NEW YORK (AP) — One of nearly 30 speakers who recently warmed up the audience Donald Trump at Madison Square Garden, The comedian Tony Hinchcliffe gained the most attention with racist comments.

“I don't know if you know this, but right now there's literally a floating island of trash in the middle of the ocean. I think it’s called Puerto Rico,” he said, later adding lewd and racist comments about Latinos, Jews and blacks.

The comments drew condemnation from Democrats and Puerto Rican celebrities. Ricky Martin shared a clip of Hinchcliffe's performance with the caption: “This is what they think about us.”

The Trump campaign has taken the rare step of distancing itself from Hinchcliffe. “This joke does not reflect the views of President Trump or the campaign,” senior adviser Danielle Alvarez said in a statement.

Here's what you should know about Hinchcliffe, his comedic style and the reaction to his Madision Square Garden comments.

Who is Tony Hinchcliffe?

Hinchcliffe, who grew up in Youngstown, Ohio, is a stand-up comedian who specializes in the roast style, in which comedians take the podium to tease a celebrity victim with personal and often tasteless jokes. He has written and performed on eight Comedy Central Roasts, including for Snoop Dogg and Tom Brady.

Even fellow comedians are not immune. At the Snoop Dogg roast, Hichcliffe made a joke referencing black comedian Luenell's work on the Underground Railroad. He said of the honoree: “Snoop, you look like a California raisin who has become addicted to heroin.”

He had a Netflix special in 2016 – “Tony Hinchcliffe: One Shot” – which was filmed in one continuous take. But he is perhaps best known for hosting the Kill Tony podcast since 2013, in which both professional and amateur comedians perform for 60 seconds in front of a panel of judges and then endure their criticism.

He started out as an opening act for comics like Joe Rogan, the conducted a three-hour interview with Trump on his podcast last week, and Jeff Ross and is credited with writing Martha Stewart's raunchy zingers for a Justin Bieber roast.

He has faced backlash before, most notably after he uttered a racial slur about fellow comedian and Asian American Peng Dang during a performance in Austin, Texas in 2021. Hinchcliffe was fired from his talent agency, WME, and several of his scheduled appearances were canceled. He never apologized.

“I knew what I had done wasn’t wrong. It wasn’t even the worst thing I did that week.” he told Variety Earlier this year. “It was so startling to me because it was a joke, and I believe that comedians should never apologize for a joke, should never stop working when everyone is after them, and should never slow down.”

How did others react to Hinchcliffe's Trump rally routine?

Democratic vice presidential candidate Gov. Tim Walz called Hinchcliffe a “male” and U.S. Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, a Democrat with Puerto Rican roots, called it “extremely disturbing.”

Florida Republican Sen. Rick Scott is up for re-election this year in a state with a large Puerto Rican population. wrote on social media that the “joke bombed for a reason” and “Puerto Ricans are great people and great Americans!”

How did Hinchcliffe react this time?

Abusive – or insulting – comedians often argue that there are no lines in comedy and that anything, no matter how sensitive, is fair game. Hinchcliffe responded to his Madison Square Garden set with a variation of “Don’t expect an apology.”

“These people have no sense of humor,” he complained on I Love Puerto Rico and Vacation There.”

Hinchcliffe has previously made controversial jokes about Sean “Diddy” Combs, George Floyd and the Baltimore Bridge collapse.

“I think people need to realize that we are professionals. And yes, sure, we care about the impact of what happens,” he told Variety.