A Hawaii state lawmaker on Friday criticized President Biden’s recent trip to the devastated island of Maui, telling Fox News that locals saw his comments as a “slap in the face,” criticizing him for routinely “butchering” officials’ names. and appearing to fall asleep during a memorial to the fire victims.
Hawaii House Minority Leader Diamond Garcia, R-Oahu, said the community is still recovering from the fires that left more than 100 dead and the city of Lahaina devastated.
Garcia told “Hannity” that Mauians couldn’t believe Biden’s “no comment” response to reporters when he was first asked about the fires while vacationing in Sussex County, Delaware.
“The fact is that the president arrived in Hawaii some time after fires devastated the entire city of Lahaina. And when he came, he came for less than 6 hours,” García recounted.
“He landed, did a brief tour, held a press conference, where he literally butchered every name he mentioned, and then went to an event with local families who lost everything. And he literally fell asleep in the midst of these families who poured out their hearts to him and shared their experiences.”
In a clip that circulated during Biden’s trip, the president bowed his head with his arms crossed and appeared to doze briefly, while other onlookers said his eyes remained open and he appeared alert while his head was down.
“And this is our commander in chief,” Garcia lamented, adding that families in Hawaii have asked rhetorically “aren’t we American citizens too?”
Hawaii House Minority Leader Diamond Garcia called President Biden’s visit to Maui after the wildfire a “slap in the face.”REUTERS/Kevin Lamarque
He said, however, many in the state feel like “second-class citizens” and have cited FEMA’s promise of $700 per household as a paltry offer from the feds.
Garcia was asked how he and other Hawaiians felt when Biden appeared to compare the deadly fires to a kitchen fire at his New Castle County, Delaware, home in 2004, amid strong lightning in the area.
Biden claimed he almost lost his Chevrolet Corvette and his cat in the fire, while host Sean Hannity previously reported that first responders put out the flames within 20 minutes.
A neighborhood destroyed by the fire in Lahaina.Photo by MANDEL NGAN/AFP via Getty Images
Biden inspecting the damage with First Lady Jill Biden, Hawaii Governor Josh Green and Hawaii First Lady Jaime Green on August 21, 2023.Photo by MANDEL NGAN/AFP via Getty Images
“In the words of local families here, they say it was a slap in the face. That comment was out of place. This shows the lack of basic humanity involved here,” Garcia said.
García stressed that criticism of Biden on the island is not a partisan issue, since the state remains strongly Democratic, with a majority of 45 to 9 in its legislative chamber:
“I’m one of the few ‘red’ members here, but we’re a blue state. And the president couldn’t even come to a blue state and offer real federal support.”
Lahaina residents ask Biden to provide federal aid to Maui.REUTERS/Kevin Lamarque
In response to Biden’s handling of another disaster zone, Ohio East Palestine Republican Mayor Trent Conaway told “Hannity” that he has faced a similar lack of urgency from the president; months after a Norfolk-Southern derailment created a long-term toxic situation in Columbiana County, Ohio, and Beaver County, Pennsylvania.
Conaway said that if Biden, at this later date, still decides to visit the recovering community, he will be “welcome,” but it will be noted that then it will be “a little late.”
“He’s promised he’ll be here, but, you know, no one’s holding their breath.”
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Source: vtt.edu.vn