Spokesman: Puerto Rico governor preparing to address island
SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico (AP) — Gov. Ricardo Rosselló is preparing a message to the people of Puerto Rico and will address them directly Wednesday night, his spokesman said.
Public Affairs Secretary Anthony Maceira offered no further details to dozens of reporters gathered outside the governor's residence for word of his political future.
"Today Gov. Ricardo Rosselló will be addressing the people of Puerto Rico directly, in a message that he's working on right now," Maceira said.
Thousands of protesters gathered around the governor's mansion in a renewed push to oust Rosselló, and the president of Puerto Rico's House of Representatives issued the embattled governor an ultimatum: Either take the best decision for a U.S. territory demanding his resignation or face an impeachment process.
Rep. Carlos Méndez spoke shortly after he received a recommendation for legislators to proceed with the impeachment process in a report by a special committee given the task of investigating whether legislators could do so.
"This process will only be detained if the governor takes a decision for the well-being of Puerto Rico," he said. "We will address this issue with the seriousness it requires."
The newspaper El Nuevo Día, the largest in Puerto Rico, reported that Méndez sent legislators a message letting them know that he would call a special session Thursday afternoon to start the impeachment process.
By Wednesday afternoon, nearly two dozen officers in full riot gear marched out of the governor's mansion toward protesters. The demonstration remained calm.
Hundreds of thousands of Puerto Ricans have been outraged by leaked, obscenity-laced online chats between Rosselló and his advisers, and have protested for nearly two weeks demanding his resignation.
"I hope things will...