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San Juan Mayor Carmen Yulin Cruz speaks to the media as she arrives at the temporary government center setup at the Roberto Clemente stadium in the aftermath of Hurricane Maria on September 30, 2017 in San Juan, Puerto Rico. (Photo: Joe Raedle/Getty Images)
'We Need Water!' San Juan Mayor Rips Trump's Inadequate Response to Puerto Rico Crisis
"What you do when devastation hits you and there is no help on the horizon?"
Oct 08, 2017
As Trump administration officials--and President Donald Trump himself--continue to speak glowingly about ongoing recovery efforts in Puerto Rico, Carmen Yulin Cruz, the mayor of San Juan, took to Twitter early Sunday to slam the U.S. government for painting a rosy picture that doesn't comport with the dire facts on the ground in the aftermath of Hurricane Maria.
Under 12 percent of Puerto Rico's power has been restored, according to government data, and many still lack access to safe drinking water--a fact Cruz was quick to highlight.
"The American people want to help," Cruz wrote, "but the U.S. government does not want to help."
Cruz then aimed a tweet directly at Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) director Brock Long, accusing him of neglecting to respond to hospital power outages.
In an interview on ABC's "This Week" Sunday, Long refused to even acknowledge criticism of his agency's sluggish response to Hurricane Maria, saying that the Trump administration has "filtered out" the San Juan mayor.
Long went on to insist that--despite abundant evidence to the contrary--the Puerto Rico recovery is progressing thanks to the Trump administration's efforts.
During his trip to Puerto Rico last week, Trump complained that the devastation wrought by Hurricane Maria has "thrown our budget a little out of whack." He also said Puerto Rico's crisis is not a "real catastrophe like Katrina."
As Cruz and others desperately plead for help in the midst of Puerto Rico's humanitarian emergency, Trump is at his golf club in Virginia--the 70th day he has spent at a golf course during his presidency.
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As Trump administration officials--and President Donald Trump himself--continue to speak glowingly about ongoing recovery efforts in Puerto Rico, Carmen Yulin Cruz, the mayor of San Juan, took to Twitter early Sunday to slam the U.S. government for painting a rosy picture that doesn't comport with the dire facts on the ground in the aftermath of Hurricane Maria.
Under 12 percent of Puerto Rico's power has been restored, according to government data, and many still lack access to safe drinking water--a fact Cruz was quick to highlight.
"The American people want to help," Cruz wrote, "but the U.S. government does not want to help."
Cruz then aimed a tweet directly at Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) director Brock Long, accusing him of neglecting to respond to hospital power outages.
In an interview on ABC's "This Week" Sunday, Long refused to even acknowledge criticism of his agency's sluggish response to Hurricane Maria, saying that the Trump administration has "filtered out" the San Juan mayor.
Long went on to insist that--despite abundant evidence to the contrary--the Puerto Rico recovery is progressing thanks to the Trump administration's efforts.
During his trip to Puerto Rico last week, Trump complained that the devastation wrought by Hurricane Maria has "thrown our budget a little out of whack." He also said Puerto Rico's crisis is not a "real catastrophe like Katrina."
As Cruz and others desperately plead for help in the midst of Puerto Rico's humanitarian emergency, Trump is at his golf club in Virginia--the 70th day he has spent at a golf course during his presidency.
As Trump administration officials--and President Donald Trump himself--continue to speak glowingly about ongoing recovery efforts in Puerto Rico, Carmen Yulin Cruz, the mayor of San Juan, took to Twitter early Sunday to slam the U.S. government for painting a rosy picture that doesn't comport with the dire facts on the ground in the aftermath of Hurricane Maria.
Under 12 percent of Puerto Rico's power has been restored, according to government data, and many still lack access to safe drinking water--a fact Cruz was quick to highlight.
"The American people want to help," Cruz wrote, "but the U.S. government does not want to help."
Cruz then aimed a tweet directly at Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) director Brock Long, accusing him of neglecting to respond to hospital power outages.
In an interview on ABC's "This Week" Sunday, Long refused to even acknowledge criticism of his agency's sluggish response to Hurricane Maria, saying that the Trump administration has "filtered out" the San Juan mayor.
Long went on to insist that--despite abundant evidence to the contrary--the Puerto Rico recovery is progressing thanks to the Trump administration's efforts.
During his trip to Puerto Rico last week, Trump complained that the devastation wrought by Hurricane Maria has "thrown our budget a little out of whack." He also said Puerto Rico's crisis is not a "real catastrophe like Katrina."
As Cruz and others desperately plead for help in the midst of Puerto Rico's humanitarian emergency, Trump is at his golf club in Virginia--the 70th day he has spent at a golf course during his presidency.
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