Bill Maher praises pro-Trump comedian for Puerto Rico joke that set off liberal uproar

Hinchcliffe explained the story behind the joke that set the media ablaze.

"That Puerto Rico joke was actually a joke that I had done a bunch in my standup, and it's part of a bigger joke with more front end and a longer back end," said Hinchcliffe.

Hinchcliffe said, "Basically, at the end of the normal joke, I go, you, I'm talking about the problems in the world. And I go, and I don't know if you guys know this, but there's a floating island of garbage in the middle of the ocean right now. Yeah, I think it's called Puerto Rico," Maher responded with laughter. 

"The point of the joke is that people picture, obviously, in my mind, obviously, the great Pacific garbage," Hinchcliffe said. "I can't believe nobody ever talks about the fact that there's an island of plastic as big as Texas."

Maher said, "There's no doubt it's insulting to Puerto Ricans, but I have been over the same territory. I mean, I don't think I would do exactly that joke, but I certainly have done many that have been objected to."

Hinchcliffe explained his thought process going into the rally. 

"When I was going in to do that, that rally, the goal, you know? It wasn't just to swing a few, you know, thousand votes, hopefully, of whatever, whoever listens to my podcast or whoever liked my silly performance on the Tom Brady roast or whatever. It was also to f---ing have the president go, "That was cool. Thanks, man. That's awesome. I liked your set. You got the crowd going." Which, by the way, I did. Of course, that room isn't mic'd for the comedy show."

Maher asked if Trump responded to him that way and Hinchcliffe responded, "No, he didn't, I didn't get to talk to him."

"That's just what they think about you. It's what they think about anyone who makes less money than them. It's what they think about the people who serve them food in a restaurant. It's what they think about the people who, who fold their clothes in a store," the New York Democrat said at the time.

Republicans also took issue with the joke. Former Rep. Anthony D'Esposito, a Republican from New York, posted, "I'm proud to be Puerto Rican. My mom was born and raised in Puerto Rico. It's a beautiful island with a rich culture and an integral part of the USA. The only thing that's 'garbage' was a bad comedy set. Stay on message."

The Trump campaign also swiftly distanced itself from the joke. 

"This joke does not reflect the views of President Trump or the campaign," Trump campaign senior adviser Danielle Alvarez noted in a statement, according to reports.

Hinchcliffe and the Trump campaign were criticized by many in the media for the joke and there were concerns that this would affect Trump's election chances and support within the Hispanic community. 

Fox News' Ashley Carnahan, Alex Nitzberg, and Alec Schemmel contributed to this report.