Former U.S. President Barack Obama urged voters to reject “politics of division and hatred” at a rally for democratic candidate Kamala Harris in Pennsylvania on Monday, Reuters reports.
Obama’s remarks come as political leaders from both sides of the aisle condemned comments made by a comedian at a major Donald Trump rally in New York on Sunday, calling Puerto Rico a “floating island of garbage.”
Americans of Puerto Rican origin or ancestry are an important demographic in some of the competitive swing states that will likely decide the winner of the Nov. 5 election, including Pennsylvania. Broadly speaking, both candidates are fighting tooth and nail for the Latino vote, which has trended more Republican in recent years but still leans Democratic.
“We have to reject the kind of politics of division and hatred that we saw represented,” Obama said to a rally where American rock star Bruce Springsteen also performed to Harris supporters.
The Trump campaign itself said the comments on Puerto Rico do not “reflect the views of President Trump or the campaign.” Trump himself has not commented on Hinchcliffe’s performance.
