New York Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (AOC) continues to use a comedian's controversial line about Puerto Rico to hammer Republicans, looking to gain electoral leverage less than a week from the presidential election.
Speaking at a rally in Madison, Wisconsin, AOC made reference to comedian Tony Hinchcliffe calling Puerto Rico a "floating island of garbage" during a Trump rally in New York's Madison Square Garden.
"When Republicans call people garbage, suckers and losers, or say certain people shouldn't have an equal right to vote because they don't have kids - know that they aren't talking about 'other people.' They are talking about you. They are talking about ALL of us," the lawmaker said in a publication accompanying a passage of her address at the campaign event.
When Republicans call people garbage, suckers and losers, or say certain people shouldn’t have an equal right to vote because they don’t have kids - know that they aren’t talking about “other people.”
— Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (@AOC) October 30, 2024
They are talking about you.
They are talking about ALL of us. pic.twitter.com/Lh7YKNDhfJ
Many Democrats have conveyed similar messages, especially targeting the Puerto Rican community and Latinos in general. Even though residents of the island can't vote directly in U.S. elections, those who reside in any of the 50 states do have the ability to do so. And with approximately 6 million Boricuas living within the mainland United States, they make up a significant voting block.
In battleground Pennsylvania, the population of Puerto Ricans is 450,000. Philadelphia, which is the most populous city in the state and the sixth-most populous in the country has the second largest community of Puerto Ricans outside the island besides New York City.
Several high-profile Puerto Rican figures came out to condemn the rhetoric, including politicians and artists such as Bad Bunny and Ricky Martin. Nicky Jam, who had endorsed Trump weeks ago, withdrew his support on Wednesday.
Some Republicans also rejected the comments. Puerto Rico's GOP chairman, Angel M. Cintrón, said Monday that Trump should formally apologize for the comments. However, the former president has not done that, saying "no president has done more for Puerto Rico than I have."
His presidential track record proved otherwise, considering it has been confirmed Trump withheld $20 billion in aid to Puerto Rico in 2017 in the aftermath of Hurricane Maria, which killed 2,975 people in the island, making it one of the deadliest U.S. natural disasters in a century. He also infamously threw paper towels during a visit to the island to oversee the distribution of aid.
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