ALLENTOWN, Pa. (AP) 鈥 Urged by some allies to apologize for racist comments made by speakers at his weekend rally, Donald Trump took the opposite approach on Tuesday, saying it was an 鈥渉onor to be involved鈥 in such an event and calling the scene a 鈥渓ovefest鈥 鈥 the same term he has used to describe the Jan. 6 insurrection at the U.S. Capitol.
Trump gathered supporters and reporters to his Mar-a-Lago resort two days after a featured a number of crude remarks by various speakers, including a set by in which he joked that Puerto Rico was a 鈥渇loating island of garbage.鈥 Some of Trump鈥檚 top Republican allies have condemned the remarks, and his campaign took the rare step of publicly distancing itself from Hinchcliffe鈥檚 joke, though not the other comments.
But given the opportunity to apologize at multiple events and in interviews Tuesday, Trump instead leaned in. Speaking at his Florida resort, he said that 鈥渢here鈥檚 never been an event so beautiful鈥 as his Sunday rally in his hometown of New York.
鈥淭he love in that room. It was breathtaking,鈥 he said. 鈥淚t was like a lovefest, an absolute lovefest. And it was my honor to be involved.鈥
On Tuesday night, he told Fox News' Sean Hannity that he knows nothing about Hinchcliffe but said, 鈥淚 can鈥檛 imagine it鈥檚 a big deal.鈥 He later agreed, though, that 鈥減robably he shouldn鈥檛 have been there.鈥
With just a week before , some Trump allies have voiced alarm that the rally, which was supposed to highlight the Republican presidential nominee鈥檚 closing message in grand New York fashion, has instead served as a distraction and , given the who live in Pennsylvania and other key swing states.
鈥淭his is not a time to have anyone criticize Puerto Rico or Latinos,鈥 former U.N. Ambassador Nikki Haley, who challenged Trump for the GOP presidential nomination and later endorsed him, said in an interview with Fox News Channel.
Trump later held a rally in Allentown, Pennsylvania, a city with a large Hispanic population, where Puerto Rico鈥檚 shadow U.S. senator, Zoraida Buxo, joined him and defended the former president's record.
鈥淲e need this man to be our commander in chief,鈥 said Buxo, who cannot vote in the Senate because Puerto Rico is not a state. 鈥淗e will make us feel safe and he will protect us.鈥
Still, there was anger in Allentown. Ivet Figueroa, 61, stood outside the rally venue holding a trash can with the words 鈥淭rash Trump鈥 on it.
She said of the insult and Trump:: 鈥淭he person who said it was vetted by him. So that鈥檚 what he allowed, so he has to take responsibility for what he said. Now it鈥檚 too late for saying 鈥榮orry.鈥 I don鈥檛 want an apology, I want justice, and justice is on Nov. 5.鈥
The fallout from the Madison Square Garden event risked highlighting voters鈥 concerns about Trump鈥檚 rhetoric and penchant for controversy in the closing stretch as both campaigns are scrambling for votes. Speakers at the rally also made racist comments targeting Latinos, Black people, Jews and Palestinians, along with sexist insults directed at Trump鈥檚 Democratic rival, Vice President , and former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton.
In an interview with ABC News earlier Tuesday, Trump claimed to not know Hinchcliffe but did not denounce what he said.
鈥淚 don鈥檛 know him. Someone put him up there. I don鈥檛 know who he is,鈥 Trump said, according to the network, insisting that he hadn鈥檛 heard Hinchcliffe鈥檚 comments. When asked what he made of them, Trump 鈥渄id not take the opportunity to denounce them, repeating that he didn鈥檛 hear the comments,鈥 ABC reported.
In the Hannity interview, Trump said people were trying to make the comedian's appearance into a 鈥渂ig deal鈥 when it 鈥渉as nothing to do with the party, has nothing to do with us.鈥
Asked later in the interview whether he wished the comic wasn't there, Trump said, 鈥淵eah, I mean I don鈥檛 know if it鈥檚 a big deal or not, but I don鈥檛 want anybody making nasty jokes or stupid jokes." He added, 鈥淧robably he shouldn鈥檛 have been there, yeah.鈥
Later Tuesday, President Joe Biden, on a call organized by the Hispanic advocacy group Voto Latino, denounced the comic's joke and said, 鈥淭he only garbage I see floating out there is his supporters." He later , saying he was talking about 鈥渢he hateful rhetoric about Puerto Rico spewed by Trump鈥檚 supporter.鈥
The comments from the Madison Square Garden rally have drawn outrage from Puerto Rican leaders.
The archbishop of Puerto Rico called on Trump to disavow them, saying it wasn鈥檛 enough for the campaign to say the joke didn't reflect Trump鈥檚 views. The president of Puerto Rico鈥檚 Republican Party called the 鈥減oor attempt at comedy鈥 by Hinchcliffe 鈥渄isgraceful, ignorant and totally reprehensible.鈥
In Pennsylvania, where Trump campaigned Tuesday night, the Latino eligible voter population has nearly tripled since 2000. More than half of those are Puerto Rican voters.
Angelo Ortega, a longtime Allentown resident and former Republican who鈥檚 planning to vote for Harris, said he couldn鈥檛 believe what he鈥檇 heard about Trump鈥檚 rally.
鈥淚 don鈥檛 know if my jaw dropped or I was just so irritated, angry. I didn鈥檛 know what to feel,鈥 said Ortega, who was born in New York but whose father came from Puerto Rico. Ortega has been campaigning for Harris and said he knows of at least one Hispanic GOP voter planning to switch from Trump to Harris as a result of Hinchcliffe鈥檚 comments.
鈥淭hey鈥檝e had it. They鈥檝e had it. They were listening to (Trump), but they said they think that that was like the straw that broke the camel鈥檚 back,鈥 said Ortega, a member of the Make the Road PA advocacy group.
Still, some voters of Puerto Rican descent weren't fazed. Maricelis Torres, 24, a waitress studying to be a radiologist, waited to get into the Allentown rally and said she and her family laughed at Hinchcliffe's joke.
鈥淚f you don鈥檛 understand humor, then that鈥檚 what I鈥檓 saying, people are way too soft these days,鈥 said Torres, whose father is from the island.
The Harris campaign has released an ad that will run online in battleground states targeting Puerto Rican voters and highlighting the comedian鈥檚 remarks.
At a roundtable outside Philadelphia on Tuesday afternoon, Trump got some praise from a retired occupational therapist from Puerto Rico, Maribel Valdez. 鈥淧uerto Rico stands behind you, and Puerto Rico loves you,鈥 Valdez told him.
Trump thanked her and reminisced about his administration鈥檚 efforts to help the island after storms. 鈥淚 think no president has ever done more for Puerto Rico than I have,鈥 responded Trump, who of billions of dollars in assistance to repair years-old hurricane damage in Puerto Rico until shortly before the 2020 election.
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Gomez Licon and Price reported from Palm Beach, Fla. Associated Press writers Jill Colvin in New York, D谩nica Coto in San Juan, Puerto Rico, and Nicholas Riccardi in Denver contributed to this report.
