SUBSCRIBE TO OUR FREE NEWSLETTER
Daily news & progressive opinion—funded by the people, not the corporations—delivered straight to your inbox.
5
#000000
#FFFFFF
5
#000000
#FFFFFF
A woman stands amid buildings and homes destroyed by Hurricane Maria in Puerto Rico. (Photo: Mario Tama/Getty Images)
Adding Insult to the 'Injury of Colonialism,' Trump Suggested Selling Puerto Rico After Hurricane Maria, Former Advisor Says
"You may try to sell the office you hold, your personal integrity and your soul, Mr. President—but I assure you Puerto Rico is not for sale!" tweeted Rep. Nydia Velazquez.
Jul 12, 2020
According to a New York Times interview with Elaine Duke, who served as Homeland Security Secretary from 2017 to 2018 and worked in President Donald Trump's cabinet when Hurricane Maria severely damaged the island of Puerto Rico, the president suggested selling the territory when it became clear the federal government would have to assist with a major recovery effort.
Duke said in her interview, published Saturday, the president suggested "divesting" or selling Puerto Rico when it was struggling to recover from the storm.
"The president's initial ideas were more as a businessman, you know," Duke told the Times. "Can we outsource the electricity? Can we sell the island? You know, or divest of that asset?"
Rep. Nydia Velazquez (D-N.Y.), who was born in Puerto Rico, took to social media to condemn the president's suggestion.
"I assure you Puerto Rico is not for sale!" Velazquez tweeted.
"Puerto Rico is not an asset, it's an island full of culture and beauty," added Hector Oseguera, a progressive who recently ran for Congress in New Jersey's eighth district.
Duke added that former White House Chief of Staff Mick Mulvaney, then director of the Office of Management and Budget, dismissed her as being "emotional" when she suggested an emergency declaration as the hurricane approached.
"It's not about the people, it's about the money," Duke claimed Mulvaney told her.
Nearly 3,000 people were killed in Hurricane Maria and its aftermath, an outcome which Trump has since called "an incredible, unsung success."
The president complained about having to send aid to Puerto Rico after the storm, remarking that its debts to Wall Street "must be dealt with." The island's debt skyrocketed partially because of Congress ending tax incentives on the island which had drawn businesses there and due to the exploitation of existing debt by hedge funds and "vulture" funds.
Earlier this year following an earthquake which displaced 2,000 Puerto Ricans, Trump continued to withhold $18 million in disaster relief funds which had been appropriated after Hurricane Maria.
He also complained last year that the territory receives "too much aid" as an estimated 1.3 million Puerto Ricans faced cuts to their SNAP benefits.
The Times' report regarding Trump's suggestion that the U.S. government sell Puerto Rico came a year after White House staffers told the Wall Street Journal that the president had suggested purchasing Greenland from Denmark. That report prompted ridicule from Danish officials including Soren Espersen, foreign affairs spokesman for the Danish People's Party, who called it "final proof that he has gone mad."
Ritchie Torres, who is running for Congress in New York's 15th district, tweeted that Trump's suggestion about Puerto Rico served "as a reminder that the U.S. colonization of the island is and always has been a grave injustice."
"The road to legal equality for Puerto Rico runs through statehood, which would protect the island from the colonial whims of a madman like Donald Trump," tweeted Torres.
An Urgent Message From Our Co-Founder
Dear Common Dreams reader, It’s been nearly 30 years since I co-founded Common Dreams with my late wife, Lina Newhouser. We had the radical notion that journalism should serve the public good, not corporate profits. It was clear to us from the outset what it would take to build such a project. No paid advertisements. No corporate sponsors. No millionaire publisher telling us what to think or do. Many people said we wouldn't last a year, but we proved those doubters wrong. Together with a tremendous team of journalists and dedicated staff, we built an independent media outlet free from the constraints of profits and corporate control. Our mission has always been simple: To inform. To inspire. To ignite change for the common good. Building Common Dreams was not easy. Our survival was never guaranteed. When you take on the most powerful forces—Wall Street greed, fossil fuel industry destruction, Big Tech lobbyists, and uber-rich oligarchs who have spent billions upon billions rigging the economy and democracy in their favor—the only bulwark you have is supporters who believe in your work. But here’s the urgent message from me today. It's never been this bad out there. And it's never been this hard to keep us going. At the very moment Common Dreams is most needed, the threats we face are intensifying. We need your support now more than ever. We don't accept corporate advertising and never will. We don't have a paywall because we don't think people should be blocked from critical news based on their ability to pay. Everything we do is funded by the donations of readers like you. When everyone does the little they can afford, we are strong. But if that support retreats or dries up, so do we. Will you donate now to make sure Common Dreams not only survives but thrives? —Craig Brown, Co-founder |
Our work is licensed under Creative Commons (CC BY-NC-ND 3.0). Feel free to republish and share widely.
According to a New York Times interview with Elaine Duke, who served as Homeland Security Secretary from 2017 to 2018 and worked in President Donald Trump's cabinet when Hurricane Maria severely damaged the island of Puerto Rico, the president suggested selling the territory when it became clear the federal government would have to assist with a major recovery effort.
Duke said in her interview, published Saturday, the president suggested "divesting" or selling Puerto Rico when it was struggling to recover from the storm.
"The president's initial ideas were more as a businessman, you know," Duke told the Times. "Can we outsource the electricity? Can we sell the island? You know, or divest of that asset?"
Rep. Nydia Velazquez (D-N.Y.), who was born in Puerto Rico, took to social media to condemn the president's suggestion.
"I assure you Puerto Rico is not for sale!" Velazquez tweeted.
"Puerto Rico is not an asset, it's an island full of culture and beauty," added Hector Oseguera, a progressive who recently ran for Congress in New Jersey's eighth district.
Duke added that former White House Chief of Staff Mick Mulvaney, then director of the Office of Management and Budget, dismissed her as being "emotional" when she suggested an emergency declaration as the hurricane approached.
"It's not about the people, it's about the money," Duke claimed Mulvaney told her.
Nearly 3,000 people were killed in Hurricane Maria and its aftermath, an outcome which Trump has since called "an incredible, unsung success."
The president complained about having to send aid to Puerto Rico after the storm, remarking that its debts to Wall Street "must be dealt with." The island's debt skyrocketed partially because of Congress ending tax incentives on the island which had drawn businesses there and due to the exploitation of existing debt by hedge funds and "vulture" funds.
Earlier this year following an earthquake which displaced 2,000 Puerto Ricans, Trump continued to withhold $18 million in disaster relief funds which had been appropriated after Hurricane Maria.
He also complained last year that the territory receives "too much aid" as an estimated 1.3 million Puerto Ricans faced cuts to their SNAP benefits.
The Times' report regarding Trump's suggestion that the U.S. government sell Puerto Rico came a year after White House staffers told the Wall Street Journal that the president had suggested purchasing Greenland from Denmark. That report prompted ridicule from Danish officials including Soren Espersen, foreign affairs spokesman for the Danish People's Party, who called it "final proof that he has gone mad."
Ritchie Torres, who is running for Congress in New York's 15th district, tweeted that Trump's suggestion about Puerto Rico served "as a reminder that the U.S. colonization of the island is and always has been a grave injustice."
"The road to legal equality for Puerto Rico runs through statehood, which would protect the island from the colonial whims of a madman like Donald Trump," tweeted Torres.
According to a New York Times interview with Elaine Duke, who served as Homeland Security Secretary from 2017 to 2018 and worked in President Donald Trump's cabinet when Hurricane Maria severely damaged the island of Puerto Rico, the president suggested selling the territory when it became clear the federal government would have to assist with a major recovery effort.
Duke said in her interview, published Saturday, the president suggested "divesting" or selling Puerto Rico when it was struggling to recover from the storm.
"The president's initial ideas were more as a businessman, you know," Duke told the Times. "Can we outsource the electricity? Can we sell the island? You know, or divest of that asset?"
Rep. Nydia Velazquez (D-N.Y.), who was born in Puerto Rico, took to social media to condemn the president's suggestion.
"I assure you Puerto Rico is not for sale!" Velazquez tweeted.
"Puerto Rico is not an asset, it's an island full of culture and beauty," added Hector Oseguera, a progressive who recently ran for Congress in New Jersey's eighth district.
Duke added that former White House Chief of Staff Mick Mulvaney, then director of the Office of Management and Budget, dismissed her as being "emotional" when she suggested an emergency declaration as the hurricane approached.
"It's not about the people, it's about the money," Duke claimed Mulvaney told her.
Nearly 3,000 people were killed in Hurricane Maria and its aftermath, an outcome which Trump has since called "an incredible, unsung success."
The president complained about having to send aid to Puerto Rico after the storm, remarking that its debts to Wall Street "must be dealt with." The island's debt skyrocketed partially because of Congress ending tax incentives on the island which had drawn businesses there and due to the exploitation of existing debt by hedge funds and "vulture" funds.
Earlier this year following an earthquake which displaced 2,000 Puerto Ricans, Trump continued to withhold $18 million in disaster relief funds which had been appropriated after Hurricane Maria.
He also complained last year that the territory receives "too much aid" as an estimated 1.3 million Puerto Ricans faced cuts to their SNAP benefits.
The Times' report regarding Trump's suggestion that the U.S. government sell Puerto Rico came a year after White House staffers told the Wall Street Journal that the president had suggested purchasing Greenland from Denmark. That report prompted ridicule from Danish officials including Soren Espersen, foreign affairs spokesman for the Danish People's Party, who called it "final proof that he has gone mad."
Ritchie Torres, who is running for Congress in New York's 15th district, tweeted that Trump's suggestion about Puerto Rico served "as a reminder that the U.S. colonization of the island is and always has been a grave injustice."
"The road to legal equality for Puerto Rico runs through statehood, which would protect the island from the colonial whims of a madman like Donald Trump," tweeted Torres.
We've had enough. The 1% own and operate the corporate media. They are doing everything they can to defend the status quo, squash dissent and protect the wealthy and the powerful. The Common Dreams media model is different. We cover the news that matters to the 99%. Our mission? To inform. To inspire. To ignite change for the common good. How? Nonprofit. Independent. Reader-supported. Free to read. Free to republish. Free to share. With no advertising. No paywalls. No selling of your data. Thousands of small donations fund our newsroom and allow us to continue publishing. Can you chip in? We can't do it without you. Thank you.