Jon Stewart on Tony Hinchcliffe’s Trump MSG Rally Comments: “The Guy’s Just Really Doing What He Does”
Jon Stewart offered up a defense of Tony Hinchcliffe following the latter’s controversial comments at Donald Trump’s Madison Square Garden rally on Sunday.
The Daily Show host began a segment of his 18-minute opening monologue by highlighting the speakers at the rally, who included Tucker Carlson and Rudy Giuliani, before transitioning to address Hinchcliffe’s stand-up set, which notably included referring to Puerto Rico as a “floating island of garbage.”
More from The Hollywood Reporter
“Obviously, in retrospect, having a roast comedian come to a political rally a week before Election Day and roasting a key demographic, probably not the best decision by the campaign politically. But to be fair, the guy’s just really doing what he does,” Stewart said of the comedian.
The host then played clips of Hinchcliffe’s Tom Brady roast on Netflix, in which he stood out as one of the more memorable performers.
“Yes, yes, of course, terrible, boo. There’s something wrong with me,” Stewart continued. “I find that guy very funny. I’m sorry. I don’t know what to tell you. I mean, bringing him to a rally and having him not do roast jokes? That’d be like bringing Beyoncé to a rally and not have — oh.” He was seemingly referring to an earlier moment in the monologue in which he made a joke about the Grammy winner appearing at Kamala Harris’ Houston rally and giving a speech instead of performing.
The former The Problem host also addressed how Hinchcliffe and other speakers at the rally shined a light on a “real dark, apocalyptic version of America to the stage.
“I’m sure former President Trump will temper those passions,” Stewart noted, before showing a clip of Trump saying: “On day one, I will launch the largest deportation program in American history to get the criminals out.”
Following Hinchcliffe’s comments about Puerto Rico, several Latin stars vocalized their support for Harris, including Bad Bunny, Jennifer Lopez, Marc Anthony and The View host Ana Navarro.
“Fuck around and find out,” Navarro posted. “After Trump rally speaker calls Puerto Rico a ‘floating island of garbage,’ #BadBunny weighs-in, sharing @KamalaHarris proposal for ???? with his 45 MM followers.” She ended with a message in Spanish that translated to: “Thanks, Benito. A thousand, a thousand thanks for defending your island and the dignity of your people.”
Best of The Hollywood Reporter
Sign up for THR's Newsletter. For the latest news, follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.
Solve the daily Crossword
