Hurricane Florence Is a Formidable Test for FEMA and Trump

The president is right about one thing: Puerto Rico is an inaccessible island. I've only been there once. But more importantly, how will the Republicans suppress the Puerto Rican vote in Florida?

Puerto Rice may have citizen rights, but is located on a self-ruled island in the middle of the hurricane season path. Next, the rulers are self-serving and corrupt. Most work for the government in jobs they do not perform, but are paid for. They have been on the verge of bankruptcy because of their historic waste for a long time. It is not surprising that they did not put money into their island to prepare for the inevitable as they always turn to the US tax payer when their waste and corrupt activities cause the coffers to dry up. So, do NOT claim that FEMA did a bad job; they did an extraordinary job given the fact that they were and are not in charge of distributing care, food, or materials anywhere other than warehouses where politicians in Puerto Rico decide which of their cronies to award. And surprise, it wasn't the rural citizens. The NYTimes if so full of fake news to drive their agenda as to actually lend support to Trump and his idiotic tweets!

Apples and oranges. States vs. an "unincorporated territory" whose Senators and Congressmen have NO vote. Not to mention the residents of Puerto Rico are primarily "brown"... and if you don't think that plays a part, you probably voted for Trump.

This will be another message to the Puerto Rico that main land stares are more important than them. And Trump who threw paper towels to the citizens of this nation claims victory. What I see is "States" preparing to take care of their own business knowing that the Administration is completely inept, impotent, and out of touch with the real world.

Sometimes you can just let the data speak. Recent Hurricane Deaths: Sandy; 147 Katrina; 1,833 Maria: 2,975

Trump has been tested. He has failed US miserably. Anything that some may attempt to give him credit is moot. Trump is a disgrace to the office, a criminal who has yet been brought to Justice. For Florence, we will rely on the professional tried and true government officials who have been in place for decades to see US. through this disaster. The disaster that is Trump will require we the people to take care of. DD Manhattan

Will this be an " open book " test ??? Is the huuuuuge supply of paper towels ready to go ? Best wishes to ALL those in the changing path, but you will be on your own. Eventually, you get what you VOTE for. Or, what you allow by not voting. Seriously.

I retired from a Power Utility in Florida. Mutual aid agreements are one of the strengths of Utilities on the Main Land. Also companies own part of each other plants so spread they financial risk out. I suspect that the recovery after Florence will go much better than Maria because of the planning and sharing of Utilities companies. And Trump like he always does will slap his name on it and take the credit.

Climate change may be responsible for about 50% of the increased flooding from storms like Florence. Remember science is always having an open mind as the worlds weather is extremely complex. We do know CO2 increases the water vapor content of air and it can drive greater rain fall in certain areas and more drought in different areas.

I do not agree with the bombast of President Trump. I agree with the following quote from this article: "While various studies have allocated blame for shortcomings in the response to Hurricane Maria to officials in Puerto Rico as well as to the federal government..." When you look at this from the 30,000 foot level you can begin to understand how the disaster became a reality in Puerto Rico & probably will not be close to this in NC or SC. First, it is the State's responsibility to declare a "state of emergency." That has to occur before the Federal Gov't gets involved. Second, the local gov't and the federal gov't need to implement their "emergency response plans." It generally is expected that the local gov't would include initial housing & resources for first responders. Also the local gov't should include alternate plans for logistics in case ports are not accessible. Puerto Rico is an island & certainly this should have been included in their emergency response plan. Also periodically joint drills should be performed with all gov't entities, dealing with various scenarios, in case one or more gov't agencies are overwhelmed. As far as the electrical outage. The NYT researched & published a very good article on this subject prior to the hurricane that hit Puerto Rico. The electrical grid was in terrible shape prior to the storm, because of corruption & lack of political will of the local gov't in Puerto Rico.

At the risk of sounding cynical, why am I having such a difficult time being convinced that Trump's efforts are not about the people he serves, but completely self-motivated? He's an opportunist through and through. He's not hoping for the storm to pass. He's hoping for these people to get slammed. So he can play hero. I want to believe in him. I know I should believe in him. But I've learned well not to believe in him.

Really, there is nothing like congratulating yourself in advance of a national emergency for the great job you're doing. Let's call on those " stable advisors" who are presently running our country to grab the cell phone and apply duct tape to the mouth of our deranged leader. Then, perhaps, we can at least weather this storm with some semblance of sanity, safety, and calm.

Trump's unreality bubble is becoming a tragicomedy. Giving himself A-pluses for his "unsung success" in a failed relief effort that caused the death of 3,000 Puerto Ricans is as laughable as his claim that he "helped a little bit" when New York was dealing with 9/11. We must get this buffoon out of the White House before he kills us all.

First there is a massive difference, PR is an island with mountains that you can't drive to. Next anybody who thinks that the damage and issues can be addressed quickly is setting the bar too high. FEMA will do what it can as will many who assist. We already have linemen on the way. This is not a "monster", it is even weakening in winds unlike the models predicted. Flooding is the major issue with storm surge a real issue. Time will of course tell.