Rick Scott defends Laura Loomer and Donald Trump over anti-Latino 'joke'
WEST PALM BEACH — U.S. Sen. Rick Scott defended Laura Loomer, a far-right firebrand who has previously intimated that Puerto Ricans are not U.S. citizens, during his West Palm Beach campaign stop this week — just days after a comedian at a Donald Trump rally called the territory "a floating island of garbage."
Scott, who is running for reelection, visited Republican supporters at a gathering, hosted by Don Ramon Restaurante Cubano in West Palm Beach. He praised business and Hispanics who come to Florida.
"I love watching people try to build their business and, you know, they have lots of struggles," Scott said to the crowd of at least a dozen Hispanic Republicans in the back of the restaurant. "You should always appreciate those who put their lives on the line, their money, their time, their friendships."
Other attendees and speakers at the event included Wellington Councilwoman Maria Antuña, Florida Hispanic Chamber of Commerce President Julio Fuentes and Republican congressional candidate Dan Franzese, who is running against Democratic incumbent U.S. Rep. Lois Frankel.
What did Rick Scott say on Laura Loomer's podcast?
Scott was at Don Ramon's with a group of Hispanic Republicans, reminding voters registered with his party to vote early or by mail. The night before, he was on Loomer's podcast discussing his support for mass deportations and his plans to become the Republican leader in the Senate should he be reelected.
Loomer wrote on Monday on X, formerly known as Twitter, that people should "get over" comedian Tony Hinchcliffe's "joke" at Republican presidential nominee Trump's Sunday night rally in New York City. At that event, Hinchcliffe sparked a political firestorm by calling Puerto Rico a "floating island of garbage" and saying Latinos "love making babies."
What did Rick Scott say about Laura Loomer?
Scott, at Don Ramon's, defended Loomer, who had shared a post on social media on Sept. 11, 2023, saying that the U.S government was behind the 9/11 terrorist attacks.
"She's somebody who believes in this country," he said, adding that she is "a big supporter of President Trump."
Loomer on Tuesday endorsed Scott for re-election. Scott thanked her and praised her for helping him as far back as 2014, when he ran for reelection as Florida's governor. She lost the Palm Beach County congressional race in 2020 against Frankel. Scott won his Senate seat in 2018, ousting Democratic incumbent Bill Nelson.
Scott is running against former U.S. Rep. Debbie Mucarsel-Powell, a Democrat who represented southern Miami-Dade and Monroe counties after being elected in 2018 but was defeated by Republican Carlos Giménez in 2020.
Scott led Senate Republicans’ fundraising efforts in the 2022 midterm election year as chair of the National Republican Senatorial Committee. His party lost a Senate seat that year, giving the Democratic caucus 51 seats in the 100-member chamber. If he wins reelection, Scott will need to seek votes from fellow GOP senators to be elected their leader.
What has Laura Loomer said about Latinos?
Loomer has a history of making disparaging remarks about Hispanics, including those against Puerto Ricans. She said during a May 21 episode of her podcast that three of the judges presiding over federal cases involving Trump were “not even from this country.”
“They're from Jamaica, Colombia and Puerto Rico,” she said.
Judge Tanya Chutkan, born in Jamaica, presides over Trump's Jan. 6 case in Washington, D.C., where he is charged with crimes surrounding his attempts between November 2020 and Jan. 7, 2021, to stop certification of President Joe Biden's election victory. Judge Aileen Cannon, born in Colombia, presides over his case in Fort Pierce where he is charged with stealing state secrets when he left office and lying to authorities about it.
Puerto Rico is a U.S. territory. Its people are U.S. citizens.
What did Rick Scott say about comedian who called Puerto Rico 'garbage'?
When asked if Trump should apologize for a comedian's joke calling Puerto Rico an island of garbage at his Madison Square Garden rally, Scott replied that he already had.
"His campaign already put something out," he said. "I've always been very clear Puerto Ricans are a big part of our state. It's a beautiful island."
Trump has not denounced the comedian his campaign hosted. But during a Tuesday night interview with Fox News host and Palm Beacher Sean Hannity, Trump claimed no responsibility for Hinchcliffe.
"Somebody said there was a comedian that joked about Puerto Rico or something," Trump said. "I have no idea. They put a comedian in. You don't vet them and go crazy. It's nobody's fault."
Trump on Tuesday at Mar-a-Lago described his rally as a “love fest." He did not comment on Hinchcliffe during his nearly hour-long remarks.
More: Trump doesn't mention Puerto Rico/Latino insults during Mar-a-Lago speech
What did the comedian say at the Madison Square Garden rally?
At the Trump campaign's invitation, Hinchcliffe spoke at the former president's Sunday night rally.
“These Latinos, they love making babies, too,” he said. “There’s no pulling out. They don’t do that. They come inside, just like they did to our country.” Moments later, he said, “there’s literally a floating island of garbage in the middle of the ocean right now. I think it’s called Puerto Rico.”
Hinchcliffe's other comments included a racist trope about Black Americans eating watermelons and an antisemitic remark about Jewish people being too tight with their money.
This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Post: Rick Scott defends podcaster who intimated Puerto Ricans aren't citizens
