‘Who Booked This F-cking Jerk?’: Trump Allies Pressed Campaign to Denounce Rally Comedian
Nikki McCann Ramirez and Asawin Suebsaeng
Mon, October 28, 2024 a
Donald Trump’s rally at Madison Square Garden in New York was planned as a national moment for the former president’s closing campaign message and — much to the displeasure of some Republicans — it did exactly that.
Trump and his ilk have not been particularly quiet about their views on immigrants. This campaign cycle has seen him refer to migrants as “poisoning the blood of our country,” invent a mythical “migrant crime wave” to demonize undocumented immigrants, and promise “bloody” mass deportations. If the racism is loud at most Trump events, it was screamed into the national microphone on Sunday — and no one was louder than “comedian” Tony Hinchcliffe.
Hinchcliffe took it upon himself to upstage the former president, describing Latinos as mindless breeders and referring to Puerto Rico as a “floating island of garbage.” In an election where Republicans hope to win over Latino voters in critical states, an arena of 19,500 people laughing alongside Hinchcliffe’s demonstration of the overt racism that now defines the GOP’s politics was, to put it mildly, a disastrous look.
As Kamala Harris aides watched livestreams of the event with delight, Trump’s Manhattan rally — particularly the “jokes” — were met with a decidedly different reception among much of the Republican elite, who are largely expecting the 2024 presidential race to come down to the slimmest of margins and feel that every little misstep and unforced error could count for something.
“Who booked this fucking jerk?” a close Trump ally asked Rolling Stone, rhetorically, on Sunday. “Never heard of him.”
According to two other sources familiar with the matter, just as the Trump-aligned comedian’s comments began going viral, Latino Republicans and other Trump associates frantically messaged and called aides and longtime advisers to the former president while the rally was ongoing, insisting that the campaign immediately address the right-wing comic’s remarks on Latinos and the American territory of Puerto Rico. Some suggested Trump or his campaign should firmly denounce their own warmup act’s set in a statement.
“It’s fine, not like Donald Trump needs Latinos to vote for him or anything,” one of the sources, a well-connected GOP and Trump donor, noted sarcastically.
Later on Sunday, the intra-party freakout seems to have led to the Trump campaign issuing a statement, even if it wasn’t an emphatic condemnation. “This joke does not reflect the views of President Trump or the campaign,” Trump senior adviser Danielle Alvarez told NBC News in a perfunctory statement.
Florida Republican Sen. Rick Scott, who is running for reelection against Democratic challenger Debbie Mucarsel-Powell, condemned Hinchcliffe’s set. “This joke bombed for a reason. It’s not funny and it’s not true. Puerto Ricans are amazing people and amazing Americans! I’ve been to the island many times. It’s a beautiful place. Everyone should visit! I will always do whatever I can to help any Puerto Rican in Florida or on the island,” he wrote on X, formerly Twitter.
Rep. María Elvira Salazar (R-Fla.) wrote on X that she was “disgusted” by Hinchcliffe’s comments, claiming that his “rhetoric does not reflect GOP values.”
In a post on Threads, Meghan McCain, the daughter of former Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.), wrote that she felt that “this rally could backfire. How is this winning over moderates and independents exactly? This is maga on steroids.”
Like all comedians who believe racism and vitriol are an acceptable substitute for actual humor, Hinchcliffe claimed that he had been taken out of context — and that the real problem was the humorless puritans who criticized him.
“These people have no sense of humor,” Hinchcliffe wrote in response to a discussion of his statements between Democratic vice presidential candidate Tim Walz and Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.). “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. I love Puerto Rico and vacation there. I made fun of everyone…watch the whole set.”
Plenty of people watched his Trump rally set, and the consensus — even among the GOP — was that Hinchcliffe bombed so badly that Republican politicians had little choice but to run away from him as fast as possible.
Revealed: Trump campaign 'axed MAGA comedian's obscene description of Kamala Harris'
Sarah K. Burris
Sarah K. Burris
RAW STORY
October 28, 2024
Comedian Tony Hinchcliffe walks on stage during a rally for Republican presidential nominee and former U.S. President Donald Trump at Madison Square Garden, in New York, U.S., October 27, 2024. REUTERS/Andrew Kelly
The Bulwark reported Monday afternoon that Donald Trump's campaign intervened to strike a "joke" that right-wing comedian Tony Hinchcliffe had planned to tell during Sunday's rally at Madison Square Garden.
Trump's campaign has spent most of Monday distancing itself from Hinchcliffe and his claim that Puerto Rico was an "island of garbage."
"This joke does not reflect the views of President Trump or the campaign," said a senior Trump adviser in a statement to Fox News.
Read Also: The GOP's Barbarism and unrelenting extremism knows no bounds
The problem the campaign faces is that they did see at least some of Hinchcliffe's planned content ahead of time.
He had a joke calling [Vice President Kamala] Harris a ‘c--t,’” The Bulwark relayed, citing "a campaign insider involved in the discussions about the event."
The report explained that the Trump campaign asks all speakers to turn in drafts of their remarks ahead of time to load into the teleprompter. The campaign source said that a staffer spotted the C-word and asked Hinchcliffe to remove it.
Read the full report here.
October 28, 2024
Comedian Tony Hinchcliffe walks on stage during a rally for Republican presidential nominee and former U.S. President Donald Trump at Madison Square Garden, in New York, U.S., October 27, 2024. REUTERS/Andrew Kelly
The Bulwark reported Monday afternoon that Donald Trump's campaign intervened to strike a "joke" that right-wing comedian Tony Hinchcliffe had planned to tell during Sunday's rally at Madison Square Garden.
Trump's campaign has spent most of Monday distancing itself from Hinchcliffe and his claim that Puerto Rico was an "island of garbage."
"This joke does not reflect the views of President Trump or the campaign," said a senior Trump adviser in a statement to Fox News.
Read Also: The GOP's Barbarism and unrelenting extremism knows no bounds
The problem the campaign faces is that they did see at least some of Hinchcliffe's planned content ahead of time.
He had a joke calling [Vice President Kamala] Harris a ‘c--t,’” The Bulwark relayed, citing "a campaign insider involved in the discussions about the event."
The report explained that the Trump campaign asks all speakers to turn in drafts of their remarks ahead of time to load into the teleprompter. The campaign source said that a staffer spotted the C-word and asked Hinchcliffe to remove it.
Read the full report here.
'Huge mess-up': GOP descends into 'finger-pointing' amid panic over Puerto Rico racism
RAW STORY
October 28, 2024
Republican presidential nominee and former U.S. President Donald Trump makes a campaign speech at the Johnny Mercer Theatre Civic Center in Savannah, Georgia, U.S. September 24, 2024. REUTERS/Megan Varner/File Photo
Former President Donald Trump's rally in Madison Square Garden kicked off a firestorm of controversy after a right-wing comic introducing him called Puerto Rico "a floating island of garbage," with even hardcore MAGA Republicans immediately denouncing the joke as racist and inappropriate.
But behind the scenes, the turmoil is even worse, CNN's Kristen Holmes told Jake Tapper — even as on the surface of it, the Trump campaign considers the rally a rousing success.
"Yesterday afternoon on 'State of the Union,' a bunch of Republican people that I had on the panel, commentators, said they hope that Donald Trump will close in a positive, uplifting, embracing, inclusive message," said Tapper. "I don't think he's doing that?"
Holmes agreed, but added, "I can see why he wouldn't think that he needs to strike from that messaging," because every anti-immigrant, culture-war red meat line he threw at the rally "got a round of applause, not just tepid clapping, but a standing ovation ... they believe that what they are doing, and he believes himself what he is doing and saying, is working, and particularly when he is talking to his base at rally after rally, it was clear last night that they are enthused by that kind of rhetoric."
When it comes to the Puerto Rico bit, however, she said, the GOP has its hair on fire.
"They do not need to be reminded how many Puerto Rican voters there are," said Holmes. "It's why you saw them issue that statement so quickly, and I was told personally that several lawmakers aides, allies, called up Trump's campaign, whether it be different advisers, essentially to say that this was a huge mess-up, that this was a huge problem. And I've heard a lot of finger-pointing among different aides and allies saying, how could this possibly have gone unvetted, who was supposed to look at these speeches?"
"Now, I was told that the speech was gone over by this comedian in particular, that none of the jokes that were actually put out there were things that had been vetted, he had not run these by the campaign," said Holmes.
But, she added, this is at odds with new reporting that the Trump campaign did intervene to cut another obscene joke he had planned to make about Vice President Kamala Harris.
October 28, 2024
Republican presidential nominee and former U.S. President Donald Trump makes a campaign speech at the Johnny Mercer Theatre Civic Center in Savannah, Georgia, U.S. September 24, 2024. REUTERS/Megan Varner/File Photo
Former President Donald Trump's rally in Madison Square Garden kicked off a firestorm of controversy after a right-wing comic introducing him called Puerto Rico "a floating island of garbage," with even hardcore MAGA Republicans immediately denouncing the joke as racist and inappropriate.
But behind the scenes, the turmoil is even worse, CNN's Kristen Holmes told Jake Tapper — even as on the surface of it, the Trump campaign considers the rally a rousing success.
"Yesterday afternoon on 'State of the Union,' a bunch of Republican people that I had on the panel, commentators, said they hope that Donald Trump will close in a positive, uplifting, embracing, inclusive message," said Tapper. "I don't think he's doing that?"
Holmes agreed, but added, "I can see why he wouldn't think that he needs to strike from that messaging," because every anti-immigrant, culture-war red meat line he threw at the rally "got a round of applause, not just tepid clapping, but a standing ovation ... they believe that what they are doing, and he believes himself what he is doing and saying, is working, and particularly when he is talking to his base at rally after rally, it was clear last night that they are enthused by that kind of rhetoric."
When it comes to the Puerto Rico bit, however, she said, the GOP has its hair on fire.
"They do not need to be reminded how many Puerto Rican voters there are," said Holmes. "It's why you saw them issue that statement so quickly, and I was told personally that several lawmakers aides, allies, called up Trump's campaign, whether it be different advisers, essentially to say that this was a huge mess-up, that this was a huge problem. And I've heard a lot of finger-pointing among different aides and allies saying, how could this possibly have gone unvetted, who was supposed to look at these speeches?"
"Now, I was told that the speech was gone over by this comedian in particular, that none of the jokes that were actually put out there were things that had been vetted, he had not run these by the campaign," said Holmes.
But, she added, this is at odds with new reporting that the Trump campaign did intervene to cut another obscene joke he had planned to make about Vice President Kamala Harris.
- YouTube
Opinion
Harris Rips Trump’s MSG Hate Fest: This is Why Americans Are ‘Exhausted’ by Him
Grace Harrington
Mon, October 28, 2024
Evelyn Hockstein
Kamala Harris on Monday slammed Donald Trump’s racist rally at Madison Square Garden as yet another reminder of why Americans are “exhausted” by him.
“What he did last night is not a discovery. It is just more of the same, and maybe more vivid than usual,” Harris told reporters in Michigan.
“Donald Trump spends full-time trying to have Americans point their finger at each other, fans the fuel of hate and division, and that’s why people are exhausted with him. … People are literally ready to turn the page. They’re tired of it,” she said.
Even before Trump took the stage in New York City on Sunday, the other speakers at the rally had already sparked outrage with a flurry of incendiary comments. Comedian Tony Hinchcliffe called Puerto Rico a “floating island of garbage” and made racist comments about Black people.
Former Fox News host Tucker Carlson repeatedly misidentified Harris’ race and touted the racist “great replacement theory.” Another speaker said Harris has “pimp handlers” and called for the “slaughter” of Democrats.
Trump himself called Harris a “very low IQ individual” and described migrants as“vicious and bloodthirsty criminals.” He also called his political rivals the “enemy from within” and said journalists were the “enemy of the people.”
The rally was denounced not only by the Harris campaign, but by celebrities and Republican officials. Puerto Rican stars Jennifer Lopez, Bad Bunny and Ricky Martin all condemned Hinchcliffe’s comments and expressed their support for Harris. Republican Florida Gov. Rick Scott also defended Puerto Rico.
Opinion | Why Trump can’t pretend his rally’s anti-Puerto Rican racism was just a joke
Harris Rips Trump’s MSG Hate Fest: This is Why Americans Are ‘Exhausted’ by Him
Grace Harrington
Mon, October 28, 2024
Evelyn Hockstein
Kamala Harris on Monday slammed Donald Trump’s racist rally at Madison Square Garden as yet another reminder of why Americans are “exhausted” by him.
“What he did last night is not a discovery. It is just more of the same, and maybe more vivid than usual,” Harris told reporters in Michigan.
“Donald Trump spends full-time trying to have Americans point their finger at each other, fans the fuel of hate and division, and that’s why people are exhausted with him. … People are literally ready to turn the page. They’re tired of it,” she said.
Even before Trump took the stage in New York City on Sunday, the other speakers at the rally had already sparked outrage with a flurry of incendiary comments. Comedian Tony Hinchcliffe called Puerto Rico a “floating island of garbage” and made racist comments about Black people.
Former Fox News host Tucker Carlson repeatedly misidentified Harris’ race and touted the racist “great replacement theory.” Another speaker said Harris has “pimp handlers” and called for the “slaughter” of Democrats.
Trump himself called Harris a “very low IQ individual” and described migrants as“vicious and bloodthirsty criminals.” He also called his political rivals the “enemy from within” and said journalists were the “enemy of the people.”
The rally was denounced not only by the Harris campaign, but by celebrities and Republican officials. Puerto Rican stars Jennifer Lopez, Bad Bunny and Ricky Martin all condemned Hinchcliffe’s comments and expressed their support for Harris. Republican Florida Gov. Rick Scott also defended Puerto Rico.
Opinion | Why Trump can’t pretend his rally’s anti-Puerto Rican racism was just a joke
Julio Ricardo Varela
MSNBC
Mon, October 28, 2024
Former President Donald Trump at a campaign rally at Madison Square Garden in New York, Oct. 27, 2024.
I am Puerto Rican, and I am tired.
When comedian Tony Hinchcliffe joked Sunday that Puerto Rico was “a floating island of garbage” at the start of a Donald Trump rally at Madison Square Garden, I was not surprised.
I knew this was just the latest example of a risible American tradition: using “comedy” to insult Puerto Ricans. It’s raw and insulting.
Much of the coverage of Hinchcliffe’s racism has been focused on next week’s presidential election. The Trump campaign quickly distanced itself, saying, “This joke does not reflect the views of President Trump or the campaign.” Hinchcliffe tried to backtrack almost immediately by saying that he vacations in Puerto Rico and loves the island.
Puerto Ricans have heard these kinds of excuses and apologies before. The fact is that Hinchcliffe was at that Trump rally, and anyone trying to spin it any other way just doesn’t get it and never will.
Vice President Kamala Harris made sure Monday to connect Hinchcliffe to the former president, saying: “This is not new about [Trump], by the way. What he did last night was not a discovery. It is just more of the same and maybe more vivid than usual.” Harris and her team hope the remark will redound to their advantage. The campaign’s plan for Puerto Rico went public the same day as Hinchcliffe’s failed comedy routine.
The disaster of Hurricane Maria and the Trump administration’s botched response has prompted Puerto Ricans to be more vocal about their role in the American political system. About 500,000 Puerto Ricans live in the battleground state of Pennsylvania. During Trump’s rally, music superstar Bad Bunny endorsed Harris — joining other Puerto Rican celebrities like Jennifer Lopez and Ricky Martin — and shared her newly announced proposals for the island on his social media accounts.
The Harris campaign is doing what campaigns do. But viewing Hinchcliffe’s words merely through a political lens misses the bigger picture. Puerto Rico, a spoil of an American war victory from 1898, still has a complicated colonial relationship with the U.S. In the 19th century, images mocking backward Puerto Ricans as savages were the norm in the U.S. Things have barely changed since: To other Americans, Puerto Ricans have always been seen as dirty, backward, ignorant and second-class citizens.
Mon, October 28, 2024
Former President Donald Trump at a campaign rally at Madison Square Garden in New York, Oct. 27, 2024.
I am Puerto Rican, and I am tired.
When comedian Tony Hinchcliffe joked Sunday that Puerto Rico was “a floating island of garbage” at the start of a Donald Trump rally at Madison Square Garden, I was not surprised.
I knew this was just the latest example of a risible American tradition: using “comedy” to insult Puerto Ricans. It’s raw and insulting.
Much of the coverage of Hinchcliffe’s racism has been focused on next week’s presidential election. The Trump campaign quickly distanced itself, saying, “This joke does not reflect the views of President Trump or the campaign.” Hinchcliffe tried to backtrack almost immediately by saying that he vacations in Puerto Rico and loves the island.
Puerto Ricans have heard these kinds of excuses and apologies before. The fact is that Hinchcliffe was at that Trump rally, and anyone trying to spin it any other way just doesn’t get it and never will.
Vice President Kamala Harris made sure Monday to connect Hinchcliffe to the former president, saying: “This is not new about [Trump], by the way. What he did last night was not a discovery. It is just more of the same and maybe more vivid than usual.” Harris and her team hope the remark will redound to their advantage. The campaign’s plan for Puerto Rico went public the same day as Hinchcliffe’s failed comedy routine.
The disaster of Hurricane Maria and the Trump administration’s botched response has prompted Puerto Ricans to be more vocal about their role in the American political system. About 500,000 Puerto Ricans live in the battleground state of Pennsylvania. During Trump’s rally, music superstar Bad Bunny endorsed Harris — joining other Puerto Rican celebrities like Jennifer Lopez and Ricky Martin — and shared her newly announced proposals for the island on his social media accounts.
The Harris campaign is doing what campaigns do. But viewing Hinchcliffe’s words merely through a political lens misses the bigger picture. Puerto Rico, a spoil of an American war victory from 1898, still has a complicated colonial relationship with the U.S. In the 19th century, images mocking backward Puerto Ricans as savages were the norm in the U.S. Things have barely changed since: To other Americans, Puerto Ricans have always been seen as dirty, backward, ignorant and second-class citizens.
It’s as if Puerto Ricans have never been extricated from the “West Side Story” stereotypes of the late 1950s when the Broadway smash became the defining image of Puerto Ricans for most Americans. Puerto Rican characters singing “Puerto Rico, you dirty island…” has always been wrong. Even as the musical went through some more modern revisions to clean it up a bit, the damage was already done. The prejudicial portrayal has never left the American cultural lexicon. For as long as I can remember, “jokes” about us Puerto Ricans have always failed. Americans never seem to learn.
In 1998, during the final season of “Seinfeld,” NBC had to apologize for an episode in which the character Cosmo Kramer burned a Puerto Rican flag because the city’s Puerto Rican Day Parade was causing too much traffic. (NBC and MSNBC are both owned by NBC Universal.) The backlash from Puerto Ricans was swift. In fact, that episode was removed from the syndicated show’s TV schedule, though sadly it is today available to stream on Netflix.
In 2012, Puerto Rican activists expressed fury at the ABC sitcom “Work It,” when Puerto Rican actor Amuary Nolasco’s character said, “I’m Puerto Rican. I would be great at selling drugs.” Eventually, the show was canceled.
Puerto Ricans are still working to call out those who continue to disparage us. And we’re exhausted. Nothing has really changed when it comes to respecting Puerto Ricans for who they are and what they have done to contribute to American democracy, even when that very same democracy has perpetuated a relationship that might offer us American citizenship but still keeps us a colony.
This is not about how many Puerto Ricans have died in wars for American causes or how some of the country’s biggest celebrities are Puerto Rican.
There is something deeper here that we, as Americans, do not want to confront.
More than 125 years after the American empire conquered their island, Puerto Ricans are still a punch line. The Trump campaign would love for this to all go away, while the Harris campaign will use it to get out more Boricua voters. But this is much bigger than Republican or Democratic support and who will win Puerto Rican voters in 2024. Both parties have perpetually supported a colonial system that has done little to improve Puerto Rico’s fortunes. For too long, other Americans have thought of Puerto Ricans as a joke. Now, we’re demanding respect.
In 2012, Puerto Rican activists expressed fury at the ABC sitcom “Work It,” when Puerto Rican actor Amuary Nolasco’s character said, “I’m Puerto Rican. I would be great at selling drugs.” Eventually, the show was canceled.
Puerto Ricans are still working to call out those who continue to disparage us. And we’re exhausted. Nothing has really changed when it comes to respecting Puerto Ricans for who they are and what they have done to contribute to American democracy, even when that very same democracy has perpetuated a relationship that might offer us American citizenship but still keeps us a colony.
This is not about how many Puerto Ricans have died in wars for American causes or how some of the country’s biggest celebrities are Puerto Rican.
There is something deeper here that we, as Americans, do not want to confront.
More than 125 years after the American empire conquered their island, Puerto Ricans are still a punch line. The Trump campaign would love for this to all go away, while the Harris campaign will use it to get out more Boricua voters. But this is much bigger than Republican or Democratic support and who will win Puerto Rican voters in 2024. Both parties have perpetually supported a colonial system that has done little to improve Puerto Rico’s fortunes. For too long, other Americans have thought of Puerto Ricans as a joke. Now, we’re demanding respect.
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