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    • Trump faces backlash from Bad Bunny and Puerto Ricans in fight for Latino vote
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    Trump faces backlash from Bad Bunny and Puerto Ricans in fight for Latino vote

    Idris Bevan Posted on

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    Puerto Ricans, including Grammy-winning artists Bad Bunny and Ricky Martin, strongly condemned Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump after a comedian performing at his final campaign rally at Madison Square Garden mocked the island as a “floating island of trash.”

    The backlash comes as Trump and Democratic presidential candidate Kamala Harris are locked in a razor-thin race — and counting on Latino voters to help them get to the White House.

    Puerto Rican voters living in the United States represent the second largest Latino group in the country, including in key battleground states like Pennsylvania.

    Trump, sensing increasing support among Latino men, touted high-profile support for Puerto Rican artists like Anuel AA and Nicky Jam, who have large followings among young Latino voters. But comments from comedian Tony Hinchcliffe, who goes by the stage name “Kill Tony,” have sparked a broad and bipartisan backlash against Trump’s presidential campaign.

    “I couldn’t believe what I heard from that Trump rally. Seeing this kind of hate on full display not only angered me, but strengthened my resolve to do everything I can to ensure he never sits in the Oval Office again,” said Mayor Matt Tuerk of Allentown, Pennsylvania. More than half of Allentown’s residents are Latino, many of whom are of Puerto Rican descent. Tuerk, a Democrat of Cuban descent, is the city’s first Latino mayor.

    Republican Rep. María Elvira Salazar of Florida, who was born in Puerto Rico, also immediately condemned Hinchcliffe’s comments.

    “I am disgusted by @TonyHinchcliffe’s racist comment calling Puerto Rico a ‘floating island of trash,'” she wrote on X. “This rhetoric does not reflect the values ​​of the Republican Party.”

    Hinchcliffe spoke several hours before the former president at Trump’s rally at Madison Square Garden, where he called Puerto Rico a “floating island of garbage in the ocean right now” and joked about Latinos.

    Amid the growing furore, senior Trump adviser Danielle Alvarez issued a statement Sunday evening addressing Hinchcliffe’s role. “This joke does not reflect the views of President Trump or the campaign,” she said.

    According to the Pew Research Center, more than two-thirds of Puerto Ricans live in the United States — about 5.8 million. Another 3.3 million Puerto Ricans live on the island, which is a U.S. territory, but residents of the island cannot vote for president.

    Shortly after Hinchcliffe’s comments went viral, Bad Bunny, a Puerto Rican superstar, shared a video in which Harris criticized Trump’s actions against Puerto Rico as president. On his Instagram Story, Bad Bunny shared a post from Harris’ Instagram account outlining her plans for the island.

    The reggaetonero then shared a clip of her post several times with the line: “I will never forget what Donald Trump did – and what he didn’t do – when Puerto Rico needed a caring and competent leader.” He left the island, tried blocking aid after back-to-back devastating hurricanes, offering nothing more than paper towels and insults.”

    His last post on his Instagram story with the clip was shortened and read: “I will never forget what Donald Trump did.” Bad Bunny has 45.6 million followers on Instagram.

    A representative for Bad Bunny said the artist supports Harris. However, the representative emphasized that Bad Bunny’s focus is Puerto Rico. Bad Bunny has often commented on local politics in Puerto Rico, most recently urging residents to vote against the New Progressive Party, which is ahead in November’s gubernatorial election.

    Both Harris and Trump are vying for Latino voters, who will be crucial in deciding the winner of the presidential election.

    With less than 10 days until the Nov. 5 election, Harris earlier Sunday unveiled an “Opportunity Economy” agenda for Puerto Rico that would create a task force focused on creating economic opportunities on the island and improving the electric grid to help close the Latino voter gap.

    “I truly believe that we are all part of a new generation of leaders for our country who are optimistic, ambitious, and if I can say this for myself, quite impatient about knowing that we can get things done,” said them at Freddy and Tony’s Restaurant in a Puerto Rican neighborhood of Philadelphia.

    During Trump’s presidency, Puerto Rico was devastated by two consecutive hurricanes in 2017, killing more than 3,000 people and displacing thousands.

    At the time, Trump was criticized for his response to the storms after he downplayed the damage they caused and an image went viral of him throwing rolls of paper towels to island residents.

    Some people of Puerto Rican descent criticized Trump for giving Hinchcliffe a platform at his rally.

    Lexie Robinson, 49, a Puerto Rican who has lived in Brooklyn for 16 years, said she believes the former president is “a racist, dangerous, self-righteous deviant.”

    “It is despicable that Puerto Rico has been labeled a floating island of garbage,” she said. “You are literally in NYC, a city that is part of our great migration, a city to which we have given so much culture, so much love, music, food, community – so much of ourselves.”

    Robinson is voting for Harris in this election, even though she disagrees with the Democratic vice president’s support for aid to Israel in the Gaza war.

    After widespread backlash, including from Democratic vice presidential nominee Tim Walz, Hinchcliffe said he loved Puerto Rico and had vacationed there. And that the comedian “made fun of everyone” throughout his performance.

    “These people have no sense of humor,” he wrote.

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    Idris Bevan
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