OUT OF CONTROL

Puerto Rico Governor Blames Long Working Hours After Calling Former NYC Council Speaker a ‘Whore’

Ricardo Rosselló blamed his 18-hour workdays after he lost his temper in private messages that were leaked by local media.

The governor of Puerto Rico has blamed his long working hours for an incredible outburst in which he called the former speaker of New York City Council a “whore.” Local media published excerpts of a private chat in which Gov. Ricardo Rosselló posted the slur about Melissa Mark-Viverito and told a federal control board controlling the island’s finances to “go fuck yourself,” followed by a string of middle-finger emojis. In a press conference late Thursday, Rosselló admitted he sent the messages, begged for forgiveness, and said he was a “human being who has his faults.” He argued that he had been working 18-hour days when he lost control of his temper in the messages. “None of this justifies the words I’ve written,” he said, according to The Washington Post. “My apologies to all the people I have offended... This was a private chat.” Rosselló wrote that he was upset that Mark-Viverito criticized Tom Perez, chairman of the Democratic National Committee, who voiced his support for the statehood of Puerto Rico.