Hillary Clinton pays tribute to late Jose Fernandez
By Kareem Gantt
Democratic presidential hopeful Hillary Clinton said a few words about the late Jose Fernandez during a stop in South Florida this past weekend.
The late Jose Fernandez sure did touch a lot of people, including Hillary Clinton.
On a campaign stop in Coral Springs, FL on Sept. 30, Clinton said a few words about the former Miami Marlins pitcher, who was tragically killed last weekend when his boat flipped on a jetty. Speaking just a day after Fernandez was laid to rest in a private funeral service, Clinton had some heartfelt words to say about the pitcher who was on his way to stardom in the majors.
.@HillaryClinton pays tribute to Marlins pitcher Jose Fernandez at a campaign event in South Florida pic.twitter.com/yZ5W8dfWUI
— POLITICO (@politico) September 30, 2016
“I wanted to say a few words about the tragic passing of Jose Fernandez,” Clinton started off. “You know when he left Cuba, he did not speak a word of English. He did not let that stop him. He pursued his dreams. He wanted to and he became one of the best baseball players Miami has ever seen and he never forgot where he came from. He worked hard to give back to the community that had given so much to him. Jose’s life really embodied the American dream and at just 24 years of age, he was getting started.”
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While it seemed like Clinton was speaking from the heart, some Twitter users felt that she just trying to pander to the crowd to get votes.
Someone told her he was Latino and it could play well with that demographic. She's oh-so-subtle.
— Kim Green (@MsClitoris) September 30, 2016
she didn't have a clue who he was
— Me Chomper (@chmpr) September 30, 2016
And, of course, we had the customary “Donald Trump did it early” tweet:
Whatever you may feel about Clinton’s speech, it was nice that she pointed out that Fernandez truly did live out the American dream despite the odds.
As for what caused his death, an investigation is still ongoing. Miami-Dade County Coroners have performed a toxicology and autopsy on Fernandez’s body, but the results have not been released.