Former US President and Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump called his New York rally a “lovefest” after he was slammed for crude and racist remarks, news agency AP reported.

During his Madison Square Garden rally in New York, several speakers made crude comments including a joke made by comedian Tony Hinchcliffe, saying Puerto Rico was a “floating island of garbage.”

Instead of apologising, Trump took a different stance, saying it was an “honour to be involved” in and praising it.&nbsp;

“The love in that room. It was breathtaking,” the former president said. “It was like a lovefest, an absolute lovefest. And it was my honour to be involved.”

Also read |&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/us-elections-2024-was-musk-sporting-a-maga-hat-with-nazi-font-at-trump-rally-771691">US Elections 2024: Was Musk sporting a MAGA hat with ‘Nazi font’ at Trump rally?</a>

However, he distanced himself from Hinchcliffe’s remarks and told Fox News on Tuesday (Oct 29) that he doesn’t know anything about Hinchcliffe and “can’t imagine it’s a big deal.” Although, later he said that “probably he shouldn’t have been there.” Trump said this in the swing state of Pennsylvania two days after the New York rally.

In an interview with ABC News on Tuesday, Trump said, “I don’t know him. Someone put him up there. I don’t know who he is.”

<h2>A liability for Trump's campaign?</h2>

With just a week left for Election Day, Trump allies have expressed concern over the incident, calling the event a liability. Puerto Ricans who live in Pennsylvania and other important swing states hold great electoral significance.

“This is not a time to have anyone criticize Puerto Rico or Latinos,” former U.N. Ambassador Nikki Haley told Fox News Channel in an interview. Haley earlier challenged Trump for the GOP presidential nomination but later endorsed him.

Also read |&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/us-election-opinion-poll-shows-harris-holds-narrow-lead-over-trump-but-razor-thin-edge-starting-to-fray-771577">US election: Opinion poll shows Harris holds narrow lead over Trump, but razor-thin edge starting to fray</a>

Later Trump held a rally in Pennsylvania’s Allentown, a city with a large Hispanic population. He was joined by Puerto Rico’s shadow U.S. senator, Zoraida Buxo, who defended the former president.

“We need this man to be our commander in chief,” said Buxo, who cannot vote in the Senate because Puerto Rico is not a state. “He will make us feel safe and he will protect us.”

However, anger in Allentown lingers on as some voters criticised the racial comments made against Latinos, Blacks, Jews and Palestinians. Some sexist insults were also targetted at Vice President Kamala Harris, Trump’s Democratic rival and former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton.

(With inputs from agencies)

Former US President and Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump called his New York rally a “lovefest” after he was slammed for crude and racist remarks, news agency AP reported.

Former US President and Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump called his New York rally a “lovefest” after he was slammed for crude and racist remarks, news agency AP reported. During his Madison Square Garden rally in New York, several speakers made crude comments including a joke made by comedian Tony Hinchcliffe, saying Puerto Rico was a “floating island of garbage.” Instead of apologising, Trump took a different stance, saying it was an “honour to be involved” in and praising it. “The love in that room. It was breathtaking,” the former president said. “It was like a lovefest, an absolute lovefest. And it was my honour to be involved.” Also read | US Elections 2024: Was Musk sporting a MAGA hat with ‘Nazi font’ at Trump rally? However, he distanced himself from Hinchcliffe’s remarks and told Fox News on Tuesday (Oct 29) that he doesn’t know anything about Hinchcliffe and “can’t imagine it’s a big deal.” Although, later he said that “probably he shouldn’t have been there.” Trump said this in the swing state of Pennsylvania two days after the New York rally. In an interview with ABC News on Tuesday, Trump said, “I don’t know him. Someone put him up there. I don’t know who he is.” A liability for Trump's campaign? With just a week left for Election Day, Trump allies have expressed concern over the incident, calling the event a liability. Puerto Ricans who live in Pennsylvania and other important swing states hold great electoral significance. “This is not a time to have anyone criticize Puerto Rico or Latinos,” former U.N. Ambassador Nikki Haley told Fox News Channel in an interview. Haley earlier challenged Trump for the GOP presidential nomination but later endorsed him. Also read | US election: Opinion poll shows Harris holds narrow lead over Trump, but razor-thin edge starting to fray Later Trump held a rally in Pennsylvania’s Allentown, a city with a large Hispanic population. He was joined by Puerto Rico’s shadow U.S. senator, Zoraida Buxo, who defended the former president. “We need this man to be our commander in chief,” said Buxo, who cannot vote in the Senate because Puerto Rico is not a state. “He will make us feel safe and he will protect us.” However, anger in Allentown lingers on as some voters criticised the racial comments made against Latinos, Blacks, Jews and Palestinians. Some sexist insults were also targetted at Vice President Kamala Harris, Trump’s Democratic rival and former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton. (With inputs from agencies)

Trump calls his New York rally a ‘lovefest’ as he faces backlash for crude and racist remarks

Hurricane Maria thrashed parts of the Dominican Republic with heavy rain and high winds as it passed near its east and north coasts on Thursday after making a direct hit on Puerto Rico that caused severe flooding and cut power to the entire island.

Maria has killed at least 10 people as it raged through the Caribbean, the second major hurricane to do so this month, and the U.S. National Hurricane Center (NHC) said it was headed toward the Turks and Caicos Islands and the southeastern Bahamas, bringing dangerous storm surges and torrential rain.

It ripped roofs off almost all structures on the island country of Dominica, where seven people were confirmed dead. The toll is expected to climb when searches resume at daybreak.

Maria was ranked a Category 4 storm, near the top end of the five-step Saffir-Simpson scale, with sustained winds of up to 155 miles per hour (250 km per hour), when it hit Puerto Rico on Wednesday as the strongest storm to hit the U.S. territory in nearly 90 years.

It ripped apart homes, snapped power lines and turned roadways into torrents laden with debris as it cut a diagonal swath across the island.

The entire island of 3.4 million people was under a flash flood warning early on Thursday as the storm was forecast to dump 20 to 30 inches (50 to 76 cm) of rain on much of Puerto Rico through Friday, according to the NHC.

The island&#39;s governor, Ricardo Rossello, said the only fatality immediately reported was a man struck by a piece of lumber hurled by high winds.

&quot;It&#39;s nothing short of a major disaster,&quot; Rossello said in a CNN interview, adding it may take months for the island&#39;s electricity to be completely restored. Earlier he imposed a dusk-to-dawn curfew for the island.

The streets of Puerto Rico&#39;s historic Old Town in the capital, San Juan, were strewn with broken balconies, air conditioning units, shattered lamp posts, fallen power lines and dead birds. Few trees escaped unscathed.

The island&#39;s recovery could be complicated by its financial woes as it faces the largest municipal debt crisis in U.S. history. Both its government and the public utility have filed for bankruptcy protection amid disputes with creditors.

Maria weakened as it went over land in Puerto Rico and picked up strength early on Thursday as it passed over warm Caribbean waters.

It was a Category 3 storm with maximum sustained winds of 115 mph (185 kph) about 70 miles (110 kms) north of Punta Cana, on the east coast of the Dominican Republic, at 5 a.m. EDT (0900 GMT), the NHC said.

Punta Cana, a popular tourist area, was hit with wind gusts of 58 mph (93 kph) and Maria was forecast to bring storm surges, when hurricanes push ocean water dangerously over normal levels, of up to 6 feet (1.83 m) in the Dominican Republic, it said.

Maria was expected to pick up strength as it churns toward the Turks and Caicos Islands and the southeastern Bahamas. Storm surges on the islands could be as high as 12 feet (3.66 m), it said.

Maria would then move north in the Atlantic Ocean over the weekend and there was no indication as to whether it would hit the continental United States.

It was classified a Category 5 storm when it struck Dominica on Monday night with devastating force.

Based on an aerial survey, about 95 percent of roofs in Dominica, one of the poorest countries in the Caribbean with a population of about 73,000, were damaged or destroyed by Maria, the U.N. Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs said. It added damage to the island could be in the billions of dollars.

Hartley Henry, principal adviser to Prime Minister Roosevelt Skerrit, said on Wednesday: &quot;The country is in a daze.&quot;

Passing early Wednesday just west of St. Croix, home to about 55,000 people, Maria damaged an estimated 65 percent to 70 percent of the island&#39;s buildings, said Holland Redfield, who served six terms in the U.S. Virgin Islands Senate.

President Donald Trump declared a major disaster in the U.S. Virgin Islands and ordered federal aid to supplement recovery efforts, the White House said.

The U.S. and British Virgin Islands were also hit this month by Hurricane Irma, which ranked as one of the most powerful Atlantic storms on record. It left a trail of destruction in several Caribbean islands and Florida this month, killing at least 84 people.

Photos posted on Facebook from St. Croix by Virgin Islands&#39; local public television station, WTJX-TV, showed fallen utility and telephone poles, tangled wires, uprooted trees and storm shutters ripped from buildings.

In the French territory of Guadeloupe, many roads were blocked and 40 percent of the population was without power, France&#39;s overseas territories ministry said.

Maria has killed at least 10 people as it raged through the Caribbean, the second major hurricane to do so this month.

Hurricane Maria thrashed parts of the Dominican Republic with heavy rain and high winds as it passed near its east and north coasts on Thursday after making a direct hit on Puerto Rico that caused severe flooding and cut power to the entire island. Maria has killed at least 10 people as it raged through the Caribbean, the second major hurricane to do so this month, and the U.S. National Hurricane Center (NHC) said it was headed toward the Turks and Caicos Islands and the southeastern Bahamas, bringing dangerous storm surges and torrential rain. It ripped roofs off almost all structures on the island country of Dominica, where seven people were confirmed dead. The toll is expected to climb when searches resume at daybreak. Maria was ranked a Category 4 storm, near the top end of the five-step Saffir-Simpson scale, with sustained winds of up to 155 miles per hour (250 km per hour), when it hit Puerto Rico on Wednesday as the strongest storm to hit the U.S. territory in nearly 90 years. It ripped apart homes, snapped power lines and turned roadways into torrents laden with debris as it cut a diagonal swath across the island. The entire island of 3.4 million people was under a flash flood warning early on Thursday as the storm was forecast to dump 20 to 30 inches (50 to 76 cm) of rain on much of Puerto Rico through Friday, according to the NHC. The island's governor, Ricardo Rossello, said the only fatality immediately reported was a man struck by a piece of lumber hurled by high winds. "It's nothing short of a major disaster," Rossello said in a CNN interview, adding it may take months for the island's electricity to be completely restored. Earlier he imposed a dusk-to-dawn curfew for the island. The streets of Puerto Rico's historic Old Town in the capital, San Juan, were strewn with broken balconies, air conditioning units, shattered lamp posts, fallen power lines and dead birds. Few trees escaped unscathed. The island's recovery could be complicated by its financial woes as it faces the largest municipal debt crisis in U.S. history. Both its government and the public utility have filed for bankruptcy protection amid disputes with creditors. Maria weakened as it went over land in Puerto Rico and picked up strength early on Thursday as it passed over warm Caribbean waters. It was a Category 3 storm with maximum sustained winds of 115 mph (185 kph) about 70 miles (110 kms) north of Punta Cana, on the east coast of the Dominican Republic, at 5 a.m. EDT (0900 GMT), the NHC said. Punta Cana, a popular tourist area, was hit with wind gusts of 58 mph (93 kph) and Maria was forecast to bring storm surges, when hurricanes push ocean water dangerously over normal levels, of up to 6 feet (1.83 m) in the Dominican Republic, it said. Maria was expected to pick up strength as it churns toward the Turks and Caicos Islands and the southeastern Bahamas. Storm surges on the islands could be as high as 12 feet (3.66 m), it said. Maria would then move north in the Atlantic Ocean over the weekend and there was no indication as to whether it would hit the continental United States. It was classified a Category 5 storm when it struck Dominica on Monday night with devastating force. Based on an aerial survey, about 95 percent of roofs in Dominica, one of the poorest countries in the Caribbean with a population of about 73,000, were damaged or destroyed by Maria, the U.N. Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs said. It added damage to the island could be in the billions of dollars. Hartley Henry, principal adviser to Prime Minister Roosevelt Skerrit, said on Wednesday: "The country is in a daze." Passing early Wednesday just west of St. Croix, home to about 55,000 people, Maria damaged an estimated 65 percent to 70 percent of the island's buildings, said Holland Redfield, who served six terms in the U.S. Virgin Islands Senate. President Donald Trump declared a major disaster in the U.S. Virgin Islands and ordered federal aid to supplement recovery efforts, the White House said. The U.S. and British Virgin Islands were also hit this month by Hurricane Irma, which ranked as one of the most powerful Atlantic storms on record. It left a trail of destruction in several Caribbean islands and Florida this month, killing at least 84 people. Photos posted on Facebook from St. Croix by Virgin Islands' local public television station, WTJX-TV, showed fallen utility and telephone poles, tangled wires, uprooted trees and storm shutters ripped from buildings. In the French territory of Guadeloupe, many roads were blocked and 40 percent of the population was without power, France's overseas territories ministry said.

Hurricane Maria lashes Dominican Republic after Puerto Rico

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Trump calls his New York rally a ‘lovefest’ as he faces backlash for crude and racist remarks

Hurricane Maria lashes Dominican Republic after Puerto Rico