Wisconsin: Former US President Donald Trump walked down the steps of the Boeing 757 that bears his name, walked across a rain-soaked tarmac and, after twice missing the handle, climbed into the passenger seat of a white garbage truck that also carried his name. The former president, once a reality TV star known for his showmanship, wanted to draw attention to a remark made a day earlier by his successor, Democratic President Joe Biden, that suggested Trump's supporters were garbage.
Trump has used the remark as a cudgel against his Democratic rival, Vice President Kamala Harris. “How do you like my garbage truck?” Trump said, wearing an orange and yellow safety vest over his white dress shirt and red tie. “This is in honour of Kamala and Joe Biden.”
Trump and other Republicans were facing pushback of their own for comments by a comedian at a weekend Trump rally who disparaged Puerto Rico as a “floating island of garbage.” Trump then seized on a comment Biden made on a late Wednesday call that "The only garbage I see floating out there is his supporters.”
The president tried to clarify the comment afterwards, saying he had intended to say Trump's demonization of Latinos was unconscionable. But it was too late.
On Thursday, after arriving in Green Bay, Wisconsin, for an evening rally, Trump climbed into the garbage truck, carrying on a brief discussion with reporters while looking out the window — similar to what he did earlier this month during a photo opportunity he staged at a Pennsylvania McDonalds. He again tried to distance himself from comedian Tony Hinchcliffe, whose joke had set off the firestorm, but Trump did not denounce it. He also said he did not need to apologize to Puerto Ricans.
“I don't know anything about the comedian. I don't know who he is. I've never seen him. I heard he made a statement, but it was a statement that he made. He's a comedian, what can I tell you. I know nothing about him," Trump said.
A spokesperson for Trump said the joke doesn't reflect his views, but the former president has not addressed it himself. “I love Puerto Rico and Puerto Rico loves me,” Trump said from the garbage truck. He ended the brief appearance by telling reporters: “I hope you enjoyed this garbage truck. Thank you very much.” When he took the stage a short time later, he was still wearing the orange vest.
Harris distances herself from Biden's 'garbage' comment about Trump supporters
Democratic presidential candidate Kamala Harris has distanced herself from a controversial comment made by her boss, in which he referred to supporters of her Republican rival as 'garbage'. “I think that, first of all, he clarified his comments. But let me be clear: I strongly disagree with any criticism of people based on who they vote for. You heard my speech last night and continuously throughout my career,” Vice President Harris told reporters Wednesday.
“I believe that the work that I do is about representing all the people, whether they support me or not.
As president of the United States, I will be a president for all Americans, whether you vote for me or not,” she said, responding to a question on Biden's comment comparing Trump supporters to garbage. Biden was commenting on a racist joke a comedian made at a Trump rally days earlier, likening Puerto Rico to an “island of garbage.” “The only garbage I see floating out there is his (Trump's) supporters, his demonisation of Latinos is unconscionable and it's un-American. It's totally contrary to everything we've done, everything we've been,” Biden said in his remarks on a campaign call for Latino voters on Tuesday.
(With inputs from agencies)
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