NEW YORK — NEW YORK (AP) — Donald Trump hosted a rally with crude and racist slurs at New York’s Madison Square Garden on Sunday, turning what his campaign called the event where he would deliver his closing message into an illustration of what alienates his critics.

A little more than a week before Election Day, speakers labeled Puerto Rico a “floating island of trash,” called Democratic Vice President Kamala Harris “the devil” and said the woman vying to become first lady and black president began his career. like a prostitute.

“I don’t know if you guys know this, but there is literally a floating island of trash in the middle of the ocean right now. I think it’s called Puerto Rico,” said Tony Hinchcliffe, a stand-up comic whose set also included lewd and racist comments about Latinos, Jews and black people, all key constituencies in the election just nine days away.

His joke was immediately criticized by Harris’ campaign, as he is running against Trump to win Puerto Rican communities in Pennsylvania and other swing states. Puerto Rican music superstar Bad Bunny supported Harris shortly after Hinchcliffe’s appearance.

Trump’s normally combative campaign took the rare step of distancing himself from Hinchcliffe. “This joke does not reflect the views of President Trump or the campaign,” senior adviser Danielle Alvarez said in a statement.

But other speakers also made incendiary comments. Trump’s childhood friend David Rem referred to Harris as “the Antichrist” and “the devil.” Businessman Grant Cardone told the crowd that Harris “and her pimp handlers are going to destroy our country.”

The event reflected the former president’s tone throughout his third campaign for the White House. Although he refrained from doing so on Sunday, Trump has often ripped Harris offensive and personal terms himself, questioning her mental stability and intelligence in recent weeks, as well as calling her “lazy,” long a racist trope used against black people.

The event was a surreal spectacle that included former pro wrestler Hulk Hogan, TV psychologist Dr. Phil McGraw, former Fox News host Tucker Carlson, politicians including House Speaker Mike Johnson and Representatives Byron Donalds and Elise Stefanik, and an artist who painted a painting. of Trump hugging the Empire State Building.

And that was before Trump took the stage, more than two hours late.

After being introduced by his wife, Melania Trump, in a rare public appearance, the former president began by asking the same questions he has asked at the start of every recent rally: “Are you better off now than you were four years ago? ” The crowd responded with a resounding “No!”

“This election is a choice between four more years of gross incompetence and failure, or the beginning of the greatest years in our country’s history,” he said.

Trump added a new proposal on Sunday his list of tax cuts aimed at winning over older adults and white-collar workers, which already includes pledges to end taxes on Social Security benefits, tips and overtime pay: a tax credit for family caregivers.

This comes after Harris spoke of the “sandwich generation” of adults who care for aging parents and raise their children at the same time. Harris proposed federal funding to cover home care costs for older Americans.

Trump also repeated familiar lines on foreign policy and immigration, calling for the death penalty for any migrant who kills an American citizen and saying that the day he takes office, “the migrant invasion of our country ends.”

As Trump’s remarks unfolded in an hour, some of the crowd began trickling out.

Tech mogul Elon Musk, who spoke earlier and introduced Melania Trump, was a big part of Trump’s closing campaign message. The former president called Musk “a genius” and “special.”

Musk nodded to Trump’s recent plan to allow him to lead a government efficiency commission that would audit the entire federal government. Several of Musk’s businesses, including Tesla and SpaceX, have major government contracts or have relied on US subsidies, and Musk has faced criticism after reports that he spoke privately with Russian President Vladimir Putin.

“Your money is being wasted and the department of government efficiency is going to fix it,” Musk said before taking a seat offstage next to Melania Trump.

Many of the speakers appeared on the stage of the Republican National Convention on Sunday. This time, the same speakers shouted and railed more against the Democrats.

Hogan, returning to where he performed years ago as a professional wrestler, appeared to reprise his character, appearing wearing a giant red, orange and yellow boa and violently waving a large American flag while posing and dancing. He spat on stage during his speech, repeatedly flexed his muscles and told the audience: “Trump is the only man who can fix this country today.”

Some Democrats, calling Trump a fascist, compared his event on Sunday to a pro-Nazi rally in Grădina in February 1939. Several speakers on Sunday blasted Hillary Clinton, the Democrat defeated by Trump eight years ago, for saying recently that Trump would “recreate” the 1939 event. One of them, radio host Sid Rosenberg, directed a profanity against Clinton.

“Hey guys, now they’re going all out and trying to call us Nazis and fascists,” said Alina Habba, one of Trump’s lawyers, who draped a bright “MAGA” jacket over her lectern as she spoke. “And you know what they claim, boys? It’s very scary. They claim we will go after them and try to put them in jail. Well, isn’t he rich?”

Hogan stated in his husky growl, “I don’t see no stinkin’ Nazis in here.”

Trump has denounced the four criminal charges brought against him as politically motivated. He has accelerated his denunciations in recent weeks of “enemies within”, calling internal political rivals and suggesting he would use the military to go after them. Harris, for his part, has to which reference is made Trump as a fascist.

The arena was packed hours before Trump was scheduled to speak. Outside the arena, the sidewalks were lined with Trump supporters wearing red “Make America Great Again” hats. There was a heavy security presence. Streets were blocked off and access to Penn Station was restricted.

“It just goes to show you that he has the biggest following of anyone who’s ever lived,” said Philip D’Agostino, a longtime Trump supporter in Queens, the borough where Trump grew up.

Trump has a complicated history with where he built his business empire, and it’s made him a tabloid and reality TV star. Its residents indicted him last year on 34 counts of falsifying business records. He was found guilty in that case and was also found guilty in civil court of business fraud and sexual abuse.

But Trump has talked about wanting to hold a rally at the venue called “The Most Famous Arena in the World” since he launched his campaign.

The rally was one of a series of detours Trump has made from battleground states, including a recent rally in Coachella, Calif., and rallies at the Jersey Shore and in the South Bronx.

While some dismissed the stops as nothing more than vanity events designed to boost Trump’s ego, the rallies guaranteed Trump national coverage that could help him reach the country’s few undecided voters , many of whom don’t get their news from traditional media.

New York hasn’t voted a Republican for president in 40 years. But that hasn’t stopped Trump from continuing to insist he thinks he can win. New York is also home to a handful of competitive congressional races that could determine which party controls the House next year.

Trump routinely uses his hometown as a foil to audiences in other states, painting a dark vision of the city that bears little resemblance to reality. He sees it as crime-ridden and overrun by violent immigrant gangs that have taken over Fifth and Madison avenues and occupied Times Square.

On Sunday, however, Trump was much more complimentary of the city. He said “no city more embodies the spirit” and energy of the American people and talked about attending basketball and hockey games at the Garden.

After Trump finished his speech after more than an hour, opera singer Christopher Macchio took the stage to perform “New York, New York.”

The former president smiled and swayed gently, his wife standing beside him on stage.