In a recent phone interview with Fox & Friends, former President Donald Trump defended comedian Tony Hinchcliffe after his controversial comments at a Madison Square Garden rally, where he labeled Puerto Rico as “garbage” and made antisemitic jokes. Trump shifted the blame onto the Democrats for amplifying the backlash against Hinchcliffe, claiming he had no prior knowledge of the comedian or his act.
“It was unbelievable,” Trump remarked, dismissing the uproar. “I guess somebody put on a comedian. Here’s a comedian, a joke.” As he elaborated, Trump highlighted what he perceives as the Democrats’ skill in creating political controversy, saying, “They’re good at cheating, but other than that, they’re not good at anything.”
Hinchcliffe faced significant backlash for his remarks, which combined anti-Latino insults with offensive stereotypes. Critics, including Ángel Cintrón, Chairman of the Republican Party of Puerto Rico, condemned the decision to feature him at the rally. However, Trump took a different approach, minimizing the issue by stating, “He joked, he was a comedian and he joked.”
During the interview, Trump boasted about his record regarding Puerto Rico, declaring, “Nobody’s been better to Puerto Rico than me.” He recounted his administration’s response to natural disasters, particularly mentioning the deployment of a hospital ship to aid the island after devastating hurricanes. “I brought in the hospital ship, the mercy. There’s nobody, and Puerto Ricans will tell you that, nobody’s done more for Puerto Rico than me,” he insisted.
As he continued, Trump seemed to downplay the significance of Hinchcliffe’s comments, noting that the comedian’s joke came early in the show, before the main events had started. He criticized the Democrats for turning a “little joke” into a major controversy, saying, “They made this comedian, and they made the whole weekend… stained it a little bit.”
