Following a controversial joke by comedian Tony Hinchcliffe in which he called Puerto Rico a "floating island of garbage," former president Donald Trump continues his closing statement tour, making last efforts to court Latino voters in Allentown, Pennsylvania amid threats of eroding support by the demographic.
The GOP nominee spoke at a rally in the small town on Tuesday, where he boasted about his support to Latinos, saying, "nobody loves our Latino community and our Puerto Rican community more than I do."
However, he did not mention the infamous joke, which has taken social media by a storm and prompted Puerto Rican household names like Bad Bunny, Jennifer Lopez and Ricky Martin to endorse Vice President Kamala Harris. Instead, in the 75-minute speech, he cited polls that showed him performing well among Latinos.
"I will deliver the best future for Puerto Ricans and for Hispanic Americans," he said.
Before the former president took the stage, several Spanish-speaking surrogates made an appearance to rile up the crowd, including Florida Sen. Marco Rubio, who said that he knew El Nuevo Dia, Puerto Rico's biggest newspaper was covering the event, and Zoraida Buxo, the island's Republican shadow senator.
Both speakers also refrained from mentioning the controversy stemming from Sunday's rally, but Buxo told the crowd it was "easy to get misled" by propaganda, emotional manipulation and distortion of the truth and facts." He also further showed his support for the former president, saying he is the best person to get to the White House next, Politico reports.
"The people of Puerto Rico trust you and we have high hopes," said Buxo, who has advocated for statehood of the island. "We need this man back in the White House. We need this man to be our commander in chief. He will make us feel safe. And he will protect us."
Other speakers also took the time to celebrate the island. Like mayoral candidate Tim Ramos, who introduced himself to the crowd as a "Puerto Rican man" who wanted to express his "love of the island and the people of Puerto Rico."
But Trump's relationship with Puerto Rico is not so filled with love and celebration. In fact, it is far more complicated due to his time in the White House.
After Hurricane Maria in 2017, a destructive natural disaster that led to almost 3,000 deaths in the island, then-President Trump repeatedly opposed disaster funding for Puerto Rico. He also drew attention for disparaging statements about "La Isla del Encanto" after Maria, including "they want everything to be done for them," and for tossing paper towels on a visit to the island after the hurricane, which is categorized as the deadliest in the U.S. in 100 years.
Since the fallout of the Sunday rally, Trump has declined directly addressing the controversy, telling reporters at a press conference in Mar-a-Lago on Tuesday that "there was love in that room" in Madison Square Garden. He also said in an interview with ABC News that he didn't know who Hinchcliffe was and hadn't heard the comments at the center of the headlines.
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