Trump’s Latest Tweets On Puerto Rico Are ‘Tone-Deaf, Idiotic’

Even as Hurricane Maria left Puerto Rico devastated, President Donald Trump’s messages for the calamity-hit area have startled many. Three weeks after the massive hurricane destroyed the island’s infrastructure, Trump’s tweets indicate the U.S. territory is to blame for its crisis.

In a series of tweets, Trump accused Puerto Rico of lack of accountability and also said the island’s electric and other infrastructure were in poor shape even before the hurricane hit the island. The 3.4 million residents of the island are U.S. citizens and most of them have been without power for three weeks now.

The latest tweets conflicted with Trump’s past statements on Puerto Rico. According to the Chicago Tribune, during an event last week honoring Hispanic heritage, the president said, "We will be there all the time to help Puerto Rico recover, restore, rebuild." Now the president blames the U.S. territory for its financial struggles and says the federal government cannot provide help forever.

Trump said Thursday that relief agencies working in Puerto Rico could not be kept there forever.

The president’s tweets provoked a hostile response from some Democratic lawmakers who blamed him for wanting to abandon U.S. citizens.

Reacting to the president’s tweet Congresswoman Sheila Jackson Lee from Texas called it a shameful act.

Kirsten Gillibrand, member of the Democratic Party found Trump’s tweet to be dishonorable.

In response to the president’s tweets, Carmen Yulin Cruz, the mayor of Puerto Rico's capital, San Juan, told the BBC they highlight his "desperation" and the "inadequacy" of the hurricane response.

Singer Marc Anthony, who is of Puerto Rican descent, also slammed Trump, for his “tone-deaf, idiotic, callous and disrespectful approach.”

Amy Siskind, advocate for women’s and LGBT rights also found Trump’s tweet to be disgraceful.

A veteran of the 2008 and 2012 Obama campaigns, Scott Dworkin called Trump an "absolute monster" for his tweets to abandon Puerto Rico recovery.

Karen Attiah, global opinion editor at Washington Post wrote Trump is treating Puerto Rico as a backwater colony.

Other users on Twitter also showed anger towards the president. Writer Cameron L. Mitchell called Trump a "heartless monster" and said he has failed all of America.

Trump's recent response to Puerto Rico is a sharp contrast to what he tweeted when Hurricane Harvey left the city of Houston, powerless and flooded.

A message along similar lines was also extended to Florida when it was hit by Hurricane Irma.

During his visit to Puerto Rico in the hurricane’s aftermath, Trump said paying for restoration work in the island has “thrown our budget a little out of whack.” On his return, he also blamed Yulin Cruz’s leadership abilities, saying she was not able to get the local workers to help.

Amid all the reactions to Trump’s tweet, Gov. Ricardo Rossello of Puerto Rico called for equal treatment of Puerto Ricans as other US citizens and thanked Congress and the White House for a prompt response.