By Graham J Noble

Just in the nick of time, with October done and the 2024 general election less than a week away, America may finally have its much-anticipated October surprise. Who would have thought it would come in the form of a single word: garbage? A comedian at the massive Madison Square Garden (MSG) Trump rally joked about Puerto Rico being a “floating island of garbage,” and days later, Joe Biden used that same word to describe Donald Trump’s supporters. There are several reasons the two comments are in no way similar and why one is so much worse than the other. And then there’s the spectacle of the White House and its media allies contorting into pretzels, trying to explain away, justify, or bury Biden’s incredibly ill-timed garbage comment.

First, some perspective on the MSG routine of Trump supporter and comedian Tony Hinchcliffe is necessary. A few of his alleged jokes were off-color. The comic certainly came off as a man who has a problem with Latinos – but that could be nothing more than a matter of perception. His invitation to appear at the New York rally was probably a bad idea in hindsight.

One specific wisecrack, however, sent the left-wing media into a frenzy. “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,” Hinchcliffe told his audience. “Yeah, I think it’s called Puerto Rico.” After bipartisan backlash against this joke, he took to social media to criticize people for having no sense of humor. He pointed out that he is fond of Puerto Rico and vacations there.

It is very likely that, during a visit to the island, the performer witnessed firsthand a chronic problem Puerto Ricans have been battling for years – an issue that has been covered by the media. The US territory has been struggling with overflowing landfills and, as a result, with garbage strewn about the otherwise beautiful island. It seems clear........

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