On Monday and in the midst of President Trump’s five days of silence on the devastation Hurricane Maria wrought in Puerto Rico, Hillary Clinton raised a point that could explain his reluctance to address the matter.
In the midst of President Trump’s five days of silence on the devastation Hurricane Maria wrought in Puerto Rico, Hillary Clinton slammed him for his apparent reluctance to address the matter.
"We have American citizens in Puerto Rico who are in a desperate condition; he has not said one word," Clinton said during a SiriusXM interview Monday. “I’m not sure he knows that Puerto Ricans are American citizens.”
That evening, President Trump finally commented on the dire conditions those citizens are now facing.
“Texas & Florida are doing great but Puerto Rico, which was already suffering from broken infrastructure & massive debt, is in deep trouble. It's old electrical grid, which was in terrible shape, was devastated," Trump said in a series of tweets. "Much of the Island was destroyed, with billions of dollars owed to Wall Street and the banks which, sadly, must be dealt with. Food, water and medical are top priorities - and doing well.”
A number of people have noted that the message is rather light on inspirational and supportive words, leaning instead towards criticism and victim blaming, notes The Guardian.
It’s also been pointed out that Trump’s assertion that the area is “doing well” is in great contrast to the statement by Ricardo Rosselló, governor of Puerto Rico, that the territory is approaching a, “humanitarian crisis.”
At this time, much of the island is without power and, as The Guardian writes, “In the hard-to-reach interior of the country, thousands are struggling with destroyed houses, a heatwave, and rapidly depleting supplies of clean water and food.”
President Trump will soon be seeing the damage first-hand.
The Hill reports that it was announced on Tuesday that he will be vising Puerto Rico next week.
