Tension brewed in early 2019, when Kamala was still a contender in the Democratic presidential primary. When asked if she had ever smoked pot during an interview with The Breakfast Club, Kamala said, "Half my family's from Jamaica. Are you kidding me?"

The joke fell flat with many--including her father. In a statement he sent to Jamaica Global Online, Donald wrote, "My dear departed grandmothers (whose extraordinary legacy I described in a recent essay on this website), as well as my deceased parents, must be turning in their grave right now to see their family's name, reputation and proud Jamaican identity being connected, in any way, jokingly or not with the fraudulent stereotype of a pot-smoking joy seeker and in the pursuit of identity politics. Speaking for myself and my immediate Jamaican family, we wish to categorically dissociate ourselves from this travesty."