Donald J. Trump and his allies are full of bravado over his chances of victory in the closing days of the 2024 campaign. But there are signs, publicly and privately, that the former President and his team are worried that their opponents’ descriptions of him as a racist and a fascist may be breaking through to segments of voters.

That anxiety was clear after Trump’s six-hour event at Madison Square Garden in New York City, where the inflammatory speeches on Sunday included an opening act by a comedian known for a history of racist jokes who derided Puerto Rico as “a floating island of garbage” and talked about Black people carving watermelons.

The backlash among Puerto Rican celebrities and performers was instantaneous across social media, prompting the Trump campaign to issue a rare defensive statement distancing themselves from offensive comments. In a tight race, any constituency could be decisive and the sizeable Puerto Rican community in the battleground state of Pennsylvania was on the minds of Trump allies.

Danielle Alvarez, a senior adviser to the Trump campaign, said in a statement that the Puerto Rico joke “does not reflect the views of President Trump or the campaign”.

The Trump ethos has generally been to never apologise, never admit error and try to ignore controversy. Alvarez’s statement was a rare break from that practice, reflecting a new concern that Trump risks reminding undecided voters of the dark tenor of his political movement in the closing stage of the 2024 race.

Some of Trump’s Republican allies, seeming to harbour similar misgivings, were quick to criticise the joke and the comedian, Tony Hinchcliffe.

David Urban, an informal Trump adviser with long ties to Pennsylvania, where there are large numbers of Puerto Rican voters, posted on X: “I thought he was unfunny and unfortunately offended many of our friends from Puerto Rico,” adding the hashtag “#TrumpLovesPR.”

The pushback also came from officials in Florida, where Trump’s campaign is based and some of his advisers have spent their careers.

Senator Rick Scott of Florida posted on X on Sunday: “It’s not funny and it’s not true.” Representative Maria Elvira Salazar, of South Florida, condemned Hinchcliffe’s comments and said she was “disgusted”, adding that it did not reflect Republican values.

“Puerto Rico isn’t garbage, it’s home to fellow American citizens who have made tremendous contributions to our country,” Senator Marco Rubio of Florida posted on X.

New York Times News Service