Popular comedian's remarks at Trump event trigger nationwide backlash
Stand-up performance at Madison Square Garden creates unexpected problems for political campaign. Comments about Puerto Rico and other groups lead to wide-ranging criticism from both sides of political aisle
A comedy act at Donald Trumps Madison Square Garden rally yesterday turned into a major mis-step when Tony Hinchcliffe made controversial statements about Puerto Rico and other groups
The stand-up comic (who hosts a well-known podcast) called the Caribbean island a “floating-island of garbage“ and made inappropriate remarks about Latino families birth-control habits. His performance also included questionable comments targeting Jewish and African-American communities
Several high-profile figures quickly spoke against these statements:
- Jennifer Lopez shared criticism on social media
- Bad Bunny re-posted vice presidents message
- Ricky Martin shared video saying “esto es lo que piensan de nosotros“
- Multiple GOP congress-members expressed disagreement
The Trump team tried to distance themselves from the situation: “it was a comedian who made a joke in poor taste“ campaign rep Karoline Leavitt told Fox news. However Ed Rosa a Bronx resident with Puerto-Rican roots removed his pro-Trump signs and changed his voting plans
With 11/5/24 election coming up‚ this situation might affect important swing-state votes — particularly in places like Pennsylvania where Puerto Rican voters make up significant numbers. Matt Tuerk Allentowns democratic mayor called it a “wake up call for people“
America is for America and Americans only
The comedians response to criticism showed no regret: he wrote on X that people “have no sense of humor“ while continuing to defend his statements
