Comedian Tony Hinchcliffe, one of the openers for former President Donald Trump at his Madison Square Garden rally on Sunday, referred to Puerto Rico as “a floating island of garbage,” a joke that drew immediate criticism from Democrats and two Florida Republicans—and led Trump’s campaign to distance itself.
Hinchcliffe—a roast comic who hosts a live podcast “Kill Tony”—opened Sunday’s rally as one of many speakers before Trump, and said: “There’s a lot going on. I don’t know if you know this, but there’s literally a floating island of garbage in the middle of the ocean right now. I think it’s called Puerto Rico.”
The remark was met with uncertainty by the crowd, leading Hinchcliffe to laugh and say, “okay, we’re getting there, again, normally I don’t follow the national anthem.”
Trump campaign senior advisor Daniella Alvarez said in a statement to Forbes following the rally the “joke does not reflect the views of President Trump or the campaign.”
The comment drew almost immediate criticism online, with Rep. Ritchie Torres, D-N.Y., saying on X, formerly known as Twitter: “As a Puerto Rican, I am tempted to call Hinchcliffe racist garbage but doing so would be an insult to garbage.”
At another point in the speech, Hinchcliffe said Latino people “love making babies” before telling a raunchy joke, leading Vice President Kamala Harris’ campaign to call it a “vile racist tirade against Latinos.”
Harris’ running mate, Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, responded to the clip of Hinchcliffe’s joke and called Hinchcliffe a “jackwad.”
Contra
Hinchcliffe responded to the criticism on social media, saying, “these people have no sense of humor,” and adding: “I love Puerto Rico and vacation there. I made fun of everyone…watch the whole set. I’m a comedian.”
Chief Critic
Rep. Maria Elvira Salazar, R-Fla., said in a statement on X she was “disgusted” by Hinchcliffe’s “racist comment.” She continued: “This rhetoric does not reflect GOP values. Puerto Rico sent 48,000+ soldiers to Vietnam, with over 345 Purple Hearts awarded. This bravery deserves respect. Educate yourself!” Meanwhile, Sen. Rick Scott, R-Fla., who is running for reelection, said the joke “bombed for a reason,” tweeting: “It’s not funny and it’s not true.”
Surprising Fact
Separately on Sunday, Puerto Rican artist Bad Bunny indicated support for Harris, posting a series of videos to Instagram of Harris criticizing Trump’s response to Hurricane Maria in Puerto Rico.
What Did The Other Trump Madison Square Garden Rally Speakers Say?
Some other speakers at Trump’s rally also made questionable comments. Trump’s childhood friend David Rem called Harris “the antichrist,” radio host Sid Rosenberg called Hillary Clinton “a sick son of a b***ch” and said “f***ing illegals … get whatever they want,” and businessman Grant Cardone painted Harris as a metaphorical prostitute by saying she and “her pimp handlers will destroy our country.” Former Fox host Tucker Carlson mocked Harris’ race, saying she could become “the first Samoan, Malaysian, low IQ former California prosecutor ever to be elected president” (Harris’ parents were from India and Jamaica).
What Did Trump Say In His Madison Square Garden Speech?
Trump covered many of his usual rally topics, made his regular critiques of Harris for the Biden administration’s border and immigration policies and said he would “end inflation” and “bring back the American dream.” The former president briefly introduced a new policy that would give tax credits to people caring for their family members. And Trump continued his broader attacks on Democrats, saying this election is about more than beating Harris because they have to beat the “massive, vicious, crooked, radical left machine,” and he repeated his controversial phrase “the enemy from within,” saying it describes “the other side,” who he claims have “done very bad things to this country.”
Key Background
With just nine days until the election, Trump took his campaign to Madison Square Garden in New York City on Sunday. CNN reported the rally is also expected to be one of Trump’s biggest fundraisers to date, and Trump has long wanted to hold a rally at the historic venue. Though New York state and the city are historically Democratic strongholds, the former president—a New York native—has previously said he thinks he might win New York for the first time since Ronald Reagan in 1984, as polls show him trailing Harris by a significant margin. While Trump campaigns in New York, Harris is campaigning in Philadelphia and her running mate, Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz is in Henderson, Nevada, near Las Vegas.
Tangent
Both parties view Latino voters as a crucial group this year, as several polls show Trump is on track to win a larger share of Latino people than he did in the 2016 or 2020 races—particularly men, younger voters and voters without college degrees. Harris is still leading with the group by a 56%-37% margin, according to an early October poll, compared to President Joe Biden’s 65%-32% edge in 2020 exit polls.
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