Comedian Tony Hinchcliffe is facing backlash from Trump allies due to a joke he made about Puerto Rico being “a floating island of garbage” at Trump’s rally at New York’s Madison Square Garden on Sunday. While Democrats like Tim Walz and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez have denounced his comments, numerous Republicans have also condemned them. Even the Trump campaign‘s Danielle Alvarez said in a statement that “this joke does not reflect the views of President Trump” as the campaign hopes to win Puerto Rico in the 2024 presidential election. Here what multiple Trump allies have said about Tony Hinchcliffe’s Puerto Rico trash joke.
Which Trump supporters have denounced Tony Hinchcliffe?
At least five Trump allies have condemned Hinchcliffe’s joke about Puerto Rico. This comes after the comedian doubled down on his joke, saying that it is being “taken out of context.”
Florida Senator Rick Scott responded on X saying that “the joke bombed for a reason” and calls Puerto Ricans “amazing people and amazing Americans.”
David Urban, who advised Trump in Pennsylvania, said on X (formerly Twitter), “I understand that his K*ll Tony podcast is wildly popular, but I thought he was unfunny and unfortunately offended many of our friends from Puerto Rico.”
Congresswoman María Elvira Salazar from Florida was “disgusted” by the joke on X and reminded her followers that Puerto Rico sent over 48,000 soldiers to Vietnam.
New York congressman Anthony D’Esposito believes that “the only thing that’s ‘garbage’ was a bad comedy set,” responding on X that he is “proud to be Puerto Rican.”
Representative Carlos A. Gimenez from Florida called the joke “classless” on X and called Puerto Rico “home to many of the most patriotic Americans” he knows. He believes that Hinchcliffe “clearly isn’t funny” and doesn’t reflect the values of the Republican Party.
Hinchcliffe doubled down on his joke on X, calling Walz and Ocasio-Cortez as “people with no sense of humor.” He says that his joke was “taken out of context to make it seem racist” and notes that he loves Puerto Rico and vacations there.
As noted by ABC, the Puerto Rican population in swing state Pennsylvania makes up 8% of the state’s population according to 2020 US. Census Bureau data. In response, Puerto Rican star Bad Bunny backed Harris on Instagram after Hinchcliffe’s appearance.
