NEW YORK — The State Department announced late Friday the revocation of the visa for Colombian President Gustavo Petro after a protest in New York City.
Sen. Rick Scott shared a video on X showing Petro holding a megaphone in the company of a translator, as he talked to a small crowd in Spanish.
"Is [Petro], as a guest of OUR COUNTRY, seriously calling for a coup against POTUS?! Enough is enough," Scott wrote. “Get Petro & his communist thugs the hell out.”
Petro “urged U.S. soldiers to disobey orders and incite violence,” according to the State Department’s announcement on X that accused him of “reckless and incendiary actions.”
Petro, a critic of the Israel-Hamas war, also delivered the keynote speech at an event on Friday hosted by The Hague Group at the New York Society for Ethical Culture’s meeting house.
“Now we leave for Bogotá,” Petro said in Spanish during his speech before the State Department’s announcement.
Petro had remained in Manhattan after delivering his speech calling for a criminal investigation against President Donald Trump on Tuesday during the United Nations General Assembly.
Reps. Maria Elvira Salazar and Carlos Gimenez issued statements late Friday on X.
“Petro’s guerrilla instincts got the better of him in the wrong place,” Salazar wrote. “He crossed a dangerous line and now faces the consequences. The revocation of his visa is more than deserved. Petro does not represent Colombians. International shame!”
Gimenez described Petro’s actions as pathetic.
“Petro once again demonstrates his irresponsibility and his total disrespect toward decent Colombians,” Gimenez wrote. “Colombia deserves a much better leader!”
Is @petrogustavo, as a guest of OUR COUNTRY, seriously calling for a coup against @POTUS?!
— Rick Scott (@SenRickScott) September 26, 2025
Enough is enough. Get Petro & his communist thugs the hell out. https://t.co/X3FU6pOS89
Earlier today, Colombian president @petrogustavo stood on a NYC street and urged U.S. soldiers to disobey orders and incite violence.
— Department of State (@StateDept) September 27, 2025
We will revoke Petro’s visa due to his reckless and incendiary actions.
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