Minority voters could make difference for Harris, Trump in tight US election

Donald Trump had ambitious plans for his rally on Sunday at Madison Square Garden in New York. In the heart of “Blue America”, the Queens-born former president aimed to demonstrate his political reach in a state that has not voted Republican since Ronald Reagan pulled off a landslide in 1984.

But the event quickly took a dark turn as stand-up comedian Tony Hinchcliffe and other speakers peppered their remarks with racist, xenophobic and misogynistic language.

“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,” Hinchcliffe declared to scattered, uneasy laughter from the capacity crowd.

The backlash to Hinchcliffe’s routine was swift, even among prominent Republicans, who risked potential retribution by speaking out against Trump’s choice of entertainment.

US Senator Rick Scott of Florida, a Trump ally who is running for re-election this year, posted on social media: “The joke bombed for a reason. It’s not funny and it’s not true.”

Representative Maria Elvira Salazar of Florida, a Cuban-American member of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, voiced her “disgust” with Hinchcliffe’s language. “This rhetoric does not reflect GOP values,” she said.