(L) Acting HSD Secy. Elaine Duke vs. (R) San Juan Mayor Carmen
Yulin-Cruz
(Good News Story vs. Reality on the Ground)
The
headlines while playing golf – from guess who? Yep, President Tweet Himself:
Trump Blasts San Juan Mayor in Defending Fed's Maria
Efforts
(I note: This
pissed off Mayor Carmen Yulin-Cruz who said in part about the Acting HSD Secretary Elaine Duke for telling reporters at
the White House that that the relief efforts were “a good-news story in terms
of our ability to reach people and the limited number of deaths that have taken
place.”
Cruz said in
an interview seen on all news networks that Duke’s remarks “are irresponsible,”
adding: “This
is a people-are-dying story. This is a story of devastation story. It continues
to worsen because people are not getting food or water story – not a good news
story.”)
Mayor
Yulin-Cruz remarks are seen in this video report from CBS.
Now the story for today comes from Bloomberg: Trump, under rising criticism for the federal response to hurricane-damaged Puerto Rico, swung from defending his administration’s approach to lashing out at the San Juan mayor for her “poor leadership ability.” (And, of course via a series of Saturday morning tweets saying in part that Mayor Yulin-Cruz, “Who was very complimentary only a few days ago, has now been told by the Democrats that you must be nasty to Trump.”
Now the story for today comes from Bloomberg: Trump, under rising criticism for the federal response to hurricane-damaged Puerto Rico, swung from defending his administration’s approach to lashing out at the San Juan mayor for her “poor leadership ability.” (And, of course via a series of Saturday morning tweets saying in part that Mayor Yulin-Cruz, “Who was very complimentary only a few days ago, has now been told by the Democrats that you must be nasty to Trump.”
Whoa!!! Wait a fricking
minute Mr. Trump:
DEMS told her to be nasty to you? Evidence, proof please and now … that is a
pretty strong allegation – prove it.
Trump
continued in his tweet rage: “Such poor leadership ability by the Mayor of San
Juan, and others in Puerto Rico, who are not able to
get their workers to help. They want
everything to be done for them when it should be a community effort.”
Trump then added: “There are 10,000 Federal workers now on Island
doing a fantastic job and an amazing job.”
(Note: Actually CBS says about 1,800 are
there now and more coming. Just a minor math error, um Mr. Trump?)
Note: The administration has come under
criticism from some Republicans as well as Democrats in Congress:
Sen. Marco Rubio (R-FL) said the White House hasn’t grasped
the significance of the damage in Puerto Rico compared with recent hurricane
damage in his state, from Hurricane Irma, and in TX from Hurricane Harvey.
Thirty-seven
Democrats and one independent in the Senate signed a letter urging Trump to
take steps including issuing a broader disaster declaration, naming a White
House coordinator for rebuilding, and providing for more help to restore
electricity.
Sen. Robert Menendez (D-NJ) toured the island and said on
Twitter that “It feels like the hurricane just hit yesterday. This federal
response needs to double or triple right now.”
In a speech
Friday to the National Association of Manufacturers in Washington, the
president said recovery in Puerto Rico, which already faced a $74 billion
mountain of debt and a shrinking economy, will be costly, adding:
“We’re literally starting from
scratch. The hurricane has damaged roads and sewage systems and knocked out the
electric power grid. Nobody has ever seen anything like it. The response and
recovery effort probably has never been seen for something like this. This is
an island surrounded by water, big water, ocean water.”
He concluded: “The territorial government will have
to work with federal authorities to determine how this massive rebuilding
effort – it will be one of the biggest ever – will be funded and organized, and
what we’ll do with the tremendous amount of existing debt already on the island.”
I close with this: Shame on you Mr. Trump. You blame a
distraught Mayor and blast her on the spot analysis while you play golf?
Shame on you Mr. Trump for blaming any past debt or
future debt on the American citizens of Puerto Rico for the damage and repairs
needed.
Shame on you Mr. Trump for alleging that DEMS told the
Mayor to be “nasty towards you.” Prove it or do us all the honor with one big favor:
Just STFU.
As for you part, Mr. Trump: Lead, stop complaining and
direct things to get done and stop angry tweeting about anyone and everything.
You act like a teenage boy who’s been turned for a
dance at the prom. Get real and lead.
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