On Saturday, October 3, President Donald Trump gave 2nd Congressional District MAGA Republican candidate Greg Cunningham his “complete and total endorsement” over two term Democrat Gabe Vasquez for New Mexico’s Second Congressional District. Cunningham was handpicked by Trump to run against Vasquez. In his endorsement, Trump doubled down on renaming the state “New America” and completely mispronounced or butchered the last name “Vasquez” .
Following is a transcript of Trump’s endorsement video of Cunningham:
Hello, New America, formerly known as New Mexico.
I’m asking you to get out and vote for Greg Cunningham to be your next representative for New Mexico’s second congressional district. Here’s my complete and total endorsement. Greg is a retired United States Marine who bravely served his country in combat, respected by everybody. He then served over 20 years in the Albuquerque Police Department. He’ll always fight to keep America strong and keep New Mexico safe and free. And I do like the change, by the way, to New America, what a beautiful change that would be! Up to you, I’m not going to push it, but a lot of people are liking it a lot.
Greg is running against radical left Democrat Gabe Vasquez, who supports defunding the police, a $5 trillion tax hike, and destroying New Mexico’s oil and gas industry, which means your state taxes will soar and your school budgets will be totally destroyed.
Greg Cunningham will never ever let you down. He’s outstanding in Congress. Greg will vote for the strong borders and total American energy dominance that we’ve created, we are bigger than any country in the world in energy dominance times three. He will vote to keep your taxes low, and he’ll always protect your Second Amendment. That means he’ll protect your right to keep and bear arms.
The link to the Trump endorsement video of MAGA Republican Greg Cunningham is here:
https://www.facebook.com/reel/1643109807546573
GABE VASQUES REPONDS TO TRUMP ENDORSMENT
Patricia Socarras Santiago, campaign manager for Gabe Vasquez, immediately responded to the Trump of endorsement of Greg Cunningham and said this in a statement:
“A vote for Greg is a vote for President Trump’s disastrous policies that have already made life harder for every working New Mexican. Greg wants to go to Washington to happily be a rubber stamp for Trump if it means keeping himself bankrolled. This election, New Mexicans will fight back against higher costs, less access to healthcare, and unlawful deportation raids by rejecting Greg at the ballot box.”
In a press release, the Gabe Vasquez campaign said this:
“Today, President Trump doubled down on his support for his obedient MAGA-extremist candidate Greg Cunningham, who has repeatedly said Trump’s agenda is his “number one priority.” Trump’s — and Cunningham’s — extreme agenda includes continuing the reckless war in Iran (which has caused gas to hit over $4 a gallon for more than six months and diesel prices to soar to over $6 a gallon), pushing 89,000 New Mexicans off their healthcare, slashing food benefits for 10,000 New Mexican children, and putting American soldiers at risk in careless wars, already senselessly costing American lives.
Greg Cunningham has consistently sided with the President over New Mexicans, including attending Trumpapalooza in Texas after the president’s absurd “New America” comments, saying Americans feeling the pain of higher prices should just “hang on,” and declaring that his “number one priority” would be pushing forward the President’s agenda.”
Greg Cunningham has shown New Mexico time and time again that his loyalty is to President Trump and his extreme agenda, NOT New Mexicans:
- Trump is Greg Cunningham’s “number one priority”: Greg has stated that his “number one priority” in Congress would be carrying out President Trump’s extreme agenda — that includes the reckless $100 billion war in Iran, crippling tariffs, surging gas and diesel prices, major cuts to healthcare, and violent immigration enforcement tactics. He has reiterated that stance in interviews and campaign materials since.
- Greg Cunningham supports Trump’s war in Iran: When asked about the Iran war, Greg has said that he “applaud[s] the president for doing the right thing,” confirmed he does support the war, and has said that New Mexicans just need to “hang on” and deal with higher prices.
- Greg Cunningham supports Trump’s cuts to healthcare and food assistance: When asked about hardworking New Mexicans who rely on healthcare programs like Medicaid and food assistance like SNAP, Greg has called them “enslaved,” saying, “When you accept government acceptance, I mean assistance as a way of life, you’re enslaved.”
- Greg Cunningham wants a complete and total ban on abortion – with no exceptions for rape or incest: Greg Cunningham signed Abortion Free New Mexico’s “Pro-Life Pledge,” committing himself to “ending all abortion” in New Mexico and defending life “from conception to natural death.”
- Greg Cunningham is bankrolled by MAGA Inc. He has received $403,000 in right-wing extremist PACs and an additional $816,000 from No Going Back PAC – a Trump-directed dark money group.
- Greg defends Trump’s violent immigration crackdown: When federal agents shot and killed two people during Trump’s violent immigration surge in Minnesota, Greg Cunningham blamed the victims, calling them “ideologically opposed…intent on disrupting…and that’s why happened in both cases.” Greg Cunningham has also said “immigration without assimilation is an invasion.”
- Greg defends renaming New Mexico “New America.”
While 2nd Congressional District has said supporting Trump’s extreme agenda in Congress is his “number one priority,” Gabe Vasquez will always put New Mexicans first. He has consistently been ranked one of the most bipartisan members of Congress for his commitment to working across party lines to deliver commonsense solutions for New Mexicans.”
Links to quoted or relied upon news sources are here:
COMMENTARY AND ANALYS
The race for the 2nd Congressional District of New Mexico between two term Incumbent Democrat Gabe Vasquez and MAGA Republican Greg Cunningham has become the nastiest election in New Mexico and one of the closest watched races in the country. The MAGA Republicans believe that two term Congressman Gabe Vasquez is vulnerable because he has won his two elections by a few hundred votes, while Trump did better in the district when he ran in 2024. At stake in the 2026 election in part is control of congress. MAGA Republicans are going all out to flip the district, so much so that Republican Speaker of the House Mike Johnson was dispatched to New Mexico to campaign for Greg Cunningham.
MAGA Republican Greg Cunningham and Political Action Committees that support him are outspending Democrat Gabe Vasquez by a 3 to 1 margin. The negative ads against Vasquez have been vicious, negative and unrelenting. Many of the political ads against Vasquez contain at best very misleading and at worst very false statements when it comes to support by law enforcement, holding police accountable and “defunding the police”. The political action committee ads assailing Vasquez support of immigration reforms and pathways to citizenship by undocumented residents are the most negative, misleading or false ads. Those ads falsely state Vasquez wants to give convicted rapists and child molesters citizenship when the truth is convicted felons are disqualified from becoming US citizens.
Democrat Gabe Vasquez for his part in his politcal ads has highlighted just how extreme MAGA Republican Greg Cunningham is and how he will be a rubber stamp supporting all that is Donald Trump. It is now crystal clear with Trump’s endorsement, that Cunningham is indeed indebted and tied to the hip with Trump and the MAGA political ideology.
Nationally, Republican candidates for Senate and Congress are no fools and are distancing themselves from Trump because they know just how toxic he is to the point that Republicans may well lose control of both the Senate and the House of Representatives, but not Greg Cunningham who says Trump’s agenda is his number one priority. The Trump endorsement has backfired big time on social media as Trump turned off New Mexico voters and confirms that Cunningham is in Trumps back pocket.
The Trump endorsement of Greg Cunningham should be viewed as a reason to vote for Gabe Vasquez. Vote to reelect Gabe Vasquez to Congress to represent NEW MEXICO’s Second Congressional District and not Trump!