NEW YORK (AP) — Of the nearly 30 speakers who recently warmed up the crowd for Donald Trump at Madison Square Garden, comedian Tony Hinchcliffe got the most attention for racist remarks.
“I don’t know if you guys know this, but there’s literally a floating island of garbage in the middle of the ocean right now. I think it’s called Puerto Rico,” he said, later including lewd and racist comments about Latinos, Jewish and Black people.
The comments have led to condemnation from Democrats and Puerto Rican celebrities, with Ricky Martin sharing a clip of Hinchcliffe’s set, captioned: “This is what they think of us.”
The Trump campaign took the rare step of distancing itself from Hinchcliffe. “This joke does not reflect the views of President Trump or the campaign,” senior adviser Danielle Alvarez said in a statement.
Here’s what to know about Hinchcliffe, his comedic styling and the response to his Madision Square Garden comments.
Who is Tony Hinchcliffe?
Hinchcliffe, raised in Youngstown, Ohio, is a stand-up comedian who specializes in the roast style, in which comedians take the podium to needle a celebrity victim with personal and often tasteless jokes. He has written and appeared on eight Comedy Central Roasts, including ones for Snoop Dogg and Tom Brady.
Even fellow comedians aren’t immune. At the Snoop Dogg roast, Hichcliffe made a joke referencing comedian Luenell, who is Black, being on the Underground Railroad. Of the honoree, he said: “Snoop, you look like the California Raisin that got hooked on heroin.”
He had a Netflix special in 2016 — “Tony Hinchcliffe: One Shot” — which was filmed in one continuous take. But he’s perhaps most famous for hosting the Kill Tony podcast since 2013, which involves both professional and amateur comedians performing for a panel of judges for 60 seconds and then enduring their criticisms.
He began opening for comics like Joe Rogan, who did a three-hour interview with Trump on his podcast last week, and Jeff Ross and is credited with writing Martha Stewart’s raunchy zingers for a roast of Justin Bieber.
He has faced backlash before, especially after he used a racial slur in 2021 about fellow comedian and Asian American Peng Dang during a gig in Austin, Texas. Hinchcliffe was dropped by his talent agency, WME, and several of his scheduled gigs were canceled. He never apologized.
“I knew that what I had done was not wrong. It wasn’t even the worst thing I did that week,” he told Variety earlier this year. “It was so dumbfounding to me because it was a joke, and my stance is that comedians should never apologize for a joke, should never stop working if everyone comes after them and should never slow down.”
How have others responded to Hinchcliffe’s Trump rally routine?
Democratic vice presidential nominee Gov. Tim Walz called Hinchcliffe a “jack-wad” and U.S. Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, a Democrat with Puerto Rican roots, called it “super-upsetting.”
“People in Puerto Rico are citizens,” Walz said in a conversation with Ocasio-Cortez. “They pay taxes and serve in the military at almost a higher rate than anybody else.”
“I need people to understand that when you have some a-hole calling Puerto Rico ‘floating garbage,’ know that’s what they think about you,” Ocasio-Cortez said. “It’s what they think of anyone who makes less money than them. It’s what they think about people who serve them food in a restaurant. It’s what they think about the people who fold their clothes in a store. Dude, are you serious?”
“I want everyone in Philadelphia to see that clip,” she added.
Florida Republican Sen. Rick Scott, up for reelection this year in a state heavily populated with Puerto Ricans, wrote on social media that the “joke bombed for a reason,” and “Puerto Ricans are amazing people and amazing Americans!”
What did Hinchcliffe respond this time?
Roast — or insult — comedians often argue that there are no lines in comedy and that everything, no matter how sensitive, is fair game. Hinchcliffe responded to his Madison Square Garden set with a variation on don’t expect an apology.
“These people have no sense of humor,” he complained on X. “Wild that a vice presidential candidate would take time out of his ‘busy schedule’ to analyze a joke taken out of context to make it seem racist. I love Puerto Rico and vacation there.”
Hinchcliffe has previously made controversial jokes about Sean “Diddy” Combs, George Floyd and the Baltimore Bridge collapse.
“I think people must realize that we are professionals. And yes, sure, we deal with the repercussions of what happens,” he told Variety.
