Joke from Tony Hinchcliffe apparently bombed when he told it on Saturday night, a day before New York rally
The podcaster who provoked an angry backlash against Donald Trump’s campaign with a racist joke about Puerto Rico reportedly tested out the gags at a comedy club the night before delivering them at Sunday’s televised rally at Madison Square Garden.
Tony Hinchcliffe, whose 11-minute set has thrown Trump’s team into damage limitation mode a week before the presidential election, made the same quip, calling the territory “a floating island of garbage”, at the Stand club in New York on Saturday, according to NBC.
The joke bombed, drawing just a few awkward chuckles, NBC said, citing one of its own producers and three audience members.
Roast comedy isn’t a big deal. I’d expect any roast comic not to help out the man making Hitler’s time in hell embarrassing by drawing comparisons with him, though. Do a roast at a Harris rally if you wanna bring the goods.
Definitely nazi shit in context.
I’m a big supporter of comics being given leniency for offensive jokes, and if this guy had made that joke at a comedy club, I would not have had a problem with it, because the presumption is that it’s a joke—nothing is meant to be taken seriously.
But this was a political rally. Totally different situation. When you make jokes there, they’re understood to reflect the politician conducting the rally. And in this case, it did.
I hope Mr. Hinchcliffe never finds work as a comedian again. Not because he’s a bad comic, not because he might actually be racist against Puerto Ricans, but because he’s a catastrophically stupid human being.
While it’s worse at a political rally, I don’t think this is much better at a comedy club. Mostly because it’s not really a joke; it’s just offensive. Perhaps if there was some point he was trying to make beyond being racist, but it doesn’t seem like it. It’s only “funny” if you’re already bigoted against Puerto Ricans.
I don’t know. There’s a type of joke that is funny simply because of how ridiculously offensive it is, provided you know the teller doesn’t mean it. People think Sam Kinison was funny and he just yelled and swore a lot. Lots of things can be funny for fairly stupid reasons.
I still think the main problem here is that he told a really offensive joke in the wrong context. If Hinchcliff really is racist then that’s obviously a problem, but I don’t think the joke itself is the issue. If you’re going to take issue with it on its own then you’re treading into the Offense Olympic waters.
I think context is key here. If you tell a Jewish joke at a Bar Mitzvah or comedy club it comes across entirely differently than if you tell it at a Skin Head or Proud Boys rally.
He told the this joke at a Trump rally where accusations of racism and facism abound. He was probably trying to be ironic but it just comes off far more serious than just a joke.
Fundamentally a rally should bring people together. The Trump team knew what they were getting when they hired this guy. Whatever this comedians intentions were, the Trump team is ultimately responsible for their message and to refuse to have Trump repudiate him publicly and immediately peaks volumes.
The Trump team knew what they were getting when they hired this guy.
That’s the important point. They don’t get to back away and claim it just some random thing that some random guy said.
They knew exactly who this guy was, and they specifically invited him to speak on their stage in front of their audience.
If this guy genuinely went to this rally and was trying to make fun of this sort of racism by telling that joke (i.e., the joke is how stupid it is to believe that), then you would have a point. But I don’t see any reason to believe that because he agreed to speak at a Trump rally. Context goes both ways.
I’m not personally familiar with Hinchcliff or his comedy, but what little I’ve seen from fans of his online seems to indicate that this is just his normal shtick. As such, I’m not sure I agree that he went out there to wave a Nazi flag at his fellow Nazis. It would make more sense to me that he took the gig because it paid well and offered him a ton of publicity. The irony is that he’s certainly gotten publicity, but probably not the type he wants.
I’m not seeing where I mentioned him being a Nazi.
I understand being charitable and not assuming bad in people. However, it’s not exactly a mystery where Trump stands in this area. I’m a little doubtful this comedian is barely making rent, so this wasn’t a gig he had to take. Since he did, he has to accept being part of that context. It was very easy to avoid.
If this ends up costing Trump the election, and Hinchcliff comes out saying that was his master plan, I’ll gladly eat my words.
I inserted the Nazi part as a bit of hyperbole. I just meant the idea of him doing his bit intending to express actual racism for the yuks of actual racists.
I agree wholeheartedly that this was an idiot move on his part and that he deserves all the bad press he gets from it. I was just saying that—based on what his fans have said—I don’t get the impression he really hates Puerto Ricans. This was likely just a really dumb career move on his part.
I don’t know. He got dropped by his agency and Joe Rogan (!!!) in the past for using a racial slur. When people show you who they are, believe them.
His schtick is offensive comedy. Jon Stewart covered it. https://youtu.be/cOLqSUK0eBM?t=4m54s
I think he will be murdered by Donald’s cultists if the election goes bad for Donald. Just a hunch based on the fact that Repubs have been actively radicalizing domestic terrorists for decades.
Maybe one MAGA lunatic will try but a KKK lunatic will jump in front of the bullet to protect a fellow racist. One can dream.
He has a pretty big podcast
I hope he gets an earful from his listeners then, and that they stop listening to him.
I doubt it
I doubt it haha
It’d be funny if it was just about grilling and craft beers with nothing spicier than a Full House (the original) joke, but I somehow doubt it.
I also see clips from Kill Tony hawked a lot on YouTube, and the most this guy has going for him is he’s a shock jock. Making a crass, low-hanging quip while grinning at the camera is hardly an indicator of a lofty comic personally, but I’m sure his popularity will continue after this.
Why was he roasting Puerto Rico and not Walz or Harris? Seems like a rookie move.
Apparently he was going to: https://www.thebulwark.com/p/trumps-shock-comic-was-set-to-call
I see lots of people talking about how bad this is, but I haven’t seen anyone talk about it in light of Trump’s utter mishandling of Hurricane Maria.
It’s been 7 years but it’s absolutely salt in the wound.
but I haven’t seen anyone talk about it in light of Trump’s utter mishandling of Hurricane Maria.
I’ve seen MSNBC using the clip of Trump tossing paper towels as part of their coverage of this latest anti Puerto Rico crap.
It certainly would have been received differently. In one case you’re calling for the segregation or eradication of an entire ethnicity, in the other case you’re making a joke about somebody calling for the segregation or eradication of an entire ethnicity.
Some things are funny because of how horrible they are, like dead baby jokes, but if you ever attempt to orchestrate the real equivalent to one then you should be shot on sight.
We can always rely on the Republican Party for empathy and understanding:
Trump’s running mate, JD Vance, adopted an unapologetic stance, telling NBC that Americans “need to stop getting so offended”.
JD Vance, adopted an unapologetic stance, telling NBC that Americans “need to stop getting so offended”.
Yet he continues to be offended by couch references…
And trump and people reviewed and approved it all, word for word, and it was on the teleprompter. Their only surprise is that people, people whom they didn’t (and don’t) value beyond their vote, were rightfully upset at it. They didn’t consider reaction of the PR people, for the same reason that you don’t consider your dog when you make a lot of decisions.
But trump entourage travels with a little plastic box they can shove his waddly, acne-infested, shit-stained ass into. They do that for fear that yet ANOTHER one of his own dedicated cult fans might try to shoot him, again. You think that paranoid group constantly talking about “the enemy within” doesn’t also vet speakers and speech content to avoid surprises?
And he STILL did the jokes.
I am absolutely not defending this racist’s jokes, so please do not think I am.
I am just going to explain why he still did the joke because I used to do stand-up (nowhere near at this high a level).
Sometimes, you are just convinced a joke is funny. You are absolutely convinced. Nothing will tell you it isn’t funny. The audience isn’t laughing? You told it wrong. Something was off. You have to tell it again because of course it’s funny. It makes you laugh every time you think of it. So you have to try again. And you can get stuck in that loop very easily.
The fact that he finds this joke funny says a ton about him. I get the roast comedy angle people bring up here, but I just don’t see how anyone could find that line funny.
I mean, I’m a leftist, an anti-racist, and yet there are are some racist jokes I still find funny due to the way they’re crafted, even if I don’t tell them anymore because some people still take them on the first degree (both racists and non-racists.)
But I just don’t see the joke here.
It’s him. He’s the joke.
They’re too woke/scared to enjoy it
THoSE people didn’t like it, that means it should smash for MY crowd!
-that guys internal dialogue… Maybe
If it were a floating island of garbage all the magas would be hanging out there.
I hope this guy costs him big lol moron racist with a “joke”
It’s so odd. I watched the whole thing. Nothing is taken out of context here. He just took a dump on Puerto Rico. Supposedly, he originally was going to call Kamala Harris a cunt, but they were like no no take that out but leave the shitty Puerto Rico joke in. It just seems like he stepped out of his lane by not understanding he was at a political rally where the stakes are different. He was hilarious at the roast of Tom Brady. Too bad he had to go full fascist.
Yeah the joke fits Tony’s IDGAF style of comedy where literally nothing is off limits.
And while in other context it would still be a bad joke, it wouldn’t be taken anywhere near as bad as at a political rally like this. It doesn’t come across as a joke at all given the other political rhetoric surrounding it.
It’s especially insane since he was literally just at Madison Square Garden a month or so ago for like 3 days doing a massive Kill Tony special with 3 something like 300 other smaller comedians.
Right? In the correct setting and with a lot of jokes on the environment in the set leading up to it… he might have gotten away with it. But at a fascist rally in MSG he was just vocalizing the sentiment in the room, like court jesters would do.
Now the trump team can climb on their podium and cry how everyone is a snowflake and point at this outrage to invigorate their base.
I guess they underestimated the backlash.
It’s interesting to me. He read the room just fine, he just didn’t read the room’s global position.
He’s a talented comedian in the roast/shock kinda of genre, but a political rally? A bit out of his element. And a bit stupid for the GOP to think he’d be a good fit here.
Sucks to suck.
The audience is at least 50% of this type of joke. Like if the punch line was making fun of Trump treating Puerto Rico like trash it could work as a joke.
But in the context of Trump’s wishdotcom nazi rally it isn’t a joke, it is just being cruel because the audience agrees with the statement. There isn’t a punchline, it is just calling Puerto Rico names and laughing at them like the bullies that maga idiots are.
He really should’ve brought a cowbell to signal the audience.
I hadn’t seen anyone mentioning that he’s a roast comic until I watched John Stewart address this. That does kinda change how I feel about the jokes. Doesn’t change how I feel about him accepting a gig at a Trump rally, though.
Yes, this is the critical flaw in this whole ordeal.
Comedians make tasteless jokes all the time and they generally get forgiven since they often exist as boundary pushers. A comedian makes 100 jokes that ride the line and push a little bit, and 1 of them was too far or bombs or whatever, no biggie, live and let live.
But going to this event, at this venue, with this crowd is not the same scenario. It sets a tone and he even mentions it in his set, that he doesn’t normally play to a room full of grandmas and babies or whatever.
I see your point, but that racist dipshit should have realized a few things: not everyone knows that he’s a roast comic, it wasn’t a typical “roast” type of atmosphere, and he should have roasted the opposition, not people who the Republican Party is trying to attract.
What an idiot. This disaster is probably the closest he’ll ever get to fame.
I swear I head another comedian “test” that joke about 5 years ago only referring to the UK, not PR.
It’s an old hacky joke
Yeah, it’s an old joke he stole. The first clue is the fact that he’s talking about the giant island of garbage which first made headlines years ago.
Find it pretty ironic that so many people are suddenly shocked and appalled at a roast comedian making a joke about Puerto Rico, calling him racist, when the Boricuas aren’t a specific race, it’s a nationality. Saying how appalled they are that the republicans would allow such a bad comedian to say a joke in such bad taste, as though saying shocking ignorant things is something new for that group.
While at the same time completely disregarding how the United States on both sides of the political spectrum has completely taken advantage of, corrupted and destroyed the islands of Puerto Rico, all while not allowing for the same level of political representation. Feels pretty hypocritical to me.
This comedian just said exactly how the US treats the people and lands of Puerto Rico, like trash…
Edit: I’ll agree that I could have expressed my point clearer, but after a day of conversation on this subject I am absolutely convinced no one actually cares about Puerto Rico in this thread. Just a bunch of fake virtue and mob mentality. Hard keeping faith in humanity when so many just care about belonging to an identity instead of actually putting in the effort to care about people.
I’ve heard this shit before…
“Muslim isn’t a race”
“Puerto Rico isn’t a race”
funny how most members of the not-race are always somewhat brown aren’t they?
missing the point. learn about the actual people if you care so much. The word racist has been overused sooo much it has lost all relevance. It doesn’t fucking matter, some idiot on some roll call of some political shitshow means nothing, actual action that could be done today for the people of PR matter.
wrong. the reason that joke is made about Puerto Rico and not Kansas is racism. if you can’t see that you’re either naive or wilfully trying to obfuscate. the frequency with which you’d like the word to be used doesn’t change the fact that it is a racist joke. the joke is not about the nationality.
by the way, their nationality is american.
I actually think the joke is about tearing people down, and could be applied to anyone. I mean that is this whole comedians shtick. Many people from Kansas and the south are called ‘white trash’, as a joke. You can certainly place whatever judgement you want on people but I still think it’s ignorant and missing the point.
You don’t know anything about the people you are offended for. Case in point, don’t ever tell a Borinqueños that their nationality is American. While they are legally American citizens they most often identify as Puerto Rican first. They had no choice in their American assimilation just like the Hawaiians, Samoans or the Chamorros. They were all colonized and still mistreated by the US today.
you’re being willfully obtuse or ignorant. no one said jokes couldn’t apply to anyone. the point is these jokes didn’t. they only applied to minorities. fucks sake if you didn’t watch the thing just don’t comment will you? the dude made a black people/watermelon jokes and you’re out here like 🤓 emm actually everyone likes watermelons so this can’t be racist. just stop. this is embarrassing.
Not at all what I am saying. I am saying that this guy does this for a living. Look up the guys comedy, it’s literally his whole career, not something that just popped up yesterday. It’s not the first time he’s been called out for it, and it shouldn’t be a surprise to anyone that he says stuff like this. He says it about literally everyone, to include minorities. He tears people down and makes fun of people for a profession. Why is what this guy said at some bullshit rally important? He says this stuff all over the world, most days of the week. Stop giving this guy attention, he only gets more fans and more tickets sold. Going on the internet and being offended is making the problem worse. I can explain it to you, but I can’t understand it for you.
So you think you could just walk outside, call someone “white trash” and nothing would happen? Because it’s a “just a joke bro”? You need to step off the Internet and touch some grass.
Again, not the point, and not what I think. I am not saying there aren’t repercussions to saying words. I am saying giving this whole thing attention does nothing but just feed into the game. The more people talk about this the more these people are relevant. The engine of the right wing conservative party in the US is about the fear that they are becoming irrelevant and they are losing power. By paying attention your giving them power. Stop contributing to it.
If you care about the people of PR then vote for people who support PR, which is the best you can do other than attempt to educate people on the mistreatment of their people and what colonization does to the disenfranchised. It’s a national problem, not a party problem, and especially not some irrelevant shock comedians problem.
Alright I see you’re just trolling now lol. My bad.
“It’s just a joke bro, they aren’t even a race” made me chuckle. The best part was doubling down at the end that it’s really America that’s racist. Great satire, even if unintentional.
Trying to Streisand a shit comedian is the joke. This is why PR will never be treated with respect.
Ah, you’re a racist bigot too. That explains a lot.
How is starting a conversation about actual Puerto Ricans, to divert attention away from a bullshit political rally racist? You seem to have missed my point completely. I am calling out people for giving attention to this hack comedian instead of the actual problems the Borinqueños face every day. I don’t think the majority of the people here who are so appalled at this non-sense actually care about the people of Puerto Rico. They just want to ‘thoughts and prayers’ their way to end supposed racism.
Instead of spreading more hate for things that don’t really matter. I would encourage you to learn about the people of all the colonized territories of the US. Name calling isn’t helping anyone.
No, it was a racist joke and an attempt to stir up hate for an “other.” But keep going on bleating your “well akshually” and broadcasting your moron status.
The point is that the people who are so appalled by this, are the same people who know nothing about the the people they are supposedly protecting while simultaneously disregarding how the people they are defending have been treated both historically and presently.
The same thing can be said about the Hawaiians and Samoans and the Chamorros. These are colonized peoples with a relevant and significant problems caused overwhelmingly by the mistreatment of the US government. Tony Hinchcliffe and all other ignorant puppets are irrelevant. Stop giving attention to the wrong things. PR has real issues that need to be addressed today, and they lack real representation due to poor policy. These are things we can do something about. Who cares about some rally, who actually watches this bullshit.
Really? You want to make it a semantics argument about what specific type of bigotry this was?
Read my many other replies. That’s not my point, not what I am saying. Maybe I said it poorly but I am saying that people don’t bother to learn about the people they are so offended for.
People are screaming racist about a guy who does this for over a decade as a living. This is a Tuesday for this guy, nothing new, nothing shocking. It’s like being offended that a butcher kills animals, it’s in the name, he tears people down for money.
The republican party does this shit daily, this isn’t even the worst thing that group has done this week. The difference is this comedian is paid to make this shit up while everyone else actually means it.
What I have a problem with is people being offended on behalf of the people of Puerto Rico, because it smells of fake virtue. Like when people are offended at school shootings but nothing changes. Because PR has been suffering for a century and no one in the US cares or even bothers to learn the fundamentals of their culture, like for instance that Puerto Rican is a nationality, not a race. A huge amount of Americans don’t even realize it’s a part of US and that they are citizens.
Yet a mediocre roast comic makes some inappropriate jokes and now it’s time to pay attention to PR. I don’t buy it, a month from now no one will remember and PR will continue to be the bastard step-child of the US.
