Trump calls Mexican immigrants 'drug dealers' and 'rapists,' crickets from the GOP field

It's been almost 24 hours since Donald Trump announced his candidacy for president of this great nation with some of the most overtly racist, xenophic rants on Mexican immigrants imaginable.

They're sending people that have lots of problems, and they're bringing those problems with us. They're bringing drugs. They're bringing crime. They're rapists.

In a post announcement interview, Trump doubled down:

And it’s people from countries other than Mexico also. We have drug dealers coming across, we have rapists, we have killers, we have murderers.

So what are the other GOP candidates saying? As Frank Sharry of America's Voice points out today, the silence is deafening.

Trump's ugly insults of Mexicans makes headlines in Spanish language media. Response fr 2016 GOPers? Crickets. https://t.co/kwZHkC2qoZ
— @FrankSharry

Seriously? We are entire nation of immigrants. Several of the GOP candidates have close family ties to the immigrant community. But somehow Trump's unfounded, malicious attack doesn't warrant a response. Wow. That's sure leadership to believe in. At least Ted Cruz stepped up:

“I’m pleased to welcome Donald Trump into the race for the 2016 Republican nomination for President of the United States. His experience as a successful businessman and job creator will prove crucial to ensuring the eventual GOP nominee is not only well-equipped to defeat Hillary Clinton in November, but also to make America great again.”