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Also delivered remarks in Spanish

“Even though Trump and Pence are going to be here today in Miami, they have not been here for us in the last few months, especially during this pandemic. And the truth is, they don’t have a plan — Ron DeSantis doesn’t have a plan, Trump and Pence don’t have a plan, either for the pandemic, or for the economic crisis. And because they don’t have a plan, when they talk about COVID, when they talk about the economic crisis, they talk about it like it’s in the rearview mirror. 

“In reality, and we don’t have to tell anybody this, other than DeSantis and Trump, but the reality is that our constituents are still suffering. Every time they talk about COVID and the economic crisis like it’s in the rearview mirror, it’s an insult to our health care workers, it’s an insult to the 15,000 Floridians who have lost, and it’s an insult to the tens of thousands of workers who apply for unemployment every week here in Florida. Again, they don’t have a plan, and what happens when you don’t have a plan is chaos. And that’s what DeSantis, Trump, and Pence have brought us.”

Former State Rep, Javier Fernandez, and candidate for State Senate District 39, where Pence held his rally 

“As we all know, Florida has been very hard hit by this pandemic. Tens of thousands of South Floridians have lost their jobs, seen their hours cut, pay slashed, lost their health care coverage, and in many cases, the business they built their entire lives [were] destroyed in recent months.”

“...The people of this community earn far too little for the amount of hours they put into making our community better every single day. A minimum wage should be a floor that allows people to earn a living wage, not a ceiling for their hard work. Unfortunately, people like Donald Trump, Vice President Pence, and my opponent, Ana Maria Rodriguez, don’t seem to understand the sacrifices people make to get by today.” 

“The choice is between what kind of country and what kind of community we want to be: one that takes care of each other, or one that just looks out for the wealthy and powerful — and we’ve got too much of that in Washington and Tallahassee today. The stakes of this election are extremely, extremely high and we can’t pass up on our opportunity to vote.”

“In March, almost all the 34,000 hospitality workers represented by Unite Here were laid off, as stay at home orders spread throughout the state. Governor DeSantis and President Trump played politics with the pandemic, ignoring the seriousness of it, for people’s lives and for the economy. As a result, we had many members who then fell sick for several weeks, and some who have since died. Nearly all of our members continue to be out of work, especially here in South Florida, where stadiums, several of our hotels and restaurants remain closed, or if they're open, have nearly no guests. Nearly 90% of our membership continues to be out of work. 

“But let’s not get lost in the statistics. Let’s talk about Hermana Maya. Hermana Maya [worked at] the Fontainebleau Hotel in Miami Beach. He was a loving father, a loving husband, with four beautiful children. When his hotel closed in March, Herman lost his livelihood, and lost his health insurance. He and his wife contracted COVID, and like so many others, Herman lost his battle and lost his life to the virus. 

“President Trump has been endangering people’s lives — not only by failing to take the virus seriously, but also by failing to provide national unemployment relief to laid off workers who desperately need it, and failing to extend health benefits to all Americans. Herman and his family, they did nothing wrong. Herman was an incredible hard working man, and a great provider for his family. 

“Our members are struggling. They’re facing evictions every day, and the hospitality industry continues to flounder. Our members will never forget how they were treated over the past six months. I have no doubt that that will be reflected in the polls on November 3rd. Our members have never been more engaged politically then they are today. They know who has stood with them, and who has left them behind.” 

“...I have no doubt that no one could have stopped this virus from coming, but President Trump and Governor DeSantis haven’t taken it seriously. And by that, they haven’t taken working people seriously, and their families. The impact it’s had on us here in Florida didn’t need to be this devastating.”