"A vote for Trump is a vote against self-respect"— Geraldo Rivera condemns Tony Hinchcliffe's joke about Puerto Rico at Trumps MSG rally
American journalist Geraldo Rivera has slammed Donald Trump and comedian Tony Hinchcliffe following the latter's seemingly racist remarks during a Republican rally. Hinchcliffe was one of the opening acts at Donald Trump's Madison Square Garden rally on Sunday, October 27.
The Kill Tony podcast host allegedly made demeaning comments about Puerto Rico, describing the place as "a floating island of garbage," and made s*xually surcharged jokes about Latinos. His remarks received mixed reactions from the crowd of 20,000.
In a post on X, Geraldo Rivera slammed Tony Hinchcliffe's speech, stating that a vote for the Republican supremo is equivalent to a vote against one's self-respect.
"“A floating island of garbage…?” Referring to Puerto Rico??? “Poisoning the blood of our nation…?” "We have “murder in our genes….?” F**k these racists. Latino men of good will, have pride in yourselves and your ancestors. A vote for Trump is a vote against self-respect," Geraldo Rivera wrote.
Earlier this month, Rivera announced his endorsement of Democratic presidential candidate Kamala Harris, who is also a longtime friend of the journalist.
Tony Hinchcliffe's speech at the Madison Square Garden MAGA rally explored
Donald Trump's MAGA rally at the Madison Square Garden drew prominent supporters, including Tucker Carlson, Rudy Giuliani, Stephen Miller, David Rem, Hulk Hogan, JD Vance, and Elon Musk.
Comedian Tony Hinchcliffe's speech was one of the opening acts. Speaking from a podium that read, 'Trump will fix it,' he started with a joke about immigrants, saying that he welcomed them with "open arms."
"By open arms, I mean like this," said the comedian while signalling "no" using hand gestures.
Puerto Rico was the next topic of criticism, with the comedian shocking the audience with his description of the same.
“There’s a lot going on. There’s literally a floating island of garbage in the middle of the ocean right now. I think it’s called Puerto Rico,” he remarked.
The comment was met with uncertainty from the crowd, instigating Hinchcliffe to laugh and say:
“Okay, we’re getting there, again, normally I don’t follow the national anthem.”
Later in the speech, Tony Hinchcliffe likened the Democratic Party to a Diddy Party. Hip-hop mogul Sean "Diddy" Combs was arrested on September 16, 2024, on three charges of s*x trafficking, racketeering, and transportation to engage in prostitution. According to several lawsuits, Diddy reportedly engaged in illegal activities like s*xual assaults in high-profile drug-fueled parties called "freak-offs."
At one point, the podcast host called out NFL player Travis Kelce and listed several high-profile celebrities endorsing Vice President Kamala Harris's presidential campaign. He also joked about men of color in his speech, saying that he used to carve watermelons with a black person.
Coincidentally, on the same day, Kamala Harris addressed the Puerto Rican population in Philadelphia. She slammed Donald Trump in a video message that was even shared by Puerto Rican singer Bad Bunny. The vice president said:
“I will never forget what Donald Trump did and what he did not do when Puerto Rico needed a caring and a competent leader."
Latin stars like Jennifer Lopez and Ricky Martin also supported Kamala Harris' presidential campaign after Sunday's events.
Democrats slam comedian Tony Hinchcliffe for his speech at Madison Square Garden
Tony Hinchcliffe's allegedly racist and inflammatory speech faced significant backlash from the Democratic camp. The official X handle for Kamala Harris's presidential campaign (@KamalaHQ) shared a split-screen video of Hinchcliffe's comments about Puerto Rico and Kamala Harris' iterating her Puerto Rico-focused policies.
Democratic Vice Presidential candidate Tim Walz lambasted Tony Hinchcliffe during a Twitch gaming session with Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez. He said:
“When you have some a**hole calling Puerto Rico ‘floating garbage,’ know that that's what they think about you. It's what they think about anyone who makes less money than them… I want every Puerto Rican in Philadelphia and Reading and across the country to see this clip.”
Meanwhile, the comedian retweeted Tim Walz's comments and slammed him for allegedly taking his joke out of context. He further claimed that he loved Puerto Rico and often visited the place during vacations.