President Donald Trump boasted about receiving the “Bay of Pigs Award,” which does not exist. Trump made the claim in a tweet Sunday afternoon, inspiring plenty of criticism from Twitter users. It is possible Trump was referring to the endorsement he received from the Bay of Pigs Veterans Association in 2016.
“Sleepy Joe Biden has spent 47 years in politics being terrible to Hispanics. Now he is relying on Castro lover Bernie Sanders to help him out. That won’t work,” Trump tweeted. “Remember, Miami Cubans gave me the highly honored Bay of Pigs Award for all I have done for our great Cuban Population!” Trump has spent part of his time in office reversing President Barack Obama’s attempts to better relations with Cuba.
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The Bay of Pigs invasion was a failed CIA-backed attempt to overthrow Fidel Castro’s communist regime in April 1961. In October 2016, the Miami Herald reported Trump’s endorsement from the Bay of Pigs Veteran Association was considered “unprecedented.” He received the endorsement during a visit to the Little Havana headquarters of Brigade 2506, veterans who took part in the ill-fated invasion. Trump was presented with a “hand-painted Brigade 2506 shield,” which Trump’s campaign considers the “award” Trump was referring to in Sunday’s tweet. Trump also courted veterans of the Bay of Pigs invasion in 1999, when he was considering a run for president, the Associated Press reported at the time.
The Trump campaign says the proof that Trump got the (nonexistent) Bay of Pigs Award is that, when he spoke to the Bay of Pigs vets’ association upon accepting their endorsement, they gave him a painting of their brigade shield. https://t.co/TuPQFQ1ylW
— Daniel Dale (@ddale8) September 13, 2020
Trump’s tweet came moments before the president was scheduled to take the stage for his first indoor rally since June 20, when he spoke in Tulsa, Oklahoma. Trump will speak to supporters at a manufacturing business in Henderson, Nevada, despite concerns about spreading the coronavirus. Henderson officials said gatherings of over 50 people are still prohibited, reports USA Today. Before the Tulsa rally, Secret Service agents and campaign staffers tested positive for the coronavirus and a spike in cases followed the event. Herman Cain, one of Trump’s most public supporters, died from the coronavirus after attending the event.
Bay of Pigs? This is up there with Bluto asking “Was it over when the Germans bombed Pearl Harbor?” pic.twitter.com/24tA3Se5C4
— Walter Shaub (@waltshaub) September 13, 2020
“Bay of Pigs Award”!!!!! Oh Donald NO… 😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂 https://t.co/2jRqWHSKwU
— Patton Oswalt (@pattonoswalt) September 13, 2020
I searched and searched, there is no such thing as a bay of pigs award, he just makes shit up. Like when he said he was Michigan Man of the Year pic.twitter.com/sWpuQ1tPgn
— Liddle’ Jirkyrick (@jirkyrick) September 13, 2020
Donald Trump came to Miami in 2000 while pretending to run for President only to tell Bay of Pigs veterans her would take a hard line on Cuba **WHILE SECRETLY TRYING TO DO BUSINESS WITH FIDEL CASTRO IN VIOLATION OF U. S. SANCTIONS** but he’s beloved by @MiamiGOP. pic.twitter.com/lBiQmqObYa
— Grant Stern (@grantstern) September 13, 2020
What Trump thinks the Bay of Pigs really means. pic.twitter.com/xY79epw1Ba
— Russell Foster for Texas (@RussellFosterTX) September 13, 2020
