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Stand-up comedian Tony Hinchcliffe's performance at Donald Trump's Madison Square Gallery in New York city has sparked backlash after he called Puerto Rico as a "floating island of garbage."
At Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump's rally the comedian and podcast host Hinchcliffe made a racist joke comparing Puerto Rico, which is a US territory referring to it as ocean waste, local media reported. "There's a lot going on, like, 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," he said. "I think it's called Puerto Rico," Hinchcliffe said. CNN quoted the comedian making racist comments against the Latinos claiming they "love making babies." Hinchcliffe's joke drew criticism from both Democrats and Republicans, leading Trump's campaign to sideline itself from his comments. "This joke does not reflect the views of President Trump or the campaign," Trump campaign spokesperson Danielle Alvarez said in a statement to CNN after the rally. Hinchcliffe also made offensive comments about Latinos, Jews, and Black people, key groups in the upcoming election. Hinchcliffe joked, "I think it's called Puerto Rico," referring to a "floating island of garbage." "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," Hinchcliffe said during the rally. "These Latinos, they love making babies, too. Just know that they do," Hinchcliffe continued. Trump's rally included entertainers and MAGA politicians. Many Trump loyalists made it to the speakers' list ahead of the former president and took the opportunity to spew attacks at some of Trump's favourite targets. But Hinchcliffe's remarks marred one of Trump's biggest election rallies. In a post shared on X, Republican Sen. Rick Scott of Florida wrote, "It's not funny and it's not true. Puerto Ricans are amazing people and amazing Americans!" https://x.com/ScottforFlorida/status/1850671024204882016 Florida Republican, Rep. Carlos Gimenez who is a close ally of Trump, also criticised Hichcliffe's statement on X. He wrote, "This is not a joke. It's completely classless & in poor taste," he said on X. "@TonyHinchcliffe clearly isn't funny & definitely doesn't reflect my values or those of the Republican Party." https://x.com/CarlosGimenezFL/status/1850692548710318234 Responding to Tony Hichcliffe's remarks, New York GOP Rep. Anthony D'Esposito said, "I'm proud to be Puerto Rican. The only thing that's 'garbage' was a bad comedy set. Stay on message." https://x.com/ANTHONYDESPO/status/1850705066610553073 Meanwhile, Latin artist Bad Bunny, whose official name is Benito Antonio Martinez Ocasio, sharedg on his Instagram story a video of Kamala Harris lashing out at Trump for delaying $20 billion in hurricane relief after the devastating Hurricanes Irma and Maria hit the island in 2017. In the video, Harris said, "There is so much at stake in this election for Puerto Rican voters and for Puerto Rico." Bad Bunny shared another clip from Harris where she says, "I will never forget what Donald Trump did, and what he did not do when Puerto Rico needed a caring and a competent leader." The popular singer used his platform to highlight Harris' message and call out Trump's neglect of the island. Jennifer Lopez, who also has Puerto Rican roots posted a portion of Harris' video to her Instagram Story, along with a screenshot of Harris' plan for Puerto Rico. Ricky Martin too shared both Harris' video and a clip of Hinchcliffe making the racist joke. On Sunday, Trump closed his rally with an 80-minute speech where he vowed to crack down on migration while slamming his Democratic rival and Vice President Kamala Harris. Donald Trump during his speech repeatedly criticised migrants and promised to invoke an 18th-century law to carry out mass deportation operations in the United States of America. In the 2020 Presidential election, Biden narrowly defeated Trump in Michigan by just over 150,000 votes, a stark contrast to Trump's slim victory in 2016 against Hillary Clinton by less than 11,000 votes. The US presidential polls are scheduled to be held on November 5. (ANI)
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