Updated October 29, 2024 at 22:58 PM ET
ALLENTOWN, Pa. — Former President Donald Trump sought to move past the controversy unleashed by a “joke” about Puerto Rico told at his Madison Square Garden rally, describing the event as “an absolute love fest” on Tuesday while criticizing his Democratic opponent over border enforcement, crime and the economy.
The fallout from the Sunday rally in New York has taken center stage with one week to go until voting closes in a race where polls show Trump and Vice President Harris locked in a razor-thin race in seven key swing states that could decide the contest -- several of which have sizable Latino populations.
Speaking at a rally in Allentown, Pennsylvania on Tuesday, Trump boasted about his support among Latino voters, saying, "Nobody loves our Latino community and our Puerto Rican community more than I do."
Trump faced heavy criticism from many Puerto Ricans after Hurricanes Maria and Irma in 2017 for questioning the official death toll, but during his rally in Pennsylvania he said he had "done more for Puerto Rico than any president by far, nobody close." He added: "I will deliver the best future for Puerto Ricans and for Hispanic Americans. Kamala will deliver you poverty and crime."
His remarks followed attempts by campaign officials on Monday to play clean up after a comedian warming up the crowd at his New York rally called Puerto Rico a "floating island of garbage" -- drawing outrage from Boricuas far and wide, and boosting support for Harris’ message.
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"This joke does not reflect the views of President Trump or the campaign," Danielle Alvarez, a senior adviser to the Trump campaign, said in a statement. Trump himself, however, did not comment on the remarks.
While several Republican lawmakers also distanced themselves from the comments, Sen. JD Vance, Trump's running mate, dismissed the controversy, urging Americans "to stop getting so offended at every little thing in the United States of America — I'm so over it."
Puerto Rican voters are a crucial bloc in key swing states
Despite Republican efforts to move past the controversy, backlash has continued to build. Puerto Rican celebrities condemned the remarks, with megastar Bad Bunny posting a video Tuesday to his more than 45 million Instagram followers highlighting cultural contributions by Puerto Ricans throughout history. He titled the video "garbage," a nod to the comments at MSG.
Separately, the Harris campaign announced that Jennifer Lopez would speak at a rally with the vice president in Las Vegas on Thursday.
The island’s Republican Party chairman has also threatened to withhold support from Trump unless he issued an apology for the remark, while the archbishop of San Juan posted an open letter to Trump saying he personally needed to apologize, not his campaign.
Puerto Ricans living on the island don’t get to vote in the presidential election. But those living on the mainland do -- and in Pennsylvania, a pivotal state in this year’s race, they wield significant clout.
According to UCLA’s Latino Policy and Politics Institute, about 580,000 Latinos in Pennsylvania can vote in this election -- and most of them are Puerto Rican.
The Trump campaign moved to highlight Puerto Rican voices
Given the potential stakes, the Trump campaign moved to feature several Puerto Rican speakers during his rally in Allentown.
“I am standing here as a proud Puerto Rican," Roberto Albino, director of Hispanic engagement at the Pennsylvania Family Institute, said to cheers. Before leading the arena in a prayer he called out to his "fellow Puerto Rican brothers and sisters" in Spanish.
"We need leadership, let us not forget what we need," he told the crowd.
The first speaker to address the crowd was Tim Ramos, who welcomed Latinos in the crowd.
Ramos promoted Trump as a candidate that could improve the economy and border security.
"From our flag, to our beaches, to our salsa music, we encapsulate true beauty ... diamonds form under pressure and we need a leader who understands that and sees that in us," Ramos said. "Donald Trump is that leader."
During his address, Trump also invited Republican Zoraida Buxó Santiago, a U.S. Senate shadow delegate, to address the audience. "We need this man back in the White House," she said.
Biden had to do his own damage control
Republicans also jumped on new comments from President Biden in a video call with Voto Latino, where the president sounded like he was calling Trump supporters “garbage.”
Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla, went on stage at the Allentown rally to demand an apology. “We are not garbage: we are patriots who love America,” Rubio said.
The White House quickly issued a transcript to put Biden’s comment in a broader context:
Earlier today I referred to the hateful rhetoric about Puerto Rico spewed by Trump's supporter at his Madison Square Garden rally as garbage—which is the only word I can think of to describe it. His demonization of Latinos is unconscionable. That's all I meant to say. The…
— Joe Biden (@JoeBiden) October 30, 2024
Later, Biden attempted to clean up his remarks on X, saying that he was referring to the comedian’s joke at the rally.
Trump kept his focus on Harris
Speaking earlier in the day from his Mar-a-Lago resort, Trump called the "love" at the Madison Square Garden event "breathtaking."
"There was love in that room," he said. "There was love for the country."
For the most part, however, he kept his focus on Harris, who on Tuesday delivered her closing argument of the campaign on the same site in Washington, D.C. where Trump held his Jan. 6 rally.
"In less than four years, Kamala Harris has obliterated our borders," Trump said. "They've unleashed war and chaos all over the world. No person has caused so much destruction and death at home and abroad should ever be allowed to be president."
Trump began the event with unfounded claims about election fraud in "bad spots" in Pennsylvania, where he and Harris are in a virtual tie, according to most credible polls. He claimed to be leading in all seven swing states, which are also tied.
His appearance featured the families of those killed by migrants who were in the country illegally; both he and they blamed Harris and Democrats for the presence of illegal immigrants in the country.
Trump also falsely suggested that countries around the world were sending criminals to the United States in order to lower their own crime rates. Border crossings from the Southern border with Mexico are at levels close to those as when Trump left office in 2021.
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