'Spreading like wildfire': Puerto Rico scandal may doom Trump in crucial swing state

29 October 2024

The Trump campaign has been trying to distance itself from remarks that comedian Tony Hinchcliffe made during a rally at New York City's Madison Square Garden on Sunday, October 27, where Hinchcliffe described Puerto Rico as a "floating island of garbage."

The backlash against Hinchcliffe's racist joke has been swift. Three well-known Puerto Ricans — Jennifer López, Ricky Martin and reggaetón star Bad Bunny — responded by endorsing Kamala Harris for president.

In an article published by Politico on October 28, reporters Meredith Lee Hill, Mia McCarthy and Holly Otterbein examine the possible fallout in a state that Trump can't afford to lose: Pennsylvania.

The Keystone State has a lot of Puerto Rican residents, from Philadelphia to Pittsburgh to Allentown. And the reporters emphasize that the Hinchcliffe controversy may improve Harris' chances of winning the state.

"Donald Trump has a serious Puerto Rico problem — in Pennsylvania," Hill, McCarthy and the Philly-based Otterbein explain. "Many Puerto Rican voters in the state are furious about racist and demeaning comments delivered at a Trump rally. Some say their dismay is giving Kamala Harris a new opening to win over the state's Latino voters, particularly nearly half a million Pennsylvanians of Puerto Rican descent."

The reporters add, "Evidence of the backlash was immediate on Monday: A nonpartisan Puerto Rican group drafted a letter urging its members to oppose Trump on Election Day. Other Puerto Rican voters were lighting up WhatsApp chats with reactions to the vulgar display and raising it in morning conversations at their bodegas. Some are planning to protest Trump's rally Tuesday, (October 29) in Allentown, a majority-Latino city with one of the largest Puerto Rican populations in the state."

Norberto Dominguez, a Democratic precinct captain in Allentown, told Politico that Puerto Ricans in his area are not taking Hinchcliffe's racist attack on Puerto Rico lightly.

Dominguez observed, "It's spreading like wildfire through the community. It's not the smartest thing to do, to insult people — a large group of voters here in a swing state — and then go to their home asking for votes."

Allentown resident Victor Martínez, who owns the Spanish-language radio station La Mega, told Politico that for Harris' campaign, Hinchcliffe's "floating island of garbage" comment "was just like a gift from the gods."

"If we weren't engaged before," Martínez noted, "we're all paying attention now."

Read Politico's full report at this link.

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