Tag: Puerto Rico

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Trump Suggests Pulling FEMA Support From Puerto Rico

Donald Trump got a face full of internet wrath today when he warned that federal emergency workers can’t stay “forever” in hurricane-ravaged Puerto Rico.

He also suggested that the U.S. territory is currently facing a financial crisis “largely of their own making” and infrastructure that was a “disaster” before Hurricane Maria struck on Sept. 20.

Mind you, Trump hasn’t threatened to pull the FEMA teams down in Texas, Louisiana or Florida after their recent hurricane damage.

Today, the U.S. House passed $36.5B disaster aid package for hurricane and wildfire relief by vote of 353 to 69. All “no” votes were Republicans.

CNN’s Jim Acosta tweeted that the comments were a knee-jerk reaction to the mayor of San Juan who spoke about Trump’s lackluster response to the disaster in Puerto Rico.

Predictably, the wide-ranging responses to Trump’s comments included terms like “racist,” “inhumane” and a “heartless monster.”

Note the first tweet below is from the governor of Puerto Rico:

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Trump Mocks Hispanic Accent During “Hispanic Heritage Month” Ceremony

Donald Trump is clearly devoid of any modicum of respect when speaking about Puerto Rico, where millions of American citizens are woefully struggling in the aftermath of Hurrican Maria.

During a ceremony today commemorating “Hispanic Heritage Month,” President Trump laughingly mocked the Latino accent in saying “PUerto Rico,” laughing, and then saying it in his usual accent.

Between the glacial pace of aid to the U.S. territory and his Twitter feud with the mayor of San Juan, it’s crystal clear this is just a wink and a smile to his racist supporters.

Watch below.

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FEMA Website Removes Any Stats That Show Slow Progress In Puerto Rico

The website for the Federal Emergency Management Agency has removed any statistics that might show slow progress being made in Puerto Rico regarding the response and recovery efforts in the wake of Hurricane Maria.

From the Washington Post:

As of Wednesday, half of Puerto Ricans had access to drinking water and 5 percent of the island had electricity, according to statistics published by the Federal Emergency Management Agency on its Web page documenting the federal response to Hurricane Maria.

By Thursday morning, both of those key metrics were no longer on the Web page.

FEMA spokesman William Booher noted that both measures are still being reported on a website maintained by the office of Puerto Rican Gov. Ricardo Rosselló, www.status.pr. According to that website, which is in Spanish, 9.2 percent of the island now has power and 54.2 percent of residents have access to drinking water. Booher said that these measures are also shared in news conferences and media calls that happen twice a day, but he didn’t elaborate on why they are no longer on the main FEMA page.

“Our mission is to support the governor and his response priorities through the unified command structure to help Puerto Ricans recover and return to routines. Information on the stats you are specifically looking for are readily available” on the website maintained by the governor’s office, Booher said.

Watch below as Rep. Luis V. Gutiérrez of Illinois rails at the Trump administration’s response to the horrific devastation in Puerto Rico: “They don’t want you to know the truth.”

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New Music For Puerto Rico: Lin-Manuel Miranda “Almost Like Praying”


 Hamilton creator Lin-Manuel Miranda has written an all-star charity recording, “Almost Like Praying,” to benefit those suffering in Puerto Rico in the aftermath of Hurricane Maria.

(Get it? “Maria,” from West Side Story, Hurricane Maria… Clever one, that Miranda).

Via press release:

Atlantic Records has announced this week’s release of Lin-Manuel Miranda’s “Almost Like Praying” (Feat. Marc Anthony, Ruben Blades, Camila Cabello, Pedro Capo, Dessa, Gloria Estefan, Fat Joe, Luis Fonsi, Juan Luis Guerra, Alex Lacamoire, John Leguizamo, Jennifer Lopez, Rita Moreno, Ednita Nazario, Joell Ortiz, Anthony Ramos, Gina Rodriguez, Gilberto Santa Rosa, PJ Sin Suela, Tommy Torres, and Ana Villafañe).”

The extraordinary all-star single will be available at all digital music retailers and streaming services beginning today, October 6th.

With music and lyrics by the Pulitzer Prize, Tony, GRAMMY, Emmy Award-winning creator of HAMILTON Lin-Manuel Miranda, and produced by Jeffrey “Trooko” Penalva, “Almost Like Praying” was written and recorded last weekend at studios in New York City, Los Angeles, Miami, The Dominican Republic and Puerto Rico. Miranda traveled to each location to work closely with the contributing performers. Penned by Miranda only last week, the original song borrows its title and instantly indelible hook from Leonard Bernstein and Stephen Sondheim’s classic, “Maria,” from the original Broadway musical, WEST SIDE STORY.

The exuberance throughout the song and video is palpable. True American spirit on display.

Watch below and then head over to iTunes to contribute by purchasing the track.

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Trump To Puerto Rico: “You’ve Thrown Our Budget A Little Out Of Whack”

Sitting with local Puerto Rican officials and federal cabinet members, Donald Trump said, “Now I hate to tell you, Puerto Rico, but you’ve thrown our budget a little out of whack.”

He went on to contrast the devastation on the U.S. territory to that of New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina which he characterized as a “real catastrophe.”

“Every death is a horror. But if you look at a real catastrophe like Katrina, and you look at the tremendous – hundreds and hundreds of people that died – and you look at what happened here with a storm that really was totally overpowering. Nobody’s ever seen anything like this. And what is your death count – 16 people certified. Sixteen people versus in the thousands. You can be really proud of all of your people, all of our people, working together. Sixteen versus literally thousands of people.”

I’m not sure how he thought that sentiment would help the citizens of Puerto Rico.

Nor why he chose to think of “your people” versus “our people.” Everyone there is an American.

Watch below.

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Trump Continues To Blame Puerto Rican Locals For Poor Conditions: “They Have To Give Us More Help”

Donald Trump continued praising the federal government’s efforts in Puerto Rico today as he shifted blame to local truck drivers for any delay in improving conditions on the hurricane-battered island.

From ABC News:

President Donald Trump says the federal government has done a good job in Puerto Rico responding to the devastation caused by Hurricane Maria, but says local officials need to “give us more help.”

Trump says Tuesday that “in Texas and in Florida we get an A-plus, and I’ll tell you what, I think we’ve done just as good in Puerto Rico.”

Trump says roads are cleared and communications are “starting to come back.” He says on a “local level they have to give us more help.”

The president lashed out at the mayor of San Juan after she criticized the federal response. He now says that San Juan Mayor Carmen Yulin Cruz “has come back a long way.”

The White House says Cruz had been invited to participate in Tuesday’s events, but it was unclear whether she and the president would meet.

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Donald Trump Attacks Mayor Of San Juan From A Luxury Golf Course

Donald Trump

In the aftermath of Hurricane Maria, the people of Puerto Rico are facing terrible devastation. We’ve seen that all week on the news.

But on Friday, Carmen Yulin Cruz, the mayor of San Juan, had had enough. In a passionate plea, she called out to anyone who could possibly help Puerto Rico.

“We are dying here,” Cruz said at a press conference. “I cannot fathom the thought that the greatest nation in the world cannot figure out the logistics for a small island of 100 miles by 35 miles. So, mayday, we are in trouble.”

And then this morning, from a luxury golf club in New Jersey, Donald Trump attacked the mayor for trying to help her people. He added that “fake news” outlets are trying to “disparage” the first responders in Puerto Rico.

It’s not surprising that Trump attacked the mayor. She’s challenged him, she’s a woman and a Hispanic. We know his track record in these situations.

Cruz pleads for help, “We are dying,” and Trump responds with “poor leadership” and “nasty.”

I also think it’s worth noting that Puerto Rico, a U.S. territory inhabited by primarily Hispanic people, has no electoral votes. On the other hand, Texas and Florida, which commanded Trump’s attention have lots of electoral votes and are primarily white citizens. You do the math.

The Twitterverse responded:

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Mayor Of San Juan: This Is Not “A Good-News Story”

The Trump administration had its own “You’re doing a heckuva job, Brownie” moment when the acting Homeland Security Secretary told the media the situation in Puerto Rico is “a good-news story.”

From CNN:

The mayor of Puerto Rico’s capital sharply criticized a senior Trump administration official Friday for calling the government’s disaster response “a good-news story,” comments that came amid mounting criticism of the federal reaction to the disaster here.

Trump administration officials have defended the federal effort, with acting Homeland Security Secretary Elaine Duke telling reporters outside the White House on Thursday that the relief effort “is proceeding very well considering the devastation that took place.” She called the federal response “a good-news story in terms of our ability to reach people and the limited number of deaths that have taken place in such a devastating hurricane.”

After watching Duke’s comments, San Juan Mayor Carmen Yulín Cruz appeared taken aback during an interview on CNN, calling the remarks “irresponsible” and saying they upset and frustrated her.

“Maybe from where she’s standing, it’s a good-news story,” Cruz said. “When you’re drinking from a creek, it’s not a good-news story. When you don’t have food for a baby, it’s not a good-news story.”

You really have to wonder if Donald Trump didn’t figure out until this week that Puerto Rico is part of the United States. He was all gung-ho to help Texas and Florida after their recent hurricane devastation.

Trump has said there are difficulties in helping Puerto Rico because Puerto Rico an “island surrounded by water…big water…ocean water.”

Hawaii needs to really worry if anything catastrophic hits them cause, you know, “big water, ocean water.”

Watch the mayor of San Juan below. The pain in Mayor Cruz’s voice is clear.