President Donald Trump said on Tuesday while on a trip to Puerto Rico to observe hurricane recovery efforts that the island’s massive debt will have to be wiped out.
‘They owe a lot of money to your friends on Wall Street and we’re going to have to wipe that out. You’re going to say goodbye to that, I don’t know if it’s Goldman Sachs but whoever it is you can wave goodbye to that,’ Trump said in an interview with Fox News.
Puerto Rico, which earlier this year filed the biggest bankruptcy in US municipal history, is struggling to regain economic stability in the face of a $72billion debt load and near-insolvent public health and pension systems.
Trump and the first lady, Melania Trump, arrived back in Washington DC on Tuesday night after taking a four-hour trip to Puerto Rico to survey damage from Hurricane Maria.
The official death toll had risen to 34 from 16, Governor Ricardo Rossello announced at a news conference shortly after Trump’s departure.
President Donald Trump said on Tuesday while on a trip to Puerto Rico to observe hurricane recovery efforts that the island’s massive debt will have to be wiped out. Trump is seen above speaking with Geraldo Rivera of Fox News
Rossello also said he believes the hurricane caused $90bn in damage across the island.
The visit lasted one hour less than had been originally planned.
During the visit, Trump touted his administration’s response to the humanitarian crisis and said that it was not ‘a real catastrophe’ like Hurricane Katrina, which ravaged the Gulf Coast and destroyed much of New Orleans in 2005.
He said at a news conference attended by The Washington Post: ‘Every death is a horror. But if you look at a real catastrophe like Katrina, and you look at the tremendous hundreds and hundreds and hundreds of people that died, and you look at what happened here with, really, a storm that was just totally overpowering – nobody has ever seen anything like this.’
Turning to Governor Ricardo Rossello, Trump asked: ‘What is your death count as of this moment, 17?
‘Sixteen people certified,’ Trump said after confirming the answer.
President Donald Trump tosses paper towels into a crowd as he hands out supplies at Calvary Chapel, Tuesday, October 3, 2017, in Guaynabo, Puerto Rico. Trump was in Puerto Rico to survey hurricane damage
‘Sixteen people versus in the thousands. You can be very proud of all of your people all of our people working together. Sixteen versus literally thousands of people.’
Katrina is believed to have resulted in 1,836 deaths.
The president exuded enthusiasm and a positive outlook throughout his visit. The Post notes that he used the word ‘great’ 10 times throughout his visit’s speeches.
He used both ‘incredible’ and ‘amazing’ seven times.
On the plane back to Washington DC, he told the press pool that he had heard no criticism of his response to aiding the island US territory.
He said: ‘I think it has been a great day. We only heard thank-yous from the people of Puerto Rico. They are great people, and it was really something that I enjoyed very much.’
Trump flew to Puerto Rico in a bid to reassure citizens that the government would support them – then tried to wipe away complaints about inaction by tossing rolls of paper towel into a crowd.
Trump is pictured greeting members of the U.S. military as he prepares to board Air Force One in Carolina, Puerto Rico
Trump, pictured with First Lady Melania, said at a news conference in Puerto Rico: ‘Every death is a horror. But if you look at a real catastrophe like Katrina, and you look at the tremendous hundreds and hundreds and hundreds of people that died, and you look at what happened here with, really, a storm that was just totally overpowering – nobody has ever seen anything like this’
The Trumps acknowledge people cheering from a distance as they return aboard Air Force One at Joint Base Andrews in Maryland
Demonstrators gathered outside the Convention Center in San Juan to protest Trump’s visit to the United States unincorporated territory
Trump met with responders and toured a damaged street in a whirlwind tour of the island.
He pledged to share some of the bounty of the nation’s coffers to provide relief, even as he reminded residents that they were throwing the budget ‘out of whack.’
‘I hate to tell you, Puerto Rico, but you’ve thrown our budget a little out of whack. Because we’ve spent a lot of money on Puerto Rico. And that’s fine. We’ve saved a lot of lives,’ he said.
But it was Trump’s visit to a local chapel that brought a vigorous response from a local crowd.
First, the president handed out packages of ‘Arroz Rico’ branded rice to people who came to see him and collect supplies.
Then, in a display that drew an immediate outcry online, the president began tossing rolls of paper towels into the crowd, basketball style.
One by one, the president shot a succession of rolls toward the back of the crowd, sending them aloft with his fingertips.
Trump met with military, homeland, and local government officials to assess the response. The storm has wrecked the island’s infrastructure and has resulted in the deaths of 34 people so far.
After meeting with responders, Trump walked on a storm-wrecked street in Guaynabo, viewing damaged homes and snapping photos with residents.
After meeting one family, Trump said: ‘Great looking family and they said thank you Mister president.’
The family hadn’t had power since Hurricane Irma hit weeks ago.