ALLENTOWN, Pa. — Former President Donald Trump threatened to undermine the gains he has made in a chaotic rally Tuesday at a Madison Square Garden rally where he campaigned in a majority-Latino city. In one, he worked to quell anger over a comedian’s derogatory joke about Latinos and Puerto Rico. with Latino voters.
Trump did not mention the comedian’s comments during his 75-minute speech, instead citing his strong performance among Latino voters according to polls and his expression of solidarity with Puerto Rico.
President Trump said he would “develop the best possible future for Puerto Ricans and Hispanic Americans.”
Later in his appearance, President Trump called Puerto Rico’s Republican shadow senator to the podium, days after comedian Tony Hinchcliffe compared Puerto Rico to a “floating island of trash” as part of a series of speeches. He praised President Trump and assured him of his commitment to U.S. territory. jokes at President Trump’s recent event in New York City.
“The people of Puerto Rico trust you and we have high expectations,” Zoraida Bucso said. “We want this man back in the White House. We need this man as our commander in chief. He’s going to make us feel safe. And he’s going to protect us. Dew.”
Before President Trump took to the stage, some speakers took the trouble to celebrate Puerto Rico.
Former Allentown mayoral candidate Tim Ramos introduced himself to the audience as a “Puerto Rican” who wanted to express his “love for the island and the people of Puerto Rico.”
“We have a proud tradition, a tradition that has seen our soldiers fight in every war this country has ever fought,” he said. “We are a beautiful people from a beautiful island.”
Buxo also spoke before Trump’s arrival, describing Puerto Rico as a “beautiful island” with a “deep, deep love for our country.”
“God bless you, that’s home,” she said, adding, “That’s Puerto Rico.”
Another speaker, Republican Sen. Marco Rubio of Florida, spoke in both Spanish and English. Rubio had previously criticized Hinchcliffe’s comments on social media site X, but did not address the episode Tuesday.
The pro-Puerto Rican message comes after two days of growing anger over the comedian’s appearance at a Trump rally Sunday at Manhattan’s famous arena.
With President Trump and Vice President Kamala Harris in a close race, the comments belittled some voters who could decide a close election. Census estimates put the Puerto Rican population in Pennsylvania, a key battleground state, at nearly 500,000. People of Puerto Rican descent make up the largest share of Latino voters in Pennsylvania.
Matt Turk, the Democratic mayor of Allentown, said in an interview that his constituents are “outraged.”
“People will turn that anger into votes, and people will respond. We won’t be angry, we will retaliate.”
Condemnation began pouring in even before the Madison Square Garden rally was over, with elected officials of both parties, pop culture figures, celebrities and ordinary voters pushing back against the remarks. Puerto Rican rapper and singer Bad Bunny supported Harris, releasing a video paying tribute to the island with the tongue-in-cheek caption, “Trash.”
Hinchcliffe’s comments came at a particularly inopportune time for the Trump campaign. Recent polls, including Reuters/Ipsos and NBC News/CNBC/Telemundo, show that President Joe Biden and other Democratic candidates have the advantage among Hispanic men that they enjoyed in 2020 and other recent elections. It shows that President Trump has wiped out sexuality.
Democratic Rep. Susan Wilde, who represents the Allentown area, told reporters Tuesday that her district is home to 70,000 Puerto Ricans and many non-Puerto Rican Hispanics and Latinos. The anger was obvious.
“We hear more about this than almost any other issue during the campaign.”
With the fallout in mind, the Trump campaign organized a rally at an Allentown hockey rink to send a positive message about the island.
However, President Trump has yet to personally condemn the insult. “This joke does not reflect the views of President Trump or his campaign,” his campaign said in a statement.
Before appearing in Allentown, President Trump told ABC News that the event at Madison Square Garden was a “love fest.” He said he did not know Mr Hinchcliffe and had not seen his comments.
Mr. Trump suffered little lasting political damage when he or one of his allies made derogatory or inflammatory remarks. Usually, we focus on what is being said before moving on to the next provocation, but this does not last long.
Democrats argue that the vilification of Puerto Rico is different even if President Trump himself did not say it. The comment came from an invited speaker who stood in front of a podium emblazoned with the Trump-Vance campaign logo.
Democratic Sen. Bob Casey, who is running for re-election in a close race, told reporters on the campaign trail Tuesday: “These are extremely vulgar comments to make at a rally hosted by the president’s campaign, where he should be held accountable.” he said. Located in Allentown.
Protesters gathered outside the venue hours before Trump spoke. One demonstrator, Enid Santiago, 46, told NBC News that the comments galvanized uninterested voters who had planned to sit out the race.
“People who were just sitting there because they were tired of politics are now angry,” said Santiago, who was born in Puerto Rico and now lives in Allentown.
Tyree Pagan, 41, also a Puerto Rican-born Allentown resident, stood outside the arena holding a Harris campaign sign. For her, the comedian’s disdain for Puerto Rico reminded her of President Trump’s response to Hurricane Maria, which devastated the island during his first year in office. President Trump, who visited Puerto Rico after the storm, threw rolls of paper towels to residents of the affected island.
“We suffered a lot from Hurricane Maria,” Pagan said. “He was our president and he just threw a paper towel at us. We are human beings with dignity.”
“He needs to get to know us personally,” she said.
