it’s not so easy for me, like the artists have done, to renounce and say, ‘No. I’m not working for you anymore.'”
On Instagram last week, Vega wrote that she found “Mr. Trump’s comments unjust and hurtful. As a Colombian and as Miss Universe, I want to show my support and validate the sentiments of the Latin community.”
Vega’s statement prompted Trump to call her a “hypocrite” on Twitter.
“Miss Universe, Paulina Vega, criticized me for telling the truth about illegal immigration, but then said she would keep the crown-Hypocrite,” Trump Tweeted after Vega’s Instagram post.
Vega told Latina.com that “I have a contract of 1 year” so “it’s a much more complicated situation, but we have to understand that Trump is a very polemic person. I’m going to keep going forward and refuse his comments to affect me. Miss Universe the organization and I are much more than what that man says on Twitter.”
When asked if Trump ever said “anything racist or borderline offensive” in her presence, Vega responded, “not at all.” She said though she has barely had time to have a conversation with Trump, “if he would have said something off color, I would have fainted.” She also punted when asked if “knowing what you know now, would you have participated in the Miss Universe pageant?”
“It would’ve been a really difficult decision for me,” she responded. “It would’ve been a joint decision between myself and my country Colombia’s pageant organization to settle upon the best solution on whether to participate or not.”
Numerous Hispanic artists have criticized Trump for his remarks about illegal immigrants during his presidential announcement speech.
“When Mexico sends its people, they’re not sending their best. They’re not sending you. They’re not sending you. They’re sending people that have lots of problems, and they’re bringing those problems with us. They’re bringing drugs. They’re bringing crime. They’re rapists. And some, I assume, are good people,” he said. “But I speak to border guards and they tell us what we’re getting. And it only makes common sense. It only makes common sense. They’re sending us not the right people.”
Trump also added that the illegal immigration problem is not limited illegal aliens entering from Mexico.
“It’s coming from more than Mexico,” he added. “It’s coming from all over South and Latin America, and it’s coming probably — probably — from the Middle East. But we don’t know. Because we have no protection and we have no competence, we don’t know what’s happening. And it’s got to stop and it’s got to stop fast.”
NBC, which co-owns the pageants with Trump, and Univision, whose part-owner has vowed to spend “whatever it takes” to elect Hillary Clinton to the White House, dropped the Miss USA and Miss Universe pageants. Puerto Rican actress Roselyn Sanchez withdrew from her Spanish-language hosting duties. Hosts Cheryl Burke and MSNBC’s Thomas Roberts also bolted. Trump is suing Univision for $500 for breach of contract, and Miss USA will air on the Reelz Network, which reaches 70 million homes on cable television.