As former President Donald Trump courts the community’s vote, comedian Tony Hinchcliffe crudely mocked Latinos — a key constituency for any winning campaign in 2024 — during preprogramming for the former president’s Madison Square Garden rally.
With nine days remaining until the election, Trump gathered scores of his most popular surrogates and allies to rally thousands in midtown Manhattan, a reliably deep-blue area.
Hinchcliffe, taking the first slot among nearly 30 warmup speakers, launched into a crude and disparaging set of jokes about the conflict in the Middle East, Black voters and Latinos.
“These Latinos, they love making babies, too. Just know that they do,” Hinchcliffe said, setting up his joke: “There’s no pulling out. They don’t do that. They come inside, just like they did to our country.”
A few moments later, the comedian took a second swing at a key voting bloc within the community: Puerto Ricans.
“There’s a lot going on. I don’t know if you guys 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,” he said to a scattering of claps and jeers.
In a statement, Trump campaign senior adviser Danielle Alvarez said, “This joke does not reflect the views of President Trump or the campaign.”
Hinchcliffe also told a joke about one of his Black “buddies” and how they “carved watermelons” together.
A number of the opening speakers at the Madison Square Garden rally threw around vulgarities and demeaning comments about Vice President Kamala Harris and other Democratic politicians. Radio host Sid Rosenberg called Hillary Clinton “a sick son of a b—-” and David Rem, a Trump backer in New York City, said Harris was the “Antichrist.”
Battleground Pennsylvania, where polling margins show a razor-thin race between Trump and Harris, is home to the third-largest Puerto Rican diaspora in the country. Last month, the former president invited Puerto Rican artist Anuel AA onstage at a rally in Johnstown, Pennsylvania, to publicly throw his support behind the Republican ticket.
Speaking on a livestream with Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., on Sunday afternoon, Harris’ running mate, Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, responded to the comedian’s comments.
“Who is that jack-wad? Who is that guy?” Walz asked after a clip of Hinchcliffe’s joke played on their stream.
“People in Puerto Rico are citizens. They pay tax and they serve in the military at almost a higher rate than anybody else,” Walz added, knocking Trump for his response to Hurricane Maria in 2017 — including a now-famous video clip of the then-president tossing paper towel rolls to Puerto Ricans seeking aid.
“Obviously, it’s super upsetting to me,” Ocasio-Cortez said. “I need people to understand that when you have some a-hole calling Puerto Rico floating garbage, know that that’s what they think about you.”
Hinchcliffe later responded on social media saying people like Walz and Ocasio-Cortez “have no sense of humor” and took his joke “out of context to make it seem racist.”
“I love Puerto Rico and vacation there. I made fun of everyone…watch the whole set,” he added.
But several Republicans also condemned Hinchcliffe’s remarks.
Rep. María Elvira Salazar, R-Fla., later wrote on social media that she was “disgusted” by Hinchcliffe’s “racist comment.”
“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,” she wrote.
“This joke bombed for a reason,” Sen. Rick Scott, R-Fla., posted on X. “It’s not funny and it’s not true. Puerto Ricans are amazing people and amazing Americans! I’ve been to the island many times. It’s a beautiful place. Everyone should visit! I will always do whatever I can to help any Puerto Rican in Florida or on the island.”
Rep. Carlos Gimenez, R-Fla., called Hinchcliffe’s comments “completely classless” and “in poor taste.” And Rep. Anthony D’Esposito, R-N.Y., said he was “proud to be Puerto Rican,” adding, “The only thing that’s ‘garbage’ was a bad comedy set.”
Puerto Rico, which is home to over 3 million American citizens, according to the 2020 census, experienced significant outward migration to the mainland U.S. after Hurricane Maria ravaged the island territory in 2017.
Puerto Ricans who live on the island are not eligible to vote in presidential elections (the commonwealth does hold elections and award delegates to both Democratic and Republican primary candidates) despite being U.S. citizens.
But their relatives on the mainland can.
Harris, for her part, unveiled her plan for Puerto Rico as she campaigned in Pennsylvania on Sunday, posting details to her social media accounts and adding a section to her campaign website. Bad Bunny, a Puerto Rican rapper and singer, shared Harris’ announcement with his more than 45 million Instagram followers.
This article was originally published on NBCNews.com
