A former employee at the Trump National Golf Club in Bedminster, N.J., claims that her supervisors kept her off of the Secret Service’s list because she is undocumented.
Emma Torres is an immigrant from Ecuador, and she began working at the club in 2015. She used a fake Social Security number to get the job and moved from housekeeper to kitchen staff. During the Trump presidential campaign in 2016, the Secret Service requested a list of employees with their names, dates of birth, and social security number. Knowing she didn’t have that information, Torres went to Human Resources and asked to have her name removed. She says that when she told them it was because she was undocumented, the supervisor crossed her name, and several others, off of the list.
Another undocumented worker, Victorina Morales, says she had a similar experience. When she initially applied for the job as housekeeper in 2013 at this same club, Morales says she told the supervisor she didn’t have papers but was assured that it didn’t matter. Then, while working during the trump campaign, Morales says she was given a pin to wear by the Secret Service to access certain areas during Trump’s visits. When she was asked to sign for the pin, she told her supervisor she didn’t know how to write. These pins indicate that someone has been screened and is authorized to enter secure areas. Morales is unsure if she was ever screened because she assumed her supervisor handled the details.
Representing both of these former Trump employees, and several others, is immigration attorney Anibal Romero. When asked by the Washington Post to verify his clients’ accounts, he was able to turn over tax and payroll documentation relating to their employment.
As more and more former Trump employees who are also undocumented workers tell their stories, top immigration lawyers will be there to defend their rights and ensure that any missteps are addressed.
To read more about what the Washington Post found in their investigation, click here