Tensions Arise Between Trump and Mayor of San Juan
These past few of weeks have been terribly tumultuous for the Southern U.S. and Central America. From Hurricanes Harvey and Maria to the Las Vegas shooting, the problems just keep piling up. Just a week ago, Puerto Rico was at the epicenter of Hurricane Maria (almost a level 5 hurricane), with more than 30 hours of unrelenting wind and rain. According to the Atlantic, Hurricane Maria was more than a disaster; it is classified as a “catastrophic event” due to the destruction of the “built environment,” unlike Hurricanes Irma and Harvey which did not cause the same devastation to infrastructure.
Naturally, President Trump thought a good response to this crisis would be to criticize San Juan mayor, Carmen Yulín Cruz, over Twitter. Cruz has been outspoken about Trump’s lackluster relief efforts for Hurricanes Irma and Maria and on September 30, Trump once again took to Twitter to defend his response to the natural disaster: “Results of recovery efforts will speak much louder than complaints by San Juan Mayor.” He also stated that Cruz possessed “poor leadership” and that she wanted “everything to be done for them,” not to mention that she was “told by Democrats to be nasty” to him. In addition, Trump claimed that the U.S. has “done a great job with the almost impossible situation in Puerto Rico,” calling his critics “politically motivated ingrates.”
Of course, this is all after Cruz filmed an emotional video highlighting Maria’s devastation in Puerto Rico and the help her country so desperately needed (and still needs). FEMA (the Federal Emergency Management Agency), according to Cruz, was not doing enough to save the lives of the Puerto Rican people. She stated in the video, “I have been patient, but we have no time for patience anymore,” and “you are killing us with the inefficiency and the bureaucracy.”
Trump visited Puerto Rico on Tuesday, October 3 and shook the mayor’s hand, but I highly doubt the tension was released. Governments all around the world are standing in solidarity with Cruz and Puerto Rico; will President Trump ever rise to the occasion?
Sources:
- The Atlantic, “What’s Happening with the Relief Effort in Puerto Rico?”
- The Washington Post, “Trump doesn’t get it on Puerto Rico. He just proved it by lashing out at San Juan’s mayor.”
- Twitter, @realDonaldTrump