WASHINGTON (AP) — Pres Joe Biden took a swipe against It’s Donald Trump supporters when he responded to the Republican presidential nominee on Tuesday Weekend rally At Madison Square Garden, it was overshadowed by crude and racist rhetoric.
A joke calling Puerto Rico trash before a packed Donald Trump rally in New York was the latest insult to an island region long plagued by mistreatment, residents said Monday in expressions of anger that could affect the presidential election. (AP video by Alejandro Granadillo)
Biden responded at a call organized by Voto Latino, a Hispanic advocacy group A joke Trump called Puerto Rico a “floating island of garbage” at a rally. Biden’s initial comments were discredited.
“The other day, a speaker at his rally called Puerto Rico a floating island of garbage. Well, I’ll tell you something, I don’t know, I don’t know the Puerto Ricans I know, the Puerto Rico I’m in — in my home state of Delaware. They’re good, decent people, ” he said.
Later the President added: “The only garbage I see there are his supporters. His demonization of Latinos is unconscionable and un-American. It’s the complete opposite of everything we’ve done, everything we’ve done.
White House spokesman Andrew Bates said, “Biden called the hateful rhetoric at the Madison Square Garden rally ‘garbage’.”
Biden later took to social media to personally clarify what he said.
“Earlier today, a Trump supporter at a Madison Square Garden rally called Trump’s hateful rhetoric about Puerto Rico trash — that’s the only word I can think of to describe it,” he posted on X. Unconscionable. That’s all I wanted to say. The views of that rally do not reflect who we are as a nation.
Referring to Trump’s supporters as “garbage,” Biden’s tone was at odds with the message Democratic nominee Kamala Harris was trying to convey, as she aimed to offer broad appeal, including disaffected Republicans. After Biden’s remarks, Harris spoke from the Ellipse in Washington, vowing to be a president who would unite the country.
“I promise to be president for all Americans,” said Harris, who is Biden’s running mate.
Republicans were quick to highlight Biden’s point. Trump called Florida. Marco Rubio He described what happened at a rally in Allentown, Pennsylvania.
“Joe Biden said a few minutes ago that our supporters, our patriots, are trash,” Rubio said. “He’s talking about everyday Americans who love their country.”
Trump campaign spokeswoman Carolyn Leavitt said, “There’s no way to spin it: Joe Biden and Kamala Harris don’t hate President Trump, they hate the millions of Americans who support him.”
Trump Campaign Fundraiser Speech: “Kamala’s Boss Joe Biden Called All My Supporters Trash!” announced that Trump himself said, “You’re amazing!”
Even some mainstream Democrats have begun to distance themselves from Biden’s views. Speaking on CNN, Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro “Even if I choose to support a candidate I do not support, I will not insult the good people of Pennsylvania or any American,” he said.
The comments recalled the then-Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton Dismissal Trump During a 2016 fundraiser in New York, half of supporters ” A basket of deplorables.”
Clinton later called that trait “gross generalism.” But it became a rallying cry for many Trump supporters, who said the insult embodied the elitist attitudes of Clinton and Democrats.
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As reactions to Biden’s reaction began to fly, Trump, meanwhile, was asked about racism and crude humor at his New York rally in an interview with Fox News Channel’s Sean Hannity on Tuesday night. He replied: “Someone said a comedian made a joke about Puerto Rico. And I don’t know who he is.
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“I can’t even imagine that this is a big deal,” the former president added.
At a rally Tuesday in Allentown, Pennsylvania, a city with a large Hispanic population, Trump repeated his claim that Biden’s immigration policies have allowed other countries to treat the United States like “a giant garbage dump.”
With Election Day now a week away, Biden got to work To maintain relevanceHarris has been aggressively touting his administration’s achievements in the race against Trump.
But his efforts to stay in the political spotlight aren’t always so helpful for the Democratic ticket he’s now promoting. That’s because Harris has been a vocal critic of Trump for months, repeatedly calling him “unstable” and “unhinged” and saying he ” Fascist,” he has been careful not to blame his supporters.
In fact, the vice president has campaigned extensively with former Republican Rep. Liz Cheney and other former GOP elected officials — hoping to appeal to conservative crossover voters. The Democratic convention — and the Harris ads — highlighted stories of everyday Americans who talked about voting for Trump in the past but now say they’re supporting the vice president.
In Tuesday’s call, Biden said Trump “didn’t say anything about the Latino community” and rejected the former president, despite Trump’s campaign saying Trump’s popularity among Hispanics, particularly men, is increasing.
“Vote Donald Trump out of the White House,” Biden said. “He’s a real danger not just to Latinos, but to all people, especially minorities in this country.”
