Trump criticizes Harris, avoids conversations about racism and January 6

WASHINGTON – Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump practiced a policy of avoidance on Tuesday in Pennsylvania.

During the 80-minute rally in Allentown, Trump did not address allegations of racism stemming from his Sunday rally at 1 p.m. Madison Square Gardenbut he praised Latino and Puerto Rican voters.

He didn’t argue for long either Vice President Kamala Harris” a competing speech accusing him of posing a threat to democracy and complicity in the uprising of January 6, 2021.

Instead, he maintained his standard attacks on Harris and urged supporters to get out and vote. “We will win the whole deal,” Trump said.

Trump and allies also took down Joe Biden sparked a response from Republicans seemingly waving at Trump supporters. The president later said he made offensive jokes at the former president’s weekend rally.

Here are the top takeaways from Trump’s campaign stops Tuesday, according to USA TODAY:

Trump: Puerto Ricans and Latinos like me

Not to mention comedian insults o Puerto Rico During his event at Madison Square Garden, Trump actually piqued the interest of the Latino community and brought several prominent Latinos to the stage in Allentown to testify about his support for the island.

U.S. Sen. Marco Rubio of Florida and Zoraida Buxo – a “shadow senator” who represents Puerto Rico in Congress but does not have the right to vote – praised Trump to the audience.

“I’m so proud that we’re getting support from Latinos like never before… no one loves our Latino community and our Puerto Rican community more than I do,” Trump said. “I have done more for Puerto Rico than any president.”

The Trump administration faced heavy criticism for its response to Hurricane Maria in 2017, which killed nearly 3,000 people, devastated communities and forced some residents to flee.

The inspector general’s report found that tensions within the Republican administration led to delays in spending funds authorized by Congress.

“I’ve never heard of him”

In an interview taped Tuesday, Trump told Fox News host Sean Hannity that he didn’t know the comedian who told offensive jokes about Puerto Rico.

In a warm-up speech at a rally in New York on Sunday Tony Hinchcliffe comic he said, “I don’t know if you know this, but right now there is literally a floating island of garbage in the middle of the ocean. I think it’s called Puerto Rico.”

Hinchcliffe and others also joked about Latinos, Blacks and women.

When asked about Hinchcliffe during his interview with Hannity, Trump replied that he had “never heard of him.”

“Someone said there was a comedian who made Puerto Rican jokes or something, but I have no idea who he was, I’ve never seen him, I’ve never heard of him, and I don’t want to hear about him.”

Hannity also asked Trump if he wished the comedian “wasn’t there.” Trump responded that he wasn’t sure it was a “big deal,” but added: “I don’t want anyone telling bad jokes or stupid jokes. It probably shouldn’t be there.”

Latinos matter in Pennsylvania, and Pennsylvania is essential to Trump

With Latino leaders condemning Trump over “trash” remarks and other insults related to the rally, the Republican candidate could not have chosen a more sensitive city for the rally: Allentown, which has a significant Latino population.

Republican consultant Mike Madrid said there are 450,000 Puerto Rican voters in Pennsylvania and about 33,500 in Allentown alone. Those numbers are big enough to make a difference in Pennsylvania, a state where both the Trump and Trump campaigns likely need to target. Harris if they want to win the election.

“Racist slurs made at Trump’s Madison Square Garden rally could cost him the election,” said Madrid, author of “The Latino Century: How America’s Largest Minority Is Transforming Democracy.”

“Garbage Time”

After being called to the stage in Allentown, Rubio didn’t give up Joe Biden comments in which he appeared to call Trump supporters “garbage,” prompting boos from the crowd.

Trump joined in, calling Biden’s comments “terrible.” He compared them to Hillary Clinton’s comments in 2016 in which she called some Trump supporters “deplorables.”

Biden said he was only referring to the comedian who committed the crime. The White House also released a transcript Tuesday evening in which it tried to clarify that the president was referring to Hinchcliffe’s act.

“His demonization of Latinos is unwise,” the president said at X. “That’s all I wanted to say. The comments made at the rally do not reflect who we are as a nation.”

There is no question of January 6

Trump repeatedly attacked Harris on Tuesday night, but made no direct reference to her rival speech to an audience of about 75,000 at The Ellipse. This is the same place where Trump delivered a speech on January 6, 2021, before a group of his supporters stormed the Capitol building in an attempt to block the certification of the 2020 elections.

“This is the person who stood in this place almost four years ago and sent an armed mob into the United States Capitol,” Harris said. In her remarks, she added that Trump, if elected president, has signaled that he plans to pardon multiple people convicted of January 6 crimes.

In Pennsylvania, Trump did not discuss his actions on Jan. 6 but condemned Harris’ allies for labeling him a Nazi and fascist.

“Desperation,” Trump said, also blaming what he and his allies often joked as “Trump Disorder Syndrome.”

Trump talks about crowd size, exaggerates polls

Trump didn’t just criticize Harris’ remarks on Tuesday. Without evidence, he also accused the Harris campaign of busing crowds to Washington for her Tuesday speech.

He also disparaged Harris campaign stars such as Beyoncé, who joined the vice president at a rally in Texas last week.

“She didn’t sing,” Trump joked.

While Harris addressed an estimated crowd of 75,000 at The Ellipse in Washington, Trump spoke in a 10,000-seat auditorium — and as the evening progressed, several sections of the seats were empty.

The former president also exaggerated 2024 election polls during a rally in Pennsylvania, giving himself a big lead in the Commonwealth and other decisive states like Michigan.

In fact, polls show that the country is practically dead all seven battlefield states.

Regardless, Trump tells his supporters, “We will beat Kamala Harris and the media.”

Still, Trump has often said he will only talk about the good polls and ignore the bad ones. He also questioned the validity of the polls, telling podcaster Joe Rogan last week: “I don’t know a single person in my entire life who has ever been called by a pollster.”

Trump lays groundwork for fraud allegations

Trump also made false claims during the rally that Democrats committed voter fraud in the 2024 White House race.

The former president claimed that one county had already been “caught,” even though he misrepresented what was happening. Lancaster County officials announced an investigation was launched after workers flagged about 2,500 voter registration forms as potential fraud. No arrangements have been made.

Trump also addressed other complaints in other parts of Pennsylvania which are unconfirmed.

The former president has long claimed without evidence that voter fraud influenced the results of the 2020 White House race. He launched a legal battle in states across the country four years ago after Election Day, but all his claims of fraud were rejected by the courts.

He currently faces federal criminal and state-level charges in Georgia for allegedly trying to overturn the election.

The last days of Trump’s rallies

During a speech in Allentown, Trump touched on his 2024 presidential campaign, telling the crowd that he is now in the final week of the political rallies that have defined his political career since announcing his first presidential campaign in June 2015.

Win or lose, Trump, 78, says this is his last campaign. He spoke wistfully about how staffers would be working on different campaigns in four years and how much he would miss the raucous rallies that helped define his three presidential campaigns.

It was a “special journey for all of us,” Trump said.