Comedian Tony Hinchcliffe sparked bipartisan backlash by cracking a joke about Puerto Rico while speaking at the Trump rally held on Sunday at Madison Square Garden.
“I don’t know if you guys know this, but there’s literally a floating island of garbage in the … ocean right now.” Hinchcliffe said. “I think it’s called Puerto Rico.”
The Trump campaign swiftly distanced itself from the joke. “This joke does not reflect the views of President Trump or the campaign,” Trump campaign senior adviser Danielle Alvarez noted in a statement, according to reports.
Democratic Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez of New York addressed Hinchcliffe’s joke during a Twitch stream with Vice President Kamala Harris’ running mate, Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz.
“Who is that jackwad?” Walz asked in response to the clip.
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Ocasio-Cortez, who noted that her family is from Puerto Rico and that she’s Puerto Rican, took issue with the comedian’s joke.
“That’s just what they think about you. It’s what they think about anyone who makes less money than them. It’s what they think about the people who serve them food in a restaurant. It’s what they think about the people who, who fold their clothes in a store,” the Democrat from New York asserted.
The lawmaker’s “mother was born and raised in Puerto Rico,” according to her congressional website.
Hinchcliffe responded to the clip of Ocasio-Cortez and Walz, declaring in a post on X that he loves and vacations in Puerto Rico.
“These people have no sense of humor. Wild that a vice presidential candidate would take time out of his ‘busy schedule’ to analyze a joke taken out of context to make it seem racist,” he wrote. “I love Puerto Rico and vacation there. I made fun of everyone… watch the whole set. I’m a comedian Tim… might be time to change your tampon.”
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But Ocasio-Cortez fired back on X, scolding Hinchcliffe and accusing him of boosting neo-Nazis.
“You’re opening for Trump by calling Puerto Rico a floating pile of garbage. 4,000+ Puerto Ricans died under him. This isn’t the comedy store. You’re using your set to boost neo-Nazis like MTG & stripping women’s rights to the Stone Age. Your ‘sense of humor’ doesn’t change that.” she tweeted.
“And before people try to act like this is some PC overly sensitive nonsense, I’ve been to Kill Tony shows. I’m from the Bronx. I don’t give a s— about crude humor. But don’t pretend that your support for Trump is a joke. Own it. You doing a set to support him. That’s a choice,” she added in another post.
The lawmaker accused the comedian of dishing out “red-meat racism.”
“Can’t get over this dude telling someone else to change tampons when he’s the one sh—ing bricks in his Depends after realizing opening for a Trump rally and feeding red-meat racism alongside a throng of other bigots to a frothing crowd does, unironically, make you one of them,” she tweeted.
“You don’t ‘love Puerto Rico.’ You like drinking piña coladas. There’s a difference,” Ocasio-Cortez added in another tweet.
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Democratic Rep. Ritchie Torres of New York also blasted the comedian.
“As a Puerto Rican, I’m tempted to call Tony Hinchcliffe racist garbage, but doing so would be an insult to garbage. When casting their ballots at the voting booth, Latinos should never forget the racism that Donald Trump seems all too willing to platform,” the congressman tweeted.
Republicans also criticized the comedian.
Rep. Carlos Gimenez, R-Fla., tweeted, “This is not a joke. It’s completely classless & in poor taste. Puerto Rico is the crown jewel of the Caribbean & home to many of the most patriotic Americans I know. @TonyHinchcliffe clearly isn’t funny & definitely doesn’t reflect my values or those of the Republican Party.”
Rep. Anthony D’Esposito, a Republican from New York, posted, “I’m proud to be Puerto Rican. My mom was born and raised in Puerto Rico. It’s a beautiful island with a rich culture and an integral part of the USA. The only thing that’s ‘garbage’ was a bad comedy set. Stay on message.”
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