Puerto Rico Governor Apologizes for Private Chat That Drew Ire

Puerto Rico’s governor apologized late Thursday, July 11, for profanity-laced comments he made in a private chat.

Puerto Rico governor Ricardo Rossello holds a press conference, almost two days after federal authorities arrested the island's former secretary of education and five other people on charges of steering federal money to unqualified, politically connected contractors, in San Juan, Puerto Rico on July 11, 2019. Carlos Giusti/AP

SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico—Puerto Rico’s governor apologized late Thursday, July 11, for profanity-laced comments he made in a private chat to describe a former New York City female government official and a federal control board overseeing the island’s finances.

Gov. Ricardo Rosselló said he was working 18-hour days and releasing tensions when he called former New York City Council Speaker Melissa Mark-Viverito the Spanish word for “whore” and in English told the board “go [expletive] yourself” followed by a string of emojis with the middle finger raised.