‘There’s no pulling out’: A Donald Trump Madison Square Garden rally speaker disgustingly insults Latinos with NSFW analogy
A Trump rally at Madison Square Garden descended into overt racism Sunday when comedian Tony Hinchcliffe unleashed a series of crude remarks targeting Latinos and Puerto Ricans, laying bare the increasingly inflammatory nature of the former president’s campaign events.
“These Latinos, they love making babies, too. Just know that they do,” Hinchcliffe said to the crowd. “There’s no pulling out. They don’t do that. They come inside, just like they did to our country.”
Known for his roast talents, Hinchcliffe, one of nearly 30 (yes, thirty) warmup speakers, blew unabated right past all stop signs in the routine he’d probably been waiting for his entire life. He went on to describe Puerto Rico—which is quite literally part of the United States—as “literally a floating island of garbage in the middle of the ocean right now” – a comment that drew both cheers and jeers from the audience.
The Trump campaign quickly attempted to undergo some measure of contrived and wildly disingenuous damage control, with senior adviser Danielle Alvarez stating that Hinchcliffe’s “joke does not reflect the views of President Trump or the campaign.” This disavowal came as several Republican lawmakers, particularly those from states with significant Puerto Rican populations, rushed to condemn the remarks.
Sen. Rick Scott (R-FL) posted that the “joke bombed for a reason,” while Rep. María Elvira Salazar expressed being “disgusted” by the “racist comment.” Rep. Carlos Gimenez called the comments “completely classless.”
Somehow, whilst evidently existing in a mental parallel universe, Hinchcliffe, rather than apologizing, doubled down on social media, claiming his critics “have no sense of humor” and took his jokes “out of context to make it seem racist.”
The comedian’s appearance wasn’t an isolated incident at what amounted to a neo-Nazi rally, which featured a host of speakers making weirdly unhinged and violently racist/sexist remarks about Vice President Kamala Harris. One called her “the Antichrist,” while another likened her to a prostitute with “pimp handlers.”
The campaign capstone event represented a dazzlingly evil display of the fascist rhetoric emanating from Trump’s campaign events and TV appearances. Former White House Chief of Staff John Kelly already warned in high-profile pieces and interviews that Trump fit the definition of a fascist, with the former president himself promising an era of post-Reconstruction-reminiscent “retribution” if re-elected.
The performative Republican outrage rings hollow given Hinchcliffe’s placement as one of 30 pre-selected speakers at an event The New York Times described as “a carnival of grievances, misogyny and racism.” The rally, held in the same venue as a 1939 Nazi gathering, featured multiple speakers trafficking in unchecked racism and rank misogyny.
That the Trump campaign specifically chose Hinchcliffe—well-known in comic circles for his provocative style—as a warmup act, only to comically express shock at his rhetoric, suggests the objections were less about the vomited content and more about saying the quiet part loud. The scattered applause mixed with knowing groans from the audience illuminated how the comedian had made explicit what usually remained coded or whispered about in dark rooms as unseasoned jokes amongst racist brethren over watered-down beers.
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