Jon Stewart isn't buying the outrage aimed at Tony Hinchcliffe.
Hinchcliffe is under fire after performing at Donald Trump's rally at Madison Square Garden. The backlash centers around a joke he made about Puerto Rico, calling it "a floating island of garbage." Sure, you can laugh at it or not. But it was clearly a joke.
Stewart is stepping in to clarify the situation. He has built his career on comedy, and despite his more serious tone since 2016, he took a stand for Hinchcliffe and comedy on "The Daily Show."
"There's something wrong with me. I find that guy very funny. I’m sorry, I don’t know what to tell you," Stewart said. He highlighted the absurdity of bringing a comedian to a rally and not letting him do roast jokes. "That’d be like bringing Beyoncé to a rally and not…oh," he added, poking fun at Kamala Harris' recent rally with the singer in Texas.
Stewart deserves credit for pointing out the obvious: it was just comedy.
How is this even a debate? Hinchcliffe's comments weren’t delivered with malice. It was just a joke. Comedy pushes boundaries. It shouldn't be bland or safe.