By Gram Slattery and Helen Coster
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – Political leaders from both sides of the aisle and Puerto Rican celebrities bashed comments at a major Donald Trump event in New York by a comedian who called Puerto Rico a “floating island of garbage.”
Speaking before the Republican presidential candidate at a rally at Madison Square Garden on Sunday night, comedian and podcast host Tony Hinchcliffe added that Latinos “love making babies” and that they do not “pull out,” comments that leaned into a racist trope that Latinos are preoccupied with childbearing and averse to birth control.
“There’s literally a floating island of garbage in the middle of the ocean right now,” Hinchcliffe said. “I think it’s called Puerto Rico.”
The presidential campaign of Democratic Vice President Kamala Harris, Democrats, several prominent Puerto Rican celebrities and some congressional Republicans denounced the comments, which were widely panned as racist.
The Trump campaign itself said the comments do not “reflect the views of President Trump or the campaign.” Trump himself has not commented on Hinchcliffe’s performance.
Puerto Ricans are U.S. citizens, though they do not have voting representation in Congress and the island does not vote for president. The island is an unincorporated territory of the United States.
Americans of Puerto Rican origin or ancestry are an important demographic in some of the competitive swing states that will likely decide the winner of the Nov. 5 election, including Pennsylvania. Broadly speaking, both candidates are fighting tooth and nail for the Latino vote, which has trended more Republican in recent years but still leans Democratic.
Ed Rosa, 60, a New York resident whose parents were born in Puerto Rico and who attended a Trump rally in May, said he was planning to vote for Trump, but will sit the election out after Hinchcliffe’s comments. He said he has removed the Trump campaign signs he had placed in the windows and yard of his North Bronx home.
“It wasn’t funny at all,” said Rosa. “I really believe it was racist. And I was a very strong supporter of Trump until yesterday.”
In a video posted on X on Sunday, Harris reacted directly to Hinchcliffe’s comments saying, “Puerto Rico is home to some of the most talented, innovative and ambitious people in our nation.”
Actor and singer Jennifer Lopez, whose parents were born in Puerto Rico, shared Harris’ video on Instagram, as did Puerto Rican rapper, singer and producer Bad Bunny. It was his first apparent gesture of support for the Democratic candidate.
Puerto Rican singer, songwriter and actor Ricky Martin shared a video of Hinchcliffe’s comments on Instagram, writing “This is what they think of us” in Spanish.
Hinchcliffe played down the offensive nature of his comments on Sunday evening.
“These people have no sense of humor,” Hinchcliffe wrote on X in response to a critical video from Democratic lawmaker Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Harris’ running mate, Minnesota Governor Tim Walz.
Among the Trump allies who took offense at Hinchcliffe’s comments was Republican U.S. Senator Rick Scott of Florida, a state that has many Puerto Rican voters.
“It’s not funny and it’s not true,” he wrote on X on Sunday evening. “Puerto Ricans are amazing people and amazing Americans! I’ve been to the island many times. It’s a beautiful place.”
Republican U.S. Representatives Anthony D’Esposito, Maria Elvira Salazar and Carlos Gimenez also quickly condemned the comments. D’Esposito, who is partially of Puerto Rican ancestry, represents a hyper-competitive Long Island district.
“I’m proud to be Puerto Rican,” D’Esposito wrote on X.
“The only thing that’s ‘garbage’ was a bad comedy set.”
(Reporting by Gram Slattery; additional reporting by Steve Holland; editing by Ross Colvin and Deepa Babington)
