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Will Tony Hinchcliffe's Puerto Rico joke flip Latino voters?

Tony Hinchcliffe speaks in New York on Sunday. Credit: C-Span/YouTube

October 29, 2024 - 1:15pm

In the final week of a presidential election campaign, the Republican candidate’s message is derailed by the remarks of a speaker at a partisan gathering. The speaker makes an inflammatory statement that offends a key voter demographic; in the end, it is enough to cost the Republicans a crucial swing state and hand the election to the Democrats.

This may very well end up as the story of the 2024 election, but it is actually a description of an election that took place 140 years ago: the race of 1884, which saw GOP frontrunner James G. Blaine felled by the infamous remark of Rev. Samuel Burchard, who described the Democrats as the party of “rum, Romanism, and rebellion”. The demographic in question were Irish Catholics who, angered by Burchard’s insult, turned New York State blue by the slimmest of margins. Grover Cleveland consequently became the first Democratic president since the Civil War.

In 2024, Republicans are facing an eerily similar scenario. At a Donald Trump rally at a sold-out Madison Square Garden in New York on Sunday, comedian Tony Hinchcliffe called Puerto Rico a “floating island of garbage in the middle of the ocean”. Puerto Rico is, of course, an unincorporated territory whose inhabitants are American citizens.

The fallout has been swift and far-reaching. In must-win Pennsylvania, where nearly 5% of the population are of Puerto Rican heritage, Spanish-language radio stations and informal social media have amplified Hinchcliffe’s joke among the local Borinquen community. A non-partisan civil society group, the National Puerto Rican Agenda, is set to publish an open letter urging the community not to vote for Trump, while Puerto Rican rapper Bad Bunny promptly endorsed Kamala Harris (his endorsement has previously moved the needle in the election for Puerto Rico’s governor).

Though Trump himself has yet to acknowledge the comments — he may do so at his Tuesday night rally in Latino-majority Allentown — his running mate, Senator J.D. Vance, simply shrugged it off. Privately, however, Republicans are worrying over the potential impact of this “unforced error” which could undermine Trump’s efforts at making inroads with the Latino vote.

The Republican nominee made historic gains with this demographic in 2020, including in North Philadelphia’s Puerto Rican-majority areas. Harris visited the same part of town on Sunday, touring Puerto Rican businesses and outlining her vision for the island. Hinchcliffe also made offensive remarks about Latinos in general and African-Americans.

In the remaining days until the election next Tuesday, is there anything the Trump campaign can do to avoid a repeat of 1884? For the GOP candidate to suffer the fate of unsuccessful James G. Blaine is admittedly unlikely. But, in an act of desperation, he could use his Allentown rally to announce his support for making Puerto Rico the 51st state. This would be a real October surprise.

Such a proposal, which is also up for a non-binding vote on the island, is generally associated with Democrats who believe its elevation to statehood would add to their strength. But if Republicans actually took up the cause and had the territory admitted under a Trump administration, it would all but seal the ongoing movement of Borinquen and Latino voters toward the GOP, fuelled by the growing alignment on socially conservative values and working-class identity.

The trouble for Republicans is that this organic trend, which has been years in the making, could be thrown off course by the unfunny jokes of an obscure comedian, ultimately costing the GOP the election. Hinchcliffe, who ironically has some experience mediating between presidents, may go down in history as the modern era’s Samuel Burchard. Of course, history tends to repeat itself — first as tragedy, and then as farce.


Michael Cuenco is a writer on policy and politics. He is Associate Editor at American Affairs.
1TrueCuencoism

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Alex Lekas
Alex Lekas
1 day ago

Give me a break. Where would we be without the self-righteous cult of the perpetually aggrieved and offended. If THIS is your deciding factor in this election, then I humbly request that you stay home and refrain from voting as you are far too ignorant on the issues at hand to screw things up for everyone else.
Across from Trump, there is an opponent who gives every indication of being less informed on everything from history to current events than the average person who only occasionally checks the news. She is part of an administration whose record will not be remembered fondly, but an off-key joke will negate that? Really?
I guess it’s okay when half the country is called fascists, racists, Christian nationalists, and every other name under the sun, but a non-candidate making a bad joke is a bridge too far. Just say that Dems have nothing else – no ideas, no uplifting message, no candidate who is ready for the job. At least that would be honest.

Champagne Socialist
Champagne Socialist
1 day ago
Reply to  Alex Lekas

“Across from Trump, there is an opponent who gives every indication of being less informed on everything from history to current events than the average person who only occasionally checks the news. ”
And yet she annihilated your orange god in the one debate that he had the nerve to show up for!
Of course, he is less informed on everything than virtually everybody on everything on account of his being an utter moron who is clearly falling apart mentally.

UnHerd Reader
UnHerd Reader
1 day ago

LMAO

UnHerd Reader
UnHerd Reader
1 day ago

CS=troll.

Champagne Socialist
Champagne Socialist
1 day ago
Reply to  UnHerd Reader

What part scared you, punk?
We all know that he got slaughtered in that debate. Are you denying that? Are you really that deep in the cult?

Hugh Bryant
Hugh Bryant
21 hours ago

I keep saying: stick to the insults and steer clear of argument. You’re not really capable of marshalling facts and logic in the way required to be a successful polemicist.

Champagne Socialist
Champagne Socialist
19 hours ago
Reply to  Hugh Bryant

Trump cultists talking about logic is highly amusing!

John Galt
John Galt
1 day ago

So what I’m hearing is the media and establishment is doing everything it can to make another huge nothing burger into proving Trump is racist, so business as usual.

Were any of these people going to vote for Trump on the first place? He’s a comedian he tells jokes, it reminds me of a YouTube video I watched recently where it depicted a man telling a racist joke, his white friend laughed, his black friend laughed, his Hispanic friend laughed, then a white woman loudly proclaimed she was offended.

Since this is the primary demographic the Democrats are trying to cater to it would make sense that they would view this as a huge issue, whereas everyone I know realizes it was a joke.

But hey maybe his association with a comedian that makes jokes about Puerto Rico will infact be the thing that finally does Trump in, because “the walls are for real 100% closing j for real this time.”

Champagne Socialist
Champagne Socialist
1 day ago
Reply to  John Galt

“it reminds me of a YouTube video I watched recently where it depicted a man telling a racist joke, his white friend laughed, his black friend laughed, his Hispanic friend laughed, then a white woman loudly proclaimed she was offended.”
I’m sure you spend a lot of your time seeking out racist jokes. The rest of this you obviously just made up though.

Jim Veenbaas
Jim Veenbaas
1 day ago

Great historical analogy. It adds a bit of credibility to the thesis. In a very tight race, you never know what impact it could have. Very unlikely, but the author acknowledges that as well.

The ironic thing is no one at the rally even laughed at the guy’s inflammatory jokes. To call the comedian an idiot is far too generous. Why he would choose to say such off-colour jokes at a political rally is mind boggling.

There is zero chance any Republican will endorse a proposal to make Puerto Rico a state. By the way, the Free Press has an interesting article today about how the Democrats are rigging the referendum question to favour Peurto Rico becoming a state. The great defenders of democracy are very selective in their noble goal of free and fair votes.

Chris Maille
Chris Maille
1 day ago

This really is the big IQ test of the american voters, including the puerto rican american voters.
While waiting for the result, I dwell in shame for my european compatriots, who fail the same IQ test time after time, so we find ourselves in a situation where our freedom and prosperity prospects depends on the intelligence of our american friends.

Last edited 1 day ago by Chris Maille
Roger Inkpen
Roger Inkpen
21 hours ago
Reply to  Chris Maille

I’ve no idea what point you are trying to make but I don’t think you understand how IQ tests work. By definition only half the population has a higher than average IQ.

Steven Carr
Steven Carr
21 hours ago

About 40 people turned up to protest about the Puerto Rico joke in Allentown, PA – a majority Hispanic town.

Dave Canuck
Dave Canuck
1 day ago

This could definitely affect the outcome in tight swing states, there are over 5 million Puerto Ricans living on the mainland , it’s also an insult to Latinos in general. A blunder like that a week before the election in a tight race is incomprehensible. A rally is not a comedy show. Now they are in damage control. I would never vote for a party which insults my background, race or heritage, it’s simply not acceptable

Barry Dank
Barry Dank
1 day ago
Reply to  Dave Canuck

“A rally is not a comedy show” comment. We’ll except this rally was a comedy of the absurd.

UnHerd Reader
UnHerd Reader
1 day ago
Reply to  Dave Canuck

Yet if your name is any indication, everytime you vote for any of the woke parties you are voting for a party whose leadership reviles you.