To say that DT is “unfit” is being generous. This man cannot read a prepared speech with an ounce of real feeling or variation of tone. But he easily insults and trashes people who are the objects of aggression from other nations or who are suffering the complete destruction of a modern civilization and facing starvation or disease. Be “The Biggest Bully” is the title of his next TV show. He’s just testing it out on us.
But a cardboard box has more personality and my Roomba has more intelligence. This nation will pay a terrible price for being stupid at the ballot box. These past months are only the beginning, just a taste of all the “wins” we will be sick of!
31
While bigotry against trans people is inexcusable, the fewer people who can become cannon fodder for the death merchants of the Military Industrial Complex, the better off the country is.
6
Welcome to The New York Times, Michelle. You're off to a brilliant start. I appreciate your incisive analysis and blunt writing.
15
Now listen people. Stop reading the fake news. We're going to have a beautiful recovery. Believe me! We have only the best recoveries. And if you think this recovery is great, just wait until we have a real disaster. Then you're going to see a fantastic recover, really, it's going to be fantastic. It's going to be so much better than Obama's recoveries. People are going to be saying, "Mr. President, this recovery is too much, please, we've had enough recovery already, we're tired of recovering."
And did you see how I can shoot paper towel rolls to all the beautiful people I love so much? Stephen Curry should be inviting me to his house. He's not coming to mine, I can tell you that. Believe me.
29
Ingrate-trump loves to kick people when they are down and helpless and then steps all over them to appear taller. If only we could throw him into a real reality TV series like "Survivor" without any assistance from his underlings to see how he does or if he begs for help like the little kid that he is.
The trouble in Puerto Rico is that an entire population of over 3 million is experiencing the real thing and doing their best at surviving despite being the poorest citizens in our nation - led by the ingrate in chief they had no choice in choosing.
My question is what are all the global pharmaceutical companies that exploited Puerto Rico for decades with tax giveaways doing to help? They took from both ends - tax giveaways and exorbitantly high prices to their patients. There should be no drug shortages on Puerto Rico, of all places.
12
My son attended Tulane in New Orleans when Katrina struck. The school reopened five months later. Most of the city, even the nice sections, still had no traffic lights. You’d take turns driving through intersections. At the hotels their were dozens of guys with luggage in the lobbies and bars. They didn’t have laptops in them. They had guns. Five months after the storm private security remained a booming industry. Turn a corner in any kind of neighborhood and you’d run into a National Guard humvee with one soldier driving, and another manning a machine gun.
It’s taken ten years to rebuild New Orleans. The people there got beds and food and ultimately jobs because they could be driven out easily and cost effectively. Many went to Houston, which is ironic. In Puerto Rico the entire island was destroyed. There is no where to go.
Complaining the island hasn’t been restored in two weeks is preposterous.
10
Trump is in the oval for the perks of the job not the responsibilities. He golfs just about every weekend without a care for the country or the world. Working is exhausting and in the way of pocketing million of $$$$ for his family.
20
After hearing Trump's comments today during his visit to Puerto Rico, it dawned on me that the main reason he doesn't care about the island's suffering isn't necessarily because he thinks of them as brown people. He clearly sees them as "losers" who don't pay their debts (ironic for someone with as many bankruptcies and court cases over unpaid bills) and have been too lazy to move elsewhere, away from hurricanes. Because he's managed to get away with screwing people out of money all his life, he assumes that's what Puerto Rico is trying to do. Self-absorption trumps empathy. It explains why he couldn't be bothered to leave the golf course to address the situation but is Donny-on-the-spot after people in Vegas are slaughtered.
24
Roy Cohn or perhaps Trump's dad, told Trump in his youth (paraphrasing here) that every loss could be made to look like a win. Trump never loses. He doesn't recognize losing, he doesn't lose himself, only other people lose. If it looks like he has experienced a failure, then it really isn't a failure, it is actually a win for him. He's great. Or, alternatively, it is fake news and he won anyway. So even though he is a gibberish-filled self-absorbed monster of a human, he won't recognize failure within himself or understand that he has failed someone or something else. He's just fine, thank you.
19
"Even then, he was mostly concerned with how the story reflected on him."
As he always is. It is the only thing he cares about, ever. He spent today in Puerto Rico, constantly telling everybody that Katrina was much, much worse.
Because God forbid that Trump be seen as less competent than Obama (wait, no, was it Bush? nah, must have been Obama) who was shipwrecked by that Hurricane Katrina.
7
Unlike in Texas or Florida, the federal government has denied a request to allow hurricane victims in Puerto Rico who use food stamps to redeem them at fast-food restaurants and other places that serve prepared hot meals. Federal rules prohibit public assistance beneficiaries from using the cards in restaurants. Most stores in PR are running on generators and do not have access to computer systems to process the cards. A waiver has not been granted by the Federal Government, though this was immediately given in Texas and Florida. The Federal response has been so poor and slow overall, that Oxfam, which says it doesn't usually help rich countries, has had to send aid to Puerto Rico.
15
On Puerto Rico's reconstruction and future prosperity: "Phillip Carter told me that a normal president would also try to coordinate a private sector response: 'You could imagine President Bush or President Obama or President Clinton doing that.'” Well, here's one way how this could be accomplished:
https://www.academia.edu/12823841/Mathematical_Model_and_Simulation_for_...
5
The problem with Puerto Rico is no different than most of the cities and towns in this country: People are prepared for nothing and they expect, in times of crisis, the government will come to the rescue. When you live near the water, you should be prepared for storms, near a river, expect flooding and in an earthquake zone, realize it could happen any day. The political leaders of Puerto Rico have failed to convince their people of the need for disaster planning, but like most, they have normalcy bias and think it will never happen and if it does, it won't be that bad. The crisis in Puerto Rico is a message for everyone that in a times of crisis, you can only depend upon yourself.
9
Trump can, and will, make ANY situation Worse. That's what he DOES, that's his Superpower. Period.
16
Watch John Oliver's recent history of P.R. Since the 70s, they have been routinely shortchanged because they are a territory, and Congress has been more and more controlled by Southern racists and vulture N.Y. bankers, at the hands of which P.R. has suffered. Perhaps they should apply for Territorial status from some other country, say the Netherlands or France. Or Independence. The U.S. is failing them.
A Good Faith gesture from the U.S. would be to cancel all debt and invest heavily in a new grid--all solar, if for no other reason to show that it can be done inexpensively and that it will withstand future hurricanes.
12
Trump is our comeuppance, the blowback from our post WWII hubris. The American Dream gone rancid, the President a vaudeville villain made flesh.
We'll get through this somehow but it won't be pretty. And we'll be changed but not for the better.
14
"According to The Post, it was only when Trump started seeing Puerto Rico coverage on cable television that a sense of urgency kicked in. Even then, he was mostly concerned with how the story reflected on him."
But this is old news. From the very beginning, Trump's ONLY concern is how whatever story reflects on him. And now we know that will never change. Ever.
10
This is Trump's "Mission Accomplished" moment. It couldn't possibly be his "Katrina moment", because as he so graciously informed the Puerto Ricans, theirs is not a "real disaster" like Katrina.
Today he held an orgy of self-aggrandizement disguised as a meeting between administration officials, who he referred to as "my people", and some other people who were clearly not "his people" despite being Americans. Just in case they missed his tweets due to the power outage, he reminded the Puerto Rican "not his people" that they were ingrates who were going to bust the budget.
To demonstrate his generosity, but allow no dignity for those who received it, Trump threw paper towels into a crowd of people who were desperate for water, food, fuel and cash. I guess he forgot the T-shirt cannon he used during his rallies.
When he got on the plane, Trump undoubtedly felt he had sufficiently refurbished his image and demeaned the Puerto Ricans. As far as he was concerned, it was mission accomplished.
18
Thanks to Michelle Goldberg for her eloquent essay. While we need to devote reporters and essayists to the Las Vegas attack, we must not forget the situation in Puerto Rico. The President has tried to paint the citizens of Puerto Rico as "other". He has suggested that Puerto Rico is another country. He has referred to his own role as "on behalf of" the United States, as if Puerto Rico is not part of our own country. I am glad Ms. Goldberg quoted Russel L. Honore, especially his idea we need to find a way to get these kids to school. Trump was insulting to the people of Puerto Rico and their situation in almost every comment he has made. There is something wrong with him, and the American people need to rise to the defense of Puerto Rico. I was relieved to find this essay here.
12
I can see that a relay race has been set up and Charles is passing the baton to Michelle. This can be a good thing, as we might get Charles back to commenting on substantive social issues. Then, of course, it might become a race with two batons, in which case it will get very old very fast indeed.
Talk about swallowing an interested argument hook, line and sinker. The San Juan mayor, Carmen Yulín Cruz, a known reactionary and political opportunist, makes sensational claims about Trump ignoring the island (which the governor, Ricardo Rosselló, does not echo) and Michelle just gobbles it up and sends it on down the line. Trump might have been less vitriolic in his response to Mayor Cruz, but it’s Trump, after all, and his vitriol doesn’t mean he has no case.
Puerto Rico, unlike Florida and Texas, had no effective preparations in place to facilitate federal help when it came, largely because they’re flat broke as the result of corruption and mismanagement over decades that has impelled over one million people to bail on the island in the past few years. Despite that, our response to Maria has put over 10,000 federal workers and troops into Cuba and has moved thousands of tons of supplies onto the island. They had to bootstrap aid efforts themselves and seek to give assistance to a population isolated by the devastation the hurricane wrought.
8
Obviously, I meant PR and not Cuba, above. I must have Cuba on the mind.
This is a play for the feds to re-make a Puerto Rican infrastructure that was dysfunctional and a disaster waiting to happen long before the hurricanes hit. That may be a defensible position to take, but it’s decidedly an issue separate from the effectiveness of our emergency response. But if Puerto Rico was in such abominable shape before Maria, that was hardly Trump’s fault – one might question what Obama did for eight years. I mean, besides normalizing relations with Cuba (yes, Cuba this time) and not seeking to repeal the Jones Act himself.
4
Can you think of any other problems in the world that Obama should have fixed?
By the way, before the hurricane, Puerto Ricans, though poor, had food, water, electricity, roads, Walgreens, birthday parties, television, a really big telescope, and all manner of other things. It wasn't a disaster. It is now, so now is the time to fix it.
13
Trump’s visit to PR was more than insulting—he acted like an imperial overlord chastising their laziness. The optics of him throwing paper towels to a desperate crowd (not enough to go around clearly) as if he were Santa Clause made me nauseous.
Donald Trump needs to realize that the federal budget isn’t his own money. To tell PR that they are busting the budget (but Texas and Florida didn’t?) was just another way of saying, he views Puerto Ricans —and US citizens!—as poor relations with their hands out.
It’s pretty clear whose side Trump is on and it’s not those he looks down on—People of Hispanic origin.
59
I would love to see a massive rebuilding in PR that could be a model for other island and coastal regions in the US. All power and communication lines should be underground. The military, and its massive budget, should be used in this work. There is nothing secure in Homeland Security if power and communication are down. It is a military matter; a national security matter.
36
Excellent points!
7
Well said.
2
Yawn... Another hate drenched NYT op-ed on the president. If he does something good you are silent. Something moderate - nothing but condemnation of what you think were the imperfections. Something bad - vituperative hatred. Another day in the Divided States of America....
17
I’d really like to know what you think Trump has done that’s been good.
41
Right, 1m meals for 3.5m people in 10 days.
You are right though, he is the "Great Divider!"
6
Trump ignored the looming crisis of Hurricane Maria as it spent days moving directly toward Puerto Rico and FEMA teams were moving off the island. Then he ignored the disaster for days after the island was devastated and people were left without water, communications, power, medicine, functioning hospitals, adequate equipment to clear roads, fuel for transportation and equipment, food, shelter, etc. Hundreds of people died, and FEMA is sending morgue containers for hundreds of bodies even as Mr. Trump spreads fake news about there being only 16 deaths.
Tell me, where is the praiseworthy side of this story? Oh, right, the president took a moment out of his golf weekend to dedicate the trophy to the hurricane victims on an island he says he does have much time to visit (and he says he cannot spare any time for those on the Virgin Islands. Did I miss anything? The Viva paper towels, perhaps, to say nothing of the cruel irony?
10
Certainly no mystery why Trump and his administration reacted swiftly to the devastation in Texas, Louisiana and Florida and drug his/its feet in Puerto Rico. Few or no MAGA red baseball cap wearers in P.R., and no votes to secure for 2020. Oh, yes, and they also speak Spanish.
29
What FEMA did Monday:
Monday, October 02, 2017
☞ FEMA Administrator Brock Long visits Puerto Rico for the third time to meet with Governor Rossello and the unified interagency command and assess the progress being made.
☞ Puerto Rico NGB armories continue to act as additional Points of Distribution (PODS) for food and water for a total of 23 points of distribution sites in Puerto Rico.
☞ Medical teams have seen more than 336 patients, to date, at seven medical facilities in Puerto Rico. HHS continues to provide behavioral health assistance through the Disaster Distress Helpline at (800) 985-5990. The helpline has answered 6,275 calls from people affected by hurricanes.
☞ U.S. Northern Command has 11 scheduled flights to aid in the transportation of approximately 230,000 meals, 136,000 liters of water, and additional sandbags for the Guajataca Dam.
☞ U.S. Postal Service (USPS) mail service is continuing today across Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands as mail is transported and processed across the islands. Some operations may be limited depending on facility damage. Customers are being asked to use recipients’ regular mailing addresses as USPS continues to restore service across the Caribbean.
☞ The USACE continue to clear debris from the U.S. Virgin Islands roadways. They are continuing debris clearance for Puerto Rico roadways, with 33 kilometers or 20 miles of assigned roads cleared, to date.
---
How was YOUR Monday?
https://emcphd.wordpress.com
10
Not bad for 12 days after the storm. Good thing the mayor of San Juan brought it to Trumps attention.
5
If only all that had been started a week earlier
6
136,000 liters of water for about 1,500,000 people who have been cut off from potable water for about two weeks? No wonder OXFAM is stepping in as though this crisis was taking place in a Third World country instead of a United States territory.
By the way, you forgot to mention the 10 morgue containers for 360 bodies that FEMA is delivering. Let's not short change this "good news story."
10
Hey, the president was very busy that weekend after the hurricane playing golf and trashing NFL players and the "ingrate" mayor of San Juan. Give him a break, he had a very full schedule.
15
Trump fails everyone, and when he was growing up father. Donald's deceased father, Fred, was viciously critical of Donald for not being selfish, exploitative, and brutal *enough*. Fred sent Donald to a military academy to toughen him up.
Donald confided to an interviewer that his father drilled into him three rules of life: 1. To accumulate and protect wealth, you need to be feared. 2. Nothing makes people more afraid of you than being known to kill people with impunity. 3. Never feel guilty about exercising brutality.
Donald's father also taught him that non-whites are lazy, pathetic, primitive and ungrateful scum that are ripe for exploitation. Donald's handling of Puerto Rico is a case study of him doing as him making his father proud.
Combine the Trump Family Credo with resentful and bigoted whites together with the views and guidance of Donald's sidekick, the white supremacist Stephen Miller, and we get Donald's dispicable tweets, dishonest comments and deliberate insufficient action to prevent deaths in Puerto Rico.
The Trump White House is practicing passive ethnic cleansing.
26
Ms. Goldberg gives one opinion on the Jones Act without at all bothering to research whether the Jones Act has hampered the rescue efforts. Furthermore, she cites one source hostile to the Jones Act without any discussion or clarification on what the act does, ie protects from cabotage, protects US sailors from unsafe conditions and insures that the US can handle a national emergency whether it be a war or natural disaster with a fleet of its own ships. To quote one source that calls the law "dumb-assed" and categorizes it as a benefit to shipping tycoons (almost on the 2 year anniversary of the sinking of the El Faro, where Americans lost their lives supplying the island) is patently unfair.
The Jones Act insures that goods originating in a US port and shipped to another US port are shipped by US companies on US ships with US labor. To act like this is silly or antiquated is to be for allowing Malaysian Air to ply a domestic route between Newark and Norfolk.
The least Ms. Goldberg could do before perpetuating the slander by Right Wing think tanks and Senator John McCain, whose long-time hostility to the act that protects US workers, is well known.
Linked is the Maritime Alliance's response to all the false charges circulating this week.
http://bridgedeck.org/actionnetwork/MLA-Maria-JonesAct.pdf
11
"America has largely survived eight months of Trump. That’s no guarantee we’ll survive eight months more."
Oh please. Yet another NYT columnist who can't avoid hyperbole when it comes to Trump. Doesn't anyone on the editorial staff ever say "Enough already! Please write something new, and if not too much trouble, original." Apparently not.
12
Truth is truth, whether you like it or not. It doesn’t have to be original, or anything else, as long as it’s truth.
6
When trump comes with something different I'm sure the Times will report it. For now, though, it's a consistent stream of bile and self-aggrandizement.
4
The sycophants are so enamored with their paramour President, that they don't realize how mentally sick he is--amazing how it is blatantly obvious to so many people, and the multitude of others only see our Emperor as wearing clothes--of course with Trumps unfit body (and mind), I think it is more so they don't swallow their own vomit.
9
Trump and his circle of sycophants won't be happy until they see a mushroom cloud and Trump can say: "I did that!" To which Kelly will respond; "Yes, yes you did. But it's not ours, sir."
14
Let's see--Bush got Katrina and Charlie, and Trump already has Harvey, Irma, and Maria, while Obama really only got Sandy. I can only conclude that God hates Republicans.
And who wouldn't? Constantly waking Him in the middle of the night with some stupid prayer for a pony or something; claiming that He doesn't want women to control their own bodies; asserting that He hates homosexuals; contributing money the charlatans that claim to speak for Him; even blaming Him for racism. I'd be annoyed too.
12
To say nothing of the semi-continuous prayers for the victims of mass slaughters.
2
It is painful to watch him attempting to " joke". He has absolutely NO sense of humor. Sociopaths never do. Just saying.
26
Michelle Goldberg sounds like Donald Trump's missing twin sister. So somehow successful efforts pre and post hurricanes in Texas and Florida get zero mention, and the separate and unique challenges of dealing with Puerto Rico have escaped Ms. Goldberg's intellect - her logic is, in this case at least, conveniently liberal progressive.
8
Before you crow about post hurricane success in Tejas, bear in mind that 85% of the houses inundated by Harvey had no flood insurance.
That makes homeowners insurance worthless, so the homeowners will be financially underwater, as they physically were a month or so ago.
The full economic damage will not be known for years. People who bought houses on a flood plain are played for suckers.
5
Yeah. It's surrounded by water. Big water.
Ocean water.
5
But the people in Puerto Rico, struggling to put their lives together, have the joy of having the Presidents Cup golf trophy dedicated to them...what an accomplishment by trump....
19
I do not like Mr. Trump. I think his policies (the ones he campaigned on) stink to high heaven. His manner and conduct is sad and disgusting. But I think we all need to calm the heck down and stop behaving like we are marionettes and he is holding our strings.
What happened in Puerto Rico is an emerging story. The notion that the President micromanages events on the ground is naive. Florida and Texas, while they too had 3-4million people affected and a comparable square mile area, also had many million more residents who were fine and unaffected, and millions more acres unaffected by the hurricanes. So there were more locals who could help and more infrastructure for staging and delivering the aid. Puerto Rico being an island, as our idiot-in-chief intoned, in a big ocean, does not have the buffer of unaffected neighboring areas and people. Worse, folks from the US Virgin Islands and Barbuda who were hit by Irma ended up in PR and added to the numbers affected now by Maria. But at least they were relatively safer and thank goodness for that.
So, in conclusion, the challenges in PR are much more complex than in TX or FL, so even double the aid and staff from FEMA and others cannot have the same immediate impact. If there is anything to quibble about it is Mr. Trump's vulgar mind interfering with what might be a sympathetic heart. His constant asides about PR's bankruptcy and terrible explanation of the above situation stoke confusion. But we know the guy by now, so chill.
5
I'm still failing to understand Ms. Goldberg's role. She is saying almost precisely the same things as other columnists. Give us something new!
8
Distribute individual hand-pump water filters, Mr. Trump. Or are you thinking, "let them drink rum"?
6
Listening to Trump makes ME want to drink rum...copiously.
4
Yet today Trump told Puerto Ricans that they are upending the American budget with their needs due to the devastation Hurricane Maria caused.
Did he say this in Houston or in Florida? I don't think so.
Every comment from Trump has been full of racial and ethnic denigration.
When will we have had enough of this travesty?
24
President Trump is unfit to serve as POTUS. You captured the foundation of the problem. The POTUS is supposed to serve the American People (and that includes the citizens living in Puerto Rico). Donald Trump sees and reacts to every challenge through a filter that involves massaging and reinforcing his insatiable ego. Serve the American People... it's not in the cards. ALL responsible Senators and Congressional Representatives (and that involves both Republican and Democratic Leaders) need to stand up and loudly protest the irresponsibility and failing capabilities of our current President. And come the 2018 Election, WE the PEOPLE need to vote out every politician who doesn't take a strong stand for the American People.
8
Let's not forget the U.S. Virgin Islands, too, also hit by Irma and Maria and getting even less attention than Puerto Rico.
6
I don't know how any thinking person could hear or read his speeches in the wake of this horrific disaster and not feel stricken with shame, “The Mayor of San Juan, who was very complimentary only a few days ago, has now been told by the Democrats that you must be nasty to Trump.” Aside from this nauseating tendency to refer to himself in the third person, he is literally incapable of not trying to make himself the center of everything. When he asked Jenniffer Gonzalez Colon to repeat some of the "very nice things" she supposedly said, I wondered for the thousandth time how such a clearly sick person could be our president.
15
He requires constant praise yet is too dense to realize that he would be praised if he actually did praiseworthy things.
4
I don't believe Trump even knew that people from Puerto Rico are U.S. Citizens and serve in the military etc. After all, allot of them are from Hispanic descent and their profile doesn't fit Trump's profile of an American citizen. He is so ignorant of different cultures he's pathetic. Yes, we do need a working executive branch and it's this inadequate and narcissistic president's fault we don't have one. His 3rd grade food fight with the dangerous and erratic president of North Korea is frightening. Can we survive 8 more months of Trump?
6
Bethed, Puerto Ricans are unquestionably of Hispanic background. Puerto Rico was a colony of Spain for almost four centuries (1508-1898). Thus, Puerto Ricans speak Spanish. And don't get me started on a discussion of the imposed second-class US citizenship we Puerto Ricans "enjoy"! American colonial control of Puerto Rico must end. ¡Viva Puerto Rico Libre!
1
It has been obvious who and what our so called president is since before he started his run for office. In the face of that an electorate either ignorant or just plain stupid thought it was a good idea to vote for this creature. Once elected the Republican party, particularly the leadership has demonstrated how devoid they are of any moral compass by supporting him. This great country is in very dire straits.
7
Thank you for your courage in writing this. The relegation of Puerto Rico 's tragedy to disease of the week status is scabrous. There are still practical ways to help out-- firehouse on Avenue B and second street in manhattan has donation bins.
.playwright
dr .larry myers
of st. john s university wrote a play to fund raise go raise coins.
"Puerto rico magick.'
2
Trump's overt criminality rivals the excesses of the Roman Empire. I am ashamed to call myself a citizen of a nation with such desperately corrupt leadership. I can barely watch or listen to Trump without feeling a visceral wave of disgust at what our country has become under this villainous wannabe tyrant.
13
The Federal Government under Republican leadership of all three branches is incapable of responding to virtually any emergency.
In the case of the Puerto Rico disaster, private individuals and the Government of Puerto Rico need to organize a mass evacuation of the Island's people to Florida. All are U.S. citizens and entry will be easy and immediate. Aid can be provided more easily in Florida and the burdens of the PR Government can be greatly eased.
And for those people from the Island that choose to establish residence in Florida, they should register to vote and remember in the 2018 elections who helped, who tweeted and who remained silent.
2
Why evacuate the Puerto Ricans only to Florida and not to Arizona and other states? And why not evacuate the people in the US Virgin Islands?
1
Without working communications and power, we have no idea what the death toll is...so far.
But no power and no potable water, and people burying the dead in backyards, as has been reported, invites dysentery, cholera, typhus and other potentially deadly diseases.
In the next few months, things could get much, much worse.
9
You folks are being so unfair.
Donald has had his hands full with dozens of critical tweets repeatedly inflaming us all on the subject of unpatriotic athletes kneeling. Plus his presence at that NJ golf competition required his presence. And he had to speak up manfully against the selfish, rude impatience of the San Juan mayor. Regardless of the suffering among those brown-skinned Spanish-speaking Puerto Ricans, you wouldn't want him to miss those critical Presidential duties.
5
Congratulations to Ms. Goldberg. Very few columnists speak this kind of truth so plainly. It's remarkable.
3
A third-world mindset and a third-world infrastructure failed PR.
Recall how townspeople could clean up their town and its streets but they needed a payroll guaranteed first.
What did we see from the locals in Texas - any requests to get a reasonable hourly rate before rescuing people and starting the clean-up?
3
SteveRR, you obviously are not aware of the fact that colonialism distorts a people. American colonial control of Puerto Rico is the cause of all the ills faced by the great Puerto Rican people, i.e., the corrupt political class (with the exception of the pro-independence camp), inadequate infrastructure, a God-forsaken economy, etc.
1
“You could imagine President Bush or President Obama or President Clinton doing that.” Jimmy Carter would have been there, rebuilding.
10
TRUMP Exhibits severe deficits in language, memory and executive functions of his brain. He exhibits symptoms of dementia, meaning that he suffers from a disabling disease that renders him incapable of fulfilling his oath of office to preserve, protect and defend the Constitution of the US against all threats, domestic and foreign. Being US citizens, Puerto Ricans are entitled to protection against the enormous threats presented by Hurricane Maria, which has ravaged the island, destroying most of the infrastructure. That the Commander in Chief would resort to tweeting rather than calling together military experts immediately to plan emergency intervention is perhaps one of the worst humanitarian blunders of the 21st century. The 25th Amendment MUST be invoked so Trump can be replaced immediately. Not that that will cure the legal problems of those eligible to fill his place. But that's another question unrelated to providing Puerto Rico with the maximum support and aid possible. Tweets from a person who writes like a stupid middle school student do not resolve any of Puerto Rico's needs for water, food, power and medical supplies.
11
One could almost imagine that Trump was elected to the presidency, perhaps through divine intervention, as a "stress test" for our democracy to see if it's really all it's been proclaimed to be to the rest of the world by arrogant Americans. Let's see if our much-vaunted Constitution can survive THIS clown.
2
The so called president is an embarrassment to our country and the world.
How quickly can we rid ourselves of this phony grifter?
Donald Trump is unspeakably lazy, dishonest and truly uneducated.
5
Many others said it well, but I want to thank you for giving us the hard truth about the consequences of an incompetent and surly president
3
Sadly enough, because of the racism of a lot of right wing voters, if Trump is seen as being uninterested in the plight of Puerto Ricans, it will not harm his image with this group of voters.
3
Just watched his "press conference" in PR. Gathers all these people with real work to do, to sit there and then be called on by the prez to tell him what a great job he's doing. Insults them all, tells them they have great weather...talks about the F35 and what a great jet it is... praises everyone in his cabal, including Linda McMahon for doing such a great job with small businesses.
He needs to go. He really needs to go. GOP, this man is incredibly dangerous to us all. Maybe even more dangerous than the NRA. DO SOMETHING!
9
"We need a working executive branch." What we have is an executive branch that couldn't plan a two-person picnic.
8
Donald Trump is an incompetent moral degenerate. And his comments implying that Puerto Ricans are too lazy to help themselves were the entirely predictable comments of a committed racist. But I really think we should be more cautious about condemning him for the slow pace of relief in Puerto Rico. I've lived in Puerto Rico. The logistics are formidable. The problem is not that Puerto Rico is an island: it's not the ocean -- it's the mountains. Puerto Rico is mountainous. The only good highways circumvent the island's perimeter, hugging the coast. The interior (which everywhere starts a short distance from the coastal highways) consists of a rolling cordillera of mountains and narrow, twisting mountain roads. In the best of times -- with the sun shining and the roads unobstructed -- movement through the interior is painfully slow. So as satisfying as it is to bash Trump for everything bad, liberals should hold their fire on this one.
4
Thank you for the clarification of the difficulties hindering rapid relief and restoration of essential facilities.
1
Malevolent toddler is apt. Read an old article about trump before the election that included commentary from one or more of his siblings along with a picture of him at about age 6. The sibling stated that Donald could always be counted on to the "throw cake" at birthday parties not his. Seems when he discovered the goodies, gifts and attention were for someone else, he would throw a tantrum along with the cake. He hasn't changed much.
6
I just love how The Con Don keeps attacking women of courage and power. He has not idea what a backlash he is creating. Keep it up donny.
The Sleeping Giant has awakened and SHE is furious. You do NOT get to treat women that way. Not now. Not ever again.
25
I can only hope you are right. However, I fear that all his minions feel the same about women as he does.
5
Yes.
2
People should not think Trump has accomplished nothing. He installed Cabinet secretaries and other high officials dedicated to destroying the federal government and the country. And they are proceeding apace, usually in secret, like Scott Pruitt with his spy-proof telephone bunker.
26
The EPA has perfected Get Smart’s “Cone of Silence?”
2
Donald Trump doesn't have a shred of humanity, not a competent bone in his body, not one good idea beneath that nest of yellow hair. He has lived up (that is, down) to my expectations. In Puerto Rico, people are suffering and dying. In Russia, they're laughing. Our allies are appalled, puzzled and horrified. The rest of the world is asking, what's so great about America if it can't take care of its own? I'm thankful real Americans companies are stepping up -- Frontier Airlines and Longmont-based Oskar Blues Brewery are producing and transporting more than 20,000 cans of water to be flown to San Juan; in New Orleans, a group of pilots and aviation enthusiasts, who collected about 25,000 pounds of supplies and flew them to Texas after Hurricane Harvey, are shifting their focus to Puerto Rico; Tesla is sending 100s of battery packs to help with energy needs; Royal Caribbean has canceled an upcoming cruise in order to send a ship to Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands on a mission to help hurricane victims; that's just a sampling of corporate help. Elsewhere, members of the Puerto Rican community in Los Angeles have turned a Cuban supper club in Hollywood into a donation center and slowly have been sending supplies. High schools are gathering and sending donations. America is responding. Its president is not. He's incapable of anything except self-promotion. He wants nothing more than unmitigated praise. He does nothing but lie, golf and make empty promises. God help us all.
18
Spot-on column!
"While that city’s mayor pleaded with the world for help, the president of the United States tweeted racially inflected insults at her and her people from his golf club. He implied they are lazy and “want everything to be done for them” rather than helping themselves."
Certainly Trump is not a President for all the people of this country or even for the best interests of the future of our country. Only one thing is on this man's one-track mind and that is Donald Trump.
Like the limelight-seeking incompetent narcissist that he is, Trump spends 24 hours a day cultivating his image and plotting how he is going to win by making other people lose. Not exactly presidential material, and truly an embarrassment for anyone who really cares about this country and its future.
So Donald's calculated ignoring of the humanitarian disaster in Puerto Rico is largely because he doesn't want to be seen being too friendly to "immigrants," such as the Puerto Ricans. I say "immigrants" since 41% of those polled did not know that Puerto Ricans are American citizens & 15% were unsure (=56%).
Trump's lily-white, bigoted, anti-democratic base relies on Trump to say and do what they have been thinking--as they readily disclosed during the campaign. And what they are thinking is that white people only, preferably males, are in charge based on the color of their skin; everyone else must be kept in their inferior place.
Donald Trump: President of (some) white people
10
Donald Trump in not only unfit he is totally corrupt and robbing the country blind. His practice of nepotism has no bounds. The President is undermining his own appointees to do their job. Like Secretary of State Rex Tillerson, general Kelly and so on.
This is not only one year.
Be worried, I know I am.
11
Hey, Trump is doing his best! I just saw a clip of him chucking rolls of paper towels to a room of (probably hand-picked) supporters as if he were operating a t-shirt cannon at a demolition derby. What more do you want from the guy?!
8
Puerto Ricans only vote in primaries and they are Latinos, two things trump has no interest in. So his response was tepid, if not at all. He is also good at blaming the victim, while praising himself.
8
Ms. Goldberg,
I listened to him today in PR and was extremely disappointed. Without a script, it is difficult almost alien for him to speak or articulate any type of empathy. Even on the younger Bush’s worst days, he still emulated genuine compassion. I’m not about micromanaging anyone’s personality as we all are different, but literally when it comes to being humanistic and understanding, there is nothing there. His speech regarding Vegas was amazing, but I know those were just words written by someone else. I don’t know Michelle, I just don’t know anymore. He does not understand that his position is more than money and health care. Heartbreaking, yet this is what 60 million people knowingly voted for so we must all sit through it together.
11
Maria should be a lesson? Fair enough, Michelle. But our need now is for deeper analysis, which must be based on real facts--these may eventually fall on receptive ears. We know Trump is a lost cause. To see him taking on the mantle of the American Pope is horrifying. It is grotesque to witness his demonstration, over and over, that he knows the price-tag on everything and the value of nothing. Already the forces of reaction are in the stalling game: this is not the time to politicize the deaths of innocents, they say. These deaths are the price of American freedom, another has said. CNN bears a lot of responsibility for the deaths, another said. But the false equivalence has been widely planted: that supporting gun control is an attack on the constitution. The fact is that a large proportion of Americans haven't a clue what The Second Amendment is or what the Constitution says on anything--and they don't care. We may as well be trying to instruct cattle.
7
Trumps presidency has provided an excellent example of how helpless we citizens are in an emergency. It's almost impossible for the desperate Americans in Puerto Rico to muster support for their plight.
Our republic is much weaker than we would like to believe. The incompetence of the Trump administration has shown how dependent we are on the executive branch and the whims of the electorate in choosing an effective president.
We are being punished for all of those years we've been lazy in exercising our citizenship responsibilities!
9
Now that three hurricanes have hit different parts of the US, this year, what we need is an Action Plan.
What is important is when drawing up plans for future hurricane seasons and any other natural disasters, to include all US Territories. These locations, with Puerto Rico and the US V.I. closer to the US mainland, other places such as Guam and the Northern Mariana Islands are far away.
Residents of these territories are all US citizens. A good number of their young men and women serve in the US armed services, to defend our nation. The US territory of Guam is home to two large US military bases.
Now that Mr. Trump has visited Puerto Rico, he has an idea how the island looks like. He will do well to include the island and the other US territories in his infrastructure plans. These locations are important for the US, for now and the future.
29
Puerto Rico should have had rescue material prepositioned in safe warehouses on the island. This is Puerto Rico's fault.
Puerto Rico is smack down in the path of potential hurricanes.
What has Puerto Rico done in the last 50 years to prepare?
Why rebuild anything there, to be destroyed by future hurricanes?
3
Wow.
1
Heartless and ignorant comment.
4
Like NJ had for hurricane Sandy ?
5
If this disgraceful behavior from this most disgraceful man doesn't add to the list of impeachable offenses I don't know what will. Trump, true to his psychological disability--narcissism--is striking out against those who didn't "love" him--Puerto went in vast numbers for Marco Rubio. As a country we have to rise up and get this person out of office! When the Mueller investigation is finished I hope we see quick movement in that direction. Those people who voted for Trump have a lot to answer for.
14
Those who didn't vote have a lot to answer for.
6
I think it’s you who doesn’t understand the conditions on the ground.
2
As Shakespeare might have said:
The fault is not in our stars, nor in the worst leader the United States has ever had, but in the people who made it president.
15
You really mean the Electoral College, I think.
Please don't blame the more than 3 million citizens that chose someone else over Trump.
It's incredible that Trump never gets tired of talking and thinking about himself. He could be the greatest president since FDR, but his own flaws, his own lack of compassion stands in his way. And, Trump is not the only one with a lack of compassion. There is a generous supply of lack of compassion on both sides of the aisle. That's why our country is still in such a mess.
4
I watched Trump's disgusting self-congratulation Puerto Rican graduation live. It reminded me of the old Jewish saying "Only a Meshugener puts his underwear on last." It means of course any sane person recognizes priorities before all the trophies are handed out. (truth be told I'm the only old Jew who ever said it, but, it's true nonetheless)
34
Hilarious. And true.
1
While the hopeful among us see the government systems working to minimize the damage of the Trump presidency, I think it was our system failures that gave us Trump. Partisan gerrymandering gone amuck, the electoral college no longer serving ever growing heavily populated states, an internet without rules or accountability, a foreign government meddling without any interest from the Executive branch, voting becoming harder and harder for certain populations and norms that were a societal agreement being put to the test as an arrogant man trashes our morals with no consequences. It is more and more apparent every day that we are being governed by the minority not a democratic majority in this country. The two frightening consequences are that the minority governing us is the rarefied billionaire class with very different concerns and needs from the government than regular folk and their constituents are the 30% of the country who seem to be ill informed or just plain angry. Well I think the majority needs to find their anger and push back hard.
27
As usual, those who want their guy at the top think everything comes from the top. Wrong.
Proper disaster response requires local first response and local supplies. That has to be in place, sometimes for years without being used. Societies like Cuba organize with local militias mostly for civil defense, but they can also do disaster response. In the hedonistic, individualist West there's no time for this. It's somebody else's job.
Supplies are coming into San Juan. Those supplies weren't sitting on docks ready to go. They had to be assembled and loaded, then shipped and unloaded onto trucks. What trucks? Yeah, that's another part of the problem.
Airlift, as has been noted before, is overrated. With a good long runway you can land a whole 40 tons of supplies at a time. You may not have a good long runway. 40 tons is a truckload or two. Do you see the issues now, O journalists?
8
Daedulus, responses are not all the same. Your comment ignores the island lacks fuel, most roads only recently became usable again and electricity has only just been restored to more than a majority of inhabitants. Absent these necessities, the local groups could not perform the tasks you think they should achieve. Only large naval vessels bringing food, water and health care with helicopters to transport necessities could successfully address these needs. The Trump administration was woefully slow in getting this done and the Puerto Ricans people are paying g dearly for this gross negligence
10
"... the horrific mass shooting in Las Vegas, which will probably, for obvious reasons, monopolize cable television."
There is an enormous difference between cable television in general and cable news shows in particular.
Puerto Rico is a great American Tragedy. A tragedy marked by an indifference to their plight by a US president who has little if any compassion. Trump could easily be the greatest president since FDR. But FDR had a sense of compassion because even though he was raised in a life of privilege, he suffered an attack of polio at a relatively early age and remained paralyzed ever since. As a Democrat he was considered a traitor to his class. He passed the FDIC where people's bank accounts were insured for the first time ever, and Social Security, which gave people some sustenance in retirement.
Trump on the other hand has no problems in his life other than his own self-making. He's a billionaire, and aside from his two divorces and his bankruptcies, everything has pretty much gone to his liking. He's never experienced the personal challenges of FDR. That's why it's so easy for him to turn his back on the plight of others. Puerto Rico, unlike Texas and Florida does not represent a large block of electoral votes. He doesn't want to spend the money rebuilding Puerto Rico because he thinks they don't deserve it.
Trump doesn't understand that "There but for the grace of God go I." It doesn't matter how much money you have, or your status, anyone can have medical problems, or have to cope with the vicissitudes of the weather.
68
The Roosevelts also had a strong sense of "noblesse oblige." The Trumps have neither a shred of noblesse nor a any sense of oblige..
4
Trump could never be a great president.
2
Please understand that Trump could never be great! The biggest myth is that the office makes the man. No, it doesn't. Everything Trump has done is an expression of his own life-long prejudices, added to his determination to erase from history anything good that Obama achieved.
Ms. Goldberg,
Did you ever hear of the Jones Act before the hurricane?
Containers are piling up in Puerto Rico because the infrastructure has been destroyed.
Suspending the Jones Act will have little or no effect on Puerto Rico.
Ending the Jones Act will destroy what's left of the U. S. merchant marine fleet and all its employees will be out of jobs. American shipping will be at the mercy of foreign nations.
7
Ronald Reagan famously said that the last words you want to hear are: "i'm from the government and I'm here to help." This illustrates the attitude of the Trump administration, as well as Mitch McConnell and Paul Ryan. You reap what you sew. The disasters that have hit our nation recently demonstrate the need for a strong central government in a multitude of ways. For Puerto Rico, leadership required knowledge of science and understanding of the devastation that was predicted. This should have lead to mobilization of resources such that they could rapidly deploy to an island after the hurricane. Our leaders deny science and don't understand the role of government, hence the perfect storm that left Puerto Rico in its present dire condition. I am sorry our fellow citizens must pay this price. Perhaps the rest of us will learn that sometimes the best thing you can hear is "I'm from the government and I'm here to help." If they do, perhaps we will all get out and vote in each and every upcoming election like our lives depend on it, because they do.
28
Can we endure 8 more months?
What about 8 years?
8
If he peaceably resigned and retired so I never had to hear of or from him within the next few days it would still not be soon enough.
11
Trump has certainly failed Puerto Rico but to say that this is the first time his ineptitude has had real consequences is absurd. It ignores his abysmal foreign policy record.
By abandoning the TPP & the Paris Climate Accord, by disrespecting our NATO allies, & by embracing brutal dictators, Trump has abandoned the leadership role America has held for 75 years. He has also brought us to the brink of nuclear war w/ North Korea.
The only bright spot, is that his equally reckless domestic agenda has been stalled in Congress. He needs to be impeached & convicted & soon.
214
Well said!
8
But then we'll have Pence, who is merely just a more effective shill for the Republicans. Though I will admit he would be less likely to get us into a war.
On what grounds would you impeach Trump let alone convict him?
2
Mr. Trump, by his very nature, would seem to float to the top of any imaginable "basket of deplorables." However, some appreciation for the immense difficulty of distributing aid throughout an island "out in the middle of the ocean," with a road network that had been destroyed, in all fairness, should be kept in mind.
8
Yes, the United States has "largely" survived eight months of Trump in the White House... unless you happen to be a DACA kid, or trans, or an immigrant, or a Muslim, or.... well, one of those "marginal" folks who receive most of the brunt of Trump's cruelty. Maybe it's time to update an old quotation: "First they came for the Muslims, but I said nothing, because I am not a Muslim... then they came for the immigrants... the trans people... (etc.) and I said nothing. Then they came for me." When will people learn that we are ALL human beings, and ALL deserve respect and caring? And why is Trump still in the White House when most Americans KNOW he is unfit?
39
Ms. Goldberg, thank you for your insight and compassion. Imagine, for just a moment, if even a sliver of your good sense was present in the current administration--or in the GOP caucus in the Congress. Just for a moment, that compassion entered their political calculations--absent pollsters and money donors. I know it will not happen with this bunch, but as the on-going disasters unfold, maybe folks who care and have common sense might pick up a phone and call their tone deaf representatives in Congress--and calmly explain: you have lost my vote. Until you get out of the stink hole of partisanship and work for the nation as a whole, you will never have my vote or the votes of the people I will mobilize.
16
Ms. Goldberg has hit the nail on the head: Trump is UNFIT for the Presidency. There is no other way to put it. Whether by Mr. Mueller, or by Congress, Trump needs to be removed before he causes a catastrophe even greater than a Category 5 hurricane.
The NYT and MSM need to keep hitting on this truth. Donald Trump is unfit.
47
Thank you for stating what so many of us are thinking!
1
"Maria should be a lesson: We need a working executive branch."
Well THAT's out. What's plan B?
21
A working legislative branch?
1
It is impossible for this man to open his mouth without insulting some one. I have never heard a more insensitive person, even in private.
49
They weren't covering it on Fox and Friends, so you can't blame Trump for not knowing how bad things were in PR. It is Fox's fault.
15
The U.S. Constitution give Congress the right to remove an unfit president from office.
29
And it also gives the President (Obama, in this case) the right to appoint a Supreme Court Justice. We all know how that ended up.
16
Where was the pre planning? Its not like they did not know both storms were coming why didn't FEMA have pre positioned supplies in the remote areas? Why weren't there pre positioned people to drive trucks etcetera?
Sorry Chump you gave away the game that you were treating them differently than any other part of the US when you started harping on the debt Puerto Rico is in. Emergency aid is not something one gives conditionally especially when it is your own citizens and your duty to do so.
41
Does anyone really care to admit the visceral hatred that they feel for this president? We have gone well beyond wishing him well to a profound disgust of his supporters, voting for someone with no moral character, no sense of any knowledge of the issues or the basic tenets of our democratic republic. He personifies ignorance while wielding control over nuclear weapons. He is a documented racist and white supremacist. He is ignorant of common decency toward everyone unless there's a profitable deal to be made while president. He knows nothing of most things unless his puppet master, Stephen Miller, whispers something into his flaxen covered ear. God only can save us.
40
Who will save us atheists?
4
Don't forget he's an embarrassment!
1
Did Trump orchestrate the Las Vegas massacre to hide his utter incompetence on the failing relief effort in Puerto Rico?
Shocking to the ears? Sickening to hear?
Maybe. But I'm learning to think and react like a Republican.
Surely some such similar nonsense would have been trotted out were Mr. Obama still blessing our country as President.
12
The Trump government is a ludicrous debacle as is the GOP congress. We can expect nothing of value from them.
19
Trump in Puerto Rico right now, confirming yet again the truth of your op-ed, Ms. Goldberg. On video, he spouts to the hurricane-traumatized people, "I hate to tell you, Puerto Rico, but you've thrown our budget a little out of whack."
21
When has he ever cared about the budget?
I'm sure it will not affect his support for tax cuts for the rich. That is the reason d'être of the Republican party.
6
Did Trump orchestrate the Las Vegas massacre?
Shocking? Sickening to hear?
Maybe. But I'm learning to think and react like a Republican.
Surely some such similar nonsense would have been trotted out were Mr. Obama still blessing our country as President.
3
As Ms. Goldberg notes, so far very little of material importance has required competence and efficacy from Mr. Trump.
Yes, his general and appalling nastiness has influenced matters, invariably for the worse. And, yes, all evidence indicates he has made a positive outcome unlikely for the looming problem of North Korea.
However, Puerto Rico is Trump's first hard and fast test of competency and efficacy. Is he up to the job? Trump supporters, please pay attention. Ms. Goldberg succinctly describes the situation:
"While that city’s mayor pleaded with the world for help, the president of the United States tweeted racially inflected insults at her and her people from his golf club."
Did he do respond promptly to American citizens who were in dire need? No. Did he rapidly mobilize the government? No. Did he immediately go to Congress for emergency appropriations? No.
14
Oxfam decries the response of the US Government to Puerto Rico's needs as lacking empathy, urgency and cohesiveness. Oxfam, which historically helps impoverished nations overcome disasters, feels the need to step into the breech and right the foundering ship of state that is the wealthiest country on the planet today, one nation, under Trump.
17
The disaster response model in 50 states is predicated on a partnership between local, county and state actors integrated with FEMA's response. In Puerto Rico these initial layers of response are by most reports barely functioning, if at all. Add the geography of being an island and the bankruptcy of the islands finances and the reasons for Puerto Rico's problems are obvious - this has zero to do with Trump.
8
Read what a president is expected to do in emergencies as per a recent commenter.
Is t the pres or not?
Did he help created a $32 mill shortfall as part of his own bankrupted activities on the island?
Has he galvanized his unified congress to realistically address p r's fiscal crisis? Or any other?
Please.
Just because he's a baby doesn't infer innocence.
3
Then they should be even more proud of the low death toll, given how little they had to work with. Also, if none of the blame is Trump's, I presume the flip side isn't true and all of the credit is still his, as he is claiming. This is a no-lose for him. Not sure about the people of PR, though.
Insults and racial comments uttered by Trump have everything to do with Trump though. At the minimum, the president of the USA should have a sense of humanity and decency to know how to interact with her citizens.
3
I appreciate the detailed analysis herein of the situation in Puerto Rico.
Regrettably, Donald Trump continues to warrant Ms. Goldberg's criticisms.
Where Mr. Trump should be galvanizing and promoting public, private and NGO relief efforts for the island, he instead continues on October 4 to decry critics of the U.S. aid effort as "politically motivated ingrates" and to call on Puerto Ricans to "give us [the government] more support."
19
Some Socratic logic. Trump failed Puerto Rico, Puerto Ricans are Americans, therefore Trump failed America. This works in almost every case you can come up with.
28
Alexander Harrison has written two trenchant, enlightening comments, yet respectful on Ms. Goldberg's article denigrating the c-of-state and his admin''s efforts to cope with the emergency in P.R.and pointed out that unless you're actually down there, on the ground, as is Geraldo Rivera, who has kinfolk on the Island, you, second person, plural face a credibility gap with your readers. You can't judge the fitness of a chief of state whom you have neither met nor interviewed by reading the Washington Post, not known for an "amour fou" for the President. Nor can you judge efficaciousness of efforts by admin. to cope with an emergency on the Island by remaning at home or in the newsroom working from a computer.What's stopping Ms. Goldberg from volunteering herself to go and pitch in? Times photojournalists gave us a fantastic report of crisis over a 24 hour period last week.Let MG "cross the Rubicon," take several days off, go down there and help out, and report back to her many readers!Let Ms. Goldberg take a hands on approach and be a voice of authenticity for her followers, just like GR, a septuagenarian probably more than twice her age!
7
No Sir. Your argument doesn't pass the smell test. Woe unto the previous president if he would have handled the response at the level of the current one. We pay taxes so that our government is equipped to handle crises such as this one. Has the US Navy Fourth Fleet been fully deployed to assist? If we can land men and materiel in places such as Iraq and Afghanistan, why has their not been an "invasion" of PR to offer urgent relief. Like Trump or not, there is simply no excuses for this level of incompetence.
20
Maybe you don't like Ms. Goldberg's assessment, but how about Lt. Gen. Russel Honore, who led Katrina relief, who says Trump's response is “slow and small” and that Trump “doesn’t understand the scale.” You can google his comments for yourself, so you can pick the outlet you find less fake-newsey. There are a variety, CBS News, Bloomberg, NPR. You pick.
And, remember, Mr. Rivera works for Fox News and Fox News apologizes for Trump.
5
Understand Mr. Harrison, that the mayor of San Juan was on the mark! A decent, unprejudiced POTUS could have used Hurricane Maria as an opportunity to have the US military get in there and do a proper job with good leadership, help the populous (US citizens all) AND maybe even find some billions to rebuild the power grid and help PR's financial situation.
But no, our hate-filled POTUS who is clearly unfit, can only criticize and demean any and all who aren't filling his ears with how wonderful he his. Those that compliment him are lying. He wasn't a wonderful candidate, he is everything a president shouldn't be, and he will only get worse. We'e a strong nation, but enrollment in learning how to speak Russian are increasing rapidly.
3
Trump might pay more meaningful attention to Puerto Rico if it had electoral votes. As it is, Trump is becoming a very effective tool for organizing the Democratic party within the Puerto Rican community.
14
Yes, we need a working executive branch. But we also need working legislative and judicial branches. None are.
97
We have the capability to deploy the military to bomb virtually any person/place on the planet in about 15 minutes. Yet it takes about a week or more (plus the lead time of knowing the hurricane was on its way) to begin to deploy assistance, military or otherwise, to U.S. citizens in Puerto Rico? Because it's an island and not part of the U.S. mainland?
We as a nation need to give serious consideration to our priorities.
14
Had I spoken as does the President as a practicing physician, or failed to fulfill my most basic duties as he has, my medical practice would have disposed of me in much less time than eight months. Trump similarly would have been discharged from any responsible position in any serious business or organization.
If we continue to tolerate Trump we will have no one to blame but ourselves if irredeemable catastrophe ensues.
219
A correct diagnosis of an untreatable illness.
3
All of you are relying on secondary and tertiary sources, since none of us has lived through the twin hurricanes, and have no idea of the logistical problems involved in restoring power and helping folks get back on their feet. But no one anticipated the destructiveness of the storms, and the grid, as Mr. Rivera pointed out, is decades old. There is a great deal of corruption in P.R., ask any Boricua. Recall visit to the Labor Ministry some years ago, and recall there were more folks milling around with apparently nothing to do, but kept on the payroll than those sitting at their desks with actual work to do! Also drew attention to the predominance of government officials as well as those in entertainment, t.v. soap operas, that look like wasps. Yet P.R. is a Latin country, and majority of the population, descended from Taino and Arawak roots, have "le teint basane!" What is the explanation?
We can't blame ourselves if "irredeemable catastrophe ensues!" We are victims of a Congress that has turned a blind eye to Trump's malpractice in hopes that they can pass a bill giving a massive tax gift to the wealthy, and they fear reprisals if they go against Trump. Each and every Republican member of Congress is "a profile in courage." Sure they are!
When it comes to teaching psychological issues, such as, narcissistic personality disorder, most professors rely on textbooks and studies. Now, to their delight, they have an actual case study their students can monitor each day. Thank you, Donald Trump!
19
Do you remember a few months ago the question in many discussions yet to be answered? I don't recall what Trump disaster prompted this question but we are now in a surreal moment. "What will he do when we have a real crisis?" Well, he has had four in the last month? But I am not including North Korea or climate change or Russian hacking or the investigations into connections and corruption via Russia in the administration. No those are not the crises I am referring to.
I'm talking about Houston, Florida, Puerto Rico and Las Vegas. I'm talking about what seems to be karma or comeuppence or a hiccup somewhere in the universe.So much sadness and so much need for a strong, compassionate, kind,wise leader. Unfortunately, Obama is not president any more. Neither Clinton nor Bush are in the White House. How frightening to look toward Trump for the traits that helped America come through crises past.
All he can do is show up. All he can do is refer to index cards or a teleprompter or memorize words given to him. But Americans have always been caring and supportive and willing to go beyond what is needed. We have learned to look past him and respond to crises with a willingness to put ourselves in harm's way for total strangers. We are unified. We are there for eachother. Thank G-d we have not lost our way.No crisis will lessen our solidarity.
Trump has failed when leadership was desperately needed. But we know in our souls that Americans are truly there for eachother.
10
How did Trump fail Houston, Florida and Las Vegas? I have no idea to what you are referring. Where is your evidence of his failures in these situations.
1
This is what happens when you starve government to make it small enough to drown in a bathtub. So what is the government in this case?
Isn't this government supposed to belong to the people, all the people, not just the wealthiest among us? We are supposed to BE the government and our needs the first priority.
So, what is being drowned?
128
It's as though Godzilla were appointed mayor of Tokyo. Surely everyone knew what would happen.
11
If i weren't so dismayed, discouraged and somewhat petrified for america, my children, grandchildren and myself - this response would bring a laugh.
But
It may be true!!
4
We need a good president---someone other than, almost anyone other than Donald Trump.
7
Trump's shameful response to Puerto Rico's disaster assistance is rooted in his effort to appeal to white supremacists in his core support. It's yet another affront to the Hispanic people.
8
Donald went to Puerto Rico and spent most of his time during the San Juan conference congratulating himself, his staff and Texas.
Sickening, too, listening to the Governor grovel before Donald as thanking him for crumbs which still cannot be scattered.
13
Right now I am watching on CNN, live from San Juan, as Trump congratulates himself and his administration's "fantastic" and "incredible" response to the disaster. He just called on P.R.'s representative in the house, who has no vote, to continue the adulation in superlative terms. Meanwhile Melania sits stoically by his side not cracking the least glimmer of a smile, a mute companion to this worst president in our history. Tomorrow he will fly to Las Vegas and utter other meaningless superlatives in a city that bears witness to the efficiency of automatic weapons in the hands of a 100% American and say nothing about doing anything about it, least of all anything to ruffle the feathers of the NRA. We need to stand up to this mentally deranged psychopath in the oval office and demand his removal, just like the brave mayor of San Juan did live on television. Trump, you're doing a heck-of-a-job destroying our country.
24
Did you hear Donald pray for solace? I'm sure God was fooled by his sincerity.
5
What disgusts me (and worries me) more now are his apologists. Some of the comments from Times readers are simply appalling in their lack of empathy and understanding of the devastation wrought on the island. To describe the mayor of San Juan as a "cry-baby" or "complainer" is beyond the pale. The dog-whistle race-baiting of Puerto Ricans as "takers" is pathetic and sadly effective.
19
Negatively branding groups in our population has been part of a successful, decades long campaign to place minorities, those of the "wrong" color, creed, ethnicity and religion on the other side of the tracks.
What a great way to shrink government roles and benefits for them. They are takers.
Unless, naturally, they're on the right side of the tracks (such as, whites, protestants, corporate head honchos, tycoons, energy/
Financial/ nra/pharma/onsurance and multinational elites).
Then they are called the heroes of the country, as they lavish welfare, favorable legislation, perks and benefits upon themselves.
Long time favorite activities of republicans .
They have been quite successful too as evidenced by their political ascendance and the acts of peasantry, ignorance, obfuscation and bigotry the guy in the white house can get away with.
All one can say is : wake up america; wake up democrats; we on that "wrong" side of the tracks - we're what's up in this country.
We need to unite, shout, vote.
We can't afford to leave the current power structure in place if we want an advanced, decent future.
6
You are absolutely right. The key for people like me right now is staying positive, informed, and staying connected with people like yourself. Having been born and raised in CT where there used to be plenty of Republicans (most or all now vote Dem), I am astounded at the complicity and duplicity of the current batch in Congress.
4
Trump criticized Puerto Rico's debt, but he should feel some responsibility since his golf course on the island went belly-up in 2015 and the Puerto Ricans were stuck with more than $32 million in debt. Great man, blaming others always helps. I would like to know how many people he has left in the lurch and money they were never paid for services given, this country included. I guess this is an example of Trumps great business tactics.
29
It's unfortunate that there is no Trump Tower in San Juan.
If there were, the administration's response would have
been immediate and massive.
39
Trump went broke in Puerto Rico in 2015.
1 more Trump business failure.
Now we understand all of Trump's nasty comments and insults about Puerto Rico.. He cannot take the blame himself for his business failure in Puerto Rico.
Really time for the 25th Amendment to be applied and let Trump get treatment.
1
Every time we suffer the effects of yet another massive storm, it seems to be as if it has never happened before. Why do we wait for days before getting underway with meaningful relief. There should be warehouses stocked with necessary supplies. Before the storm hits, loaded trucks and/or ships should be enroute. This is not rocket science. The damage caused by these storms is predictable and varies only in degree. We certainly have the know-how and facilities available. We're the richest country ever. What can be obviously more the responsibility of the central government. We once thought such an organized response was extant in FEMA. New Orleans taught us better. The powers-that-be have, apparently, learned nothing.
17
You forget that the GOP wants the Federal Gov. so small that it can be drown in a bath tub. The know nothing, do nothing, obstruct everything GOP isn't about to learn anything.
7
All of the pre-positioning of supplies was done for each hurricane. President Trump even described how preparations were being set up, to include the limitations in stasing supplies in ships for Puerto Rico. Maybe you should watch a channel or listen to a radio channel that is not always looking for anything Trump does that isnot acceptable to liberal cooks. Or generating stories wholecloth of innuendos and sourceless statements. I have read some of the writings in here and an amazed at the hate-filled collection of rants strung together, all filled with fact-free infotmation. The most amazing realization is that the left is too lazy to verify their rants and would rather spew emotionally-charged factless sound bites.
4
In the coastal area where I live, the local newspaper provides a hurricane check list prior to the season. The list urges us to stock up, get supplies, plan for evacuation, and generally follow the Boy Scout motto - Be Prepared. FEMA and Govt. of PR could do the same.
2
Trump's performance in Puerto Rico has been enough to get him fired in any other country. Maybe we need a change in the Constitution to do exactly this?
31
Don't want to go "political" but the Republican leadership knows full well that Mr. Trump, many, many of his appointees, and family members are totally incompetent to run the agencies and departments that need leadership. Instead they have stood by and watched this incompetents dismantle the very fabric that keeps America running. Our government was never perfect and sometimes it did an awful job, but those failures were offset by tremendous achievements.
The Republicans in Congress are hoping Trump will just "fade away" but that's not going to happen. He should be dismissed (impeached, forced resignation, isolated politically, etc.) to save America and our very important institutions. We've seen the clowns and the circus. Let's drain the White House!
7
I'm all for the parliamentary system of government at this point - despite any flaws it may have - with a president and a prime minister and the ability to call for new elections and kick failing leaders out. Nothing could be worse than what we've got now except a fascist dictatorship - and we may get that if Trump somehow manages to hold on to the presidency for the next 40 months and also gets re-elected: then it would be a pack your bags and leave time before it's too late.
2
After following Puerto Rico for awhile, I get the sense the president is intentionally attempting to punish the island. I'm not sure why exactly. Is it because Puerto Ricans don't vote? Or perhaps because mainland Puerto Ricans that do vote would never vote for Trump. Maybe it has something to do with the island's already troubled financial situation. Trump smells blood in the water. The only acceptable bankruptcies are his own. Puerto Rico is legally prevented from declaring bankruptcy despite massive insolvency.
There's no one action or inaction that makes me believe Trump is acting maliciously. I take his behavior as a whole and I compare his response to the other natural and human disasters witnessed in the past few weeks. The tone is notably different for Puerto Rico. Even if the actual responders are trying their best, you can sense a smirk of satisfaction in Trump's conduct regarding Puerto Rico. He seems to enjoy ignoring the island's suffering.
In Katrina, I truly believed Bush was guilty of unpreparedness and incompetence rather than intent. I can't say the same thing about Trump with any confidence. It feels like he's sending a message to the rest of us. Trump has a scorched earth indifference to humanitarian crises. If you're against Trump politically, Trump is against you in everything. Don't look for help from the White House. That's my read on his behavior anyway.
66
When obama was vilified and obstructed at every turn i refused to accept racism as part of the cause. Until the last year and hoped this was a blip, a bad one from which Americans could learn. .
When trump hired bannon, miller, gorka and maligned Mexicans, muslims, the khan family, hillary, Megan kelly, Blacks etc etc ad nauseum i still couldn't - Didn't want to- sayhe's an outright bigot.
Then the central park 5, charlottesville.
And now p r.
The gavel has hit my head.
Pure out and out prejudice.
Who will save us from this?
6
Punishment for one reason: Trump's Golf Club business in Puerto Rico went broke in 2015.
Hopefully, the Times will do some investigative reporting about that Trump business failure.
1
Short of a military take over what can be done to rid us of the Trump regime? The founding fathers must be turning over in their graves. Is this really a republic of freedom and justice for all that the founding fathers had in mind when they had their famous get-together in Philadelphia back in the 18th century? The age of reason has become the age of unreason.
"I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America and to the banana republic for which it stands, . . . "!
13
Puerto Rico does not participate in the Electoral College. In the 2016 Republican primary voting there: Marco Rubio 75% and Donald Trump 14% – Rubio trounced Trump 5:1. And Trump’s main business dealing in Puerto Rico was a golf course he may have helped bankrupt dumping $33 million in bad bonds on Puerto Ricans.
We should not forget that the US Virgin Islands were also not pro-Trump in 2016 (though they too are not in the Electoral College). Trump's mansion in the USVI was probably destroyed in the hurricane, so he has no clear personal interest there.
Trump helped Texas and Florida because that’s where his voters are. And he seems to have a thing for wanting to give more help to white people (not the main resident population of either Puerto Rico or the USVI).
No one should ever elect someone like this to the office of President of the United States. Trump is an abomination.
But we did. A majority of us? No. But enough of us.
We’ve been getting what we paid for. And it’s painful having to consider what’s next for us just over the horizon.
Trump developing any courage to deal with gun control after Las Vegas would be a positive sign. But he is so wholly devoid of any capacity for compassion and empathy for the victims – unless, perhaps, they’re white supremacists – that he is unlikely to do anything. And he risks antagonizing his base if he does.
So we plod on. And at the rate we’re going – lemmings to the cliff.
18
Yes, Yes and Yes. The question is now: When will we tthe people demand the end of this administration and their disastrous policies, actions and in-actions?
2018 !!
11
Excellent observations. Isn't he going to PR today? He needs his photo op. Can't imagine any other reason as he is devoid of empathy or human kindness.
11
As in many areas, when it comes to disaster relief and how a president can and should act, the bar for Trump is set so low that the merest hint that he has even heard of, say, Puerto Rico is perceived as growing in the job. OMG! Such empathy! The situation is not helped by the fact that about half of our fellow citizens do not know that Puerto Ricans are also citizens. Where were these
mainlanders when "West Side Story" was performed at a high school near them? We might also wonder if Texas Republicans, who support aid tor Harvey victims after trying to deny it to Sandy's victims, will rally to help Puerto Rico.
11
To restate what should now be obvious, Trump's go-to slurs such as "lazy" and "fake" are projections of himself. In reality, by his actions and inaction the 45th President of the United States has shown himself to be lazy, fake and, in general, an affront to humanity.
27
Don't lose the beat Ms. Goldberg. Give him no quarter.
13
Trump is not interested in helping Puerto Rico because the population is almost 99% non white. It also has no electoral votes even tho the people are legal Americans. Trumps racism is blatantly obvious and is shameful. Unfortunately his base of under educated white working class thinks he is great. They must be shameless or inhuman.
12
Listening to this man quote Scripture literally made my head hurt. Reminds me of Matthew 4:1-11 where Satin quoted scripture to Christ.
6
remember:
1. Puerto Ricans are american citizens but they do not get to vote in the presidential election.
2. Puerto Ricans speak spanish
3. Puerto Ricans have brown skin.
enough said.
12
Except that Puerto Rican's can vote if they relocate to any state because they are US citizens (and the same applies to those from St John, St Thomas and St Croix who are also American citizens). Hundreds of thousands of Puerto Ricans have been leaving for Orlando, Chicago, New York City, various Texas and Ohio cities, and other states. And more are leaving every day. Given the conditions on PR now the population on the island could drop significantly. Kind of hard to imagine them not voting for Democrats. They could flip Florida and Texas to the Democrats if many more relocate to those states. What a happy thought.
3
Puerto Rico does not participate in the Electoral College. In the 2016 Republican primary voting there: Marco Rubio 75% and Donald Trump 14% – Rubio trounced Trump 5:1. And Trump’s main business dealing in Puerto Rico was a golf course he may have helped bankrupt dumping $33 million in bad bonds on Puerto Ricans.
We should not forget that the US Virgin Islands were also not pro-Trump in 2016 (though they too are not in the Electoral College). Trump's mansion in the USVI was probably destroyed in the hurricane, so he has no clear personal interest there.
Trump helped Texas and Florida because he has voters there. And he seems to have a thing for wanting to help white people more.
No one should ever elect someone like this to the office of President of the United States. Trump is an abomination.
But we did. A majority of us? No. But enough of us.
We’ve been getting what we paid for. It’s painful having to consider what is next for us just over the horizon.
Trump developing any courage to deal with gun control after Las Vegas would be a positive sign. But he is so wholly devoid of any capacity for compassion and empathy for the victims – apparently unless they’re neo-Nazis – that he is unlikely to do anything. And he risks antagonizing his base if he does.
So on we plod. Lemmings to the cliff.
2
We really don't have a working govt anymore.
We've been plunked down into the Middle Ages, with mentally disturbed nobles robbing and killing off the peasants for the sheer sport of it, and because they can.
The mega wealthy individuals and corporations and profit-based "news" bureaus have destroyed our country.
10
Somehow, in hated Red states like Texas and Florida, the cleanup gets done. In cities like New Orleans, or places like Puerto Rico, it doesn't. But this is the President's fault?
5
Were Mar-a-Lego, cankerous cathedral of decadent pleasures, to be converted into an emergency relocation center and field hospital for Hurricane Maria's victims, the Lego President might have a "born again" moment. Not going to happen because the self-importance of this pompous, bullying hyena, devoid of all compassion, who doesn't know the meaning of altruism, who has no social conscience, who refuses to listen to the cries of his fellow man is a barbarian.
6
Too bad for you he'll be President for 8 years.
3
I dread that thought.
1
Peter; He is not our president now.
He is a "So Called" president.
We The People did not vote for him.
He is a republican, electoral college, appointment.
In no way does he represent the American people or our spirit.
7
Too bad for you, too
1
Having followed your commentaries and appearances on cable news for a couple of years, I am glad to see your voice on this widely distributed platform, Michelle.
5
The only good that can come of this is that Puerto Rico will be Don the Con's Waterloo.
8
Puerto Rico:
they didn’t vote for me
they’re not real Americans
who cares about some island on the middle of the ocean
Texas:
there’s my peeps
overdevelopment Trump style
the wife can wear high heels when she visits
we won that state bigly
na na na na ...
any questions?
13
Nero fiddles while Rome burns.
8
No one should be surprised by any of this. Especially New Yorkers. We know Trump best and for many years we just saw him as this buffoonish clown who inherited a bunch of money, could build some hotels but was basically a person with no originality and knack for lying that the press loved. As long as he was "The Donald", firing people om late Sunday night TV show, mehhh. Well everything we thought then is still true except that Clown is now Commander In Chief and the looking like he will be worst President in US history and the NYTimes still publishes comments (why is beyond me) from people in NJ saying "Lets keep giving him a chance". Why?
28
New Yorkers knew trump better than anybody. Too bad more people didn't listen to them.
5
And how did the vote go in Trump's own precinct? That ought to tell ya.
Mr. Mueller:
Can you PLEASE hurry!!
Signed:
The Country and Possibly the world
21
Mueller is writing a comprehensive history. He may not finish before the 2020 election.
We need Congress to take a few select crimes and press for resignation now.
3
The thought of having 39-1/2 more months of loathsome Trump is unendurable. Not sure how much lower he sink with his behavior: he must be down to around subterranean level 10 by now after all of his NFL and Puerto Rico Tweets.
Another "blame" Trump liberal "opinion." How about writing an article on the "unfit politicians of Puerto Rico....past and present...." who have allowed this beautiful country to become a swamp?
10
Whatever PR politicians may or may not have done in the past, that has NOTHING to do with Trump’s response to this disaster. You are engaging in “but-what-about-ism”. It’s false equivalency and is not useful at all. It only makes excuses for a failing and incompetent President. And maybe helps justify your irrational support for him.
Trump voters can keep sticking their thumbs in everyone’s eyes with their nasty comments, but Trump voters are suffering or will suffer too. Pay attention to the news: the Republican health care plan, this new tax “reform”, etc. it’s all a con.
9
Just how many people in Puerto Rico will have to leave in body bags before Trump supporters understand how dire the living conditions are and this is a humanitarian crises? Where is compassion or empathy for people on remote parts of the island in dire need after a category 4 hurricane? Just how long can people on inaccessible parts of the island be expected to live - babies and very young children, the elderly, people with health conditions, etc - without enough food and clean water, no electricity, no roof over their heads because Maria blew their roofs off, no medicine, no gas, no toilets, no cell service, no satellite phones, lots of flooding with all sorts of contamination including feces in that water, dead animals (one farmer reported his entire herd of cattle vanished during the hurricane), dead and dying pets (no pet food to feed them), dead and dying wildlife as well because all the fruits, crops, trees were decimated. Starving people getting weaker and sicker in unbearable heat and humidity with a big rain storm expected soon? It's been around 12 days now for some.
Every Puerto Rican and US Virgin Islands - St Croix, St Thomas and St John - residents are US citizens. Every one could choose to relocate to the US mainland where they could register to vote. If they leave the US military will have to occupy these islands at taxpayer expense or risk pirates or drug cartels from moving in - why the French Navy has war ships patrolling their damaged Caribbean islands.
3
Will get old fast if all you are going to do is bash Trump.
7
Thanks Michelle for speaking up on our unfit president and his failure in Puerto Rico which is shameful.
13
Thankyou Michelle. You're a great addition to this paper. What a shame it is that we have this incompetent clown in the White House. Trump is a story about cowardice. LtGen Honore is all about bravery and honor. In him I see all that this country is all about.
11
Face it folks, we have a mean spirited racist occupying the White House. If you don't agree with him, you are then publicly insulted. He said he will drain the swamp. A great placed to start would be by resigning, for the good of the country; for the good of the world.
18
the acuity of ms goldberg's reporting is stunning,
lots of invective, "nasty show biz huckster," "malevolent toddler," (ad hominum bashing, personal attacks that are the comfort of the unimaginative)...some loose factualizing of whim "...it SEEMS clear that Trump’s inattention made the fallout worse" or "Trump APPEARED disengaged..."
next the context context, a stew of gripes, opinions, linking trump to anguish in puerto rico, starts with his election, a gift from a complacent elite, which includes ms goldberg, who still can't face their complicity in leaving the field to the GOP.
and so, the litany, DACA, (now headed past presidential whim toward the force of law),
nazi's rampant in the streets, "causally" passed intel
(as opposed to "carlessly mishandled" classified information)..."yet" she admits "...most of the institutions of American governance continued to function" not by way of crediting trump but to credit our "economic recovery" to our debtor president.
no trump voter here, (and no fan of his inelegant and often off-target tweets) and certainly no gainsayer of the plight of puerto rican citizens,
still, in fairness, the piles of supplies on the docks call attention to the decades of slack preparation by puetro rican electeds (of an island in hurricane alley) for the inevitable...no network of helicopter pads in place against the failure of infrastructure, a decrepit grid, little effort to re-code and rebuild to meet the storms....you want inattention?
4
We must force Trump to Resign. Now. He iruining our great USA by the day, as well as our global relationships. The man demonstrates ignorance each day he is in office. He certainly has never read , nor does he understand our Constitution.
impeach him. Thank you , Sally MacAller
4
Its going to be very difficult for the GOP to live down this sorry excuse for a president.
Linda Selvia
8
I am glad that someone has finally written the words "one of the worst people in the country." He is an incompetent fool and a sociopath with a following. He has spent a lifetime defiling or destroying everything that he touches while he walks away unscathed. Now he touches all of us with his tiny little insatiable hands, whether we like it or not. Send money to our fellow citizens in Puerto Rico and the virgin Islands, and prepare to welcome them into our communities.
27
Michelle, benedict donald is a traitor. He has intentionally reduced the effectiveness of all the executive branch because it is a benefit to Vladimir. Benedict has also attacked the other branches of government as well as the institutions and values of this country with the same motivation. He promotes racism for the purpose of dividing us as best he can. As a person he is a pig, but he's not as stupid as he leads us to believe.
PROSECUTE RUSSIAGATE!
8
It is a genocide of Puerto Rico people. How it can happen in North America? May be because the PR people are Hispanic? Mr.Trump has no heart for Hispanics, Muslims and Blacks. When PR people are dying slowly, our president is playing golf and fighting with NFL reminds me that when Rome was burning , Nero was playing flute.
14
Russel Honore was a genuine hero in the aftermath of Katrina, for what he said and for what he accomplished and Louisiana is proud of him. America should take his comments very seriously.
10
Unfortunately, this crisis will do nothing to sour his reputation among his supporters, who probably agree with everything he's said or implied about Puerto Rico and Puerto Ricans. In fact, it will strengthen his support among his base. More "them" against "us."
5
Ms Goldberg is a great addition to the editorial pages of the Times. Her arguments and explanation of the facts supporting her observations and recommendations are clear. I look forward to her sojourn.
8
Trump will not help because he is convinced that all of the 3 plus million in Puerto Rico illegally voted for Clinton and denied him winning the popular vote.
25
Puerto Ricans cannot vote for President unless they also have a credence in one of the 50 states. Try and get the facts before you post nonsense.
Even though Puerto Ricans can't vote for president, he probably believes that they can.
4
Of course they can't. But I bet Trump is unaware of that.
1
I see this opinion - the President has failed Puerto Rico - over and over and I am ready to believe it. The man, in m opinion is poised to fail every challenge at every level of government. He is poised to lead the league on the list of Worsts.
But, boy, I'd really love some reporting to back up my knee jerk opinion, and boy I haven't seen it.
What are we doing, what have we sent? What challenges were initially insurmountable - like bringing in aircraft and unloading ships on generator power? Which are just difficult - getting diesel to every generator, and generators to where they are needed the most? Which needed mobilized special equipment - like road repair and bridge repair that needed to be transported across the ocean to an island with broken ports and airports? What could be expected, and how to we meet or fail expectations?
I haven't seen a real factual breakdown of any of this. I know the misery is acute and life threatening. But I don't know that the response is laggard, rather than logistically a nightmare.
I am ready to believe Tump incompetent and a failure... but I base my opinion on fact and I have seen very little.
14
I think that a swifter deployment of military forces and quicker suspension of the Jones Act to enable foreign ships in the area to unload supplies would have helped.
5
This isn't a logistical nightmare, this is a logistical challenge. Puerto Rico is a known known, a thoroughly mapped part of the United States. It's an island, yes, but surrounded by major airports. Much of the US military is based within a radius of a few hours flight time. The trained personnel and material are ready to go. What Puerto Rico lacks is representation in Congress to push for immediate help. They've had to rely on borrowed New York reps and Senator Rubio. This is a fiasco born of longstanding neglect and unwillingness to help our fellow citizens.
8
The tardy and inadequate response to the Jones Act should be sufficient proof.
Almost half the island doesn't have access to drinking water and the Internet and cell phone infrastructure are basically decimated. There has been a long-standing problem that living costs are much higher due to the Jones Act.
So he suspends the Jones Act for ten days? Please!
4
Trump excels at the politics of retribution.You support me.I will take care of you.Look at Texas and Florida.His supporters.His kind of people.And then there is Puerto Rico.In his mind they are not real Americans.They are people of color.They did not support his nomination.He cannot emotionally connect to them and their disaster.And so too little.Too late.
33
It's not just Puerto Rico and Las Vegas, it's the U.S. Virgin Islands too, which have apparently been completely forgotten in what is a triple nightmare. Heckuvva job, Trumpie.
68
The gross incompetence of Mr .Trump boggles the mind.
It is a flat out dereliction of duty. From the safety of a golf club
he attacks a Mayor begging for help. She gets viciously attacke.
I doubt Trump knew Puerto Ricans were American citizens
The press cannot ignore the lies and incompetence. But
they will. Mrs. Clinton was abolutely right about Trump.
Thank Comey
25
Glad the Times has brought the excellent Michelle Goldberg to the op-ed page. Her words are always thoughtful and--yes--true.
30
Sorry Michelle but "the country has not held up well considerably" Poor children have lost health care, Scott Pruitt is destroying the country with his taking over of our protected lands with suggestions for mining and how about the ban on people from particular countries and I could cite several more. I definitely agree that he was incredibly cruel and rude qnd incapable of handling the disastrous damage that Maria and Irma wrought on PuertoTico and the Virgin Islands.
16
Not just or only Pruitt--Zinke.
1
I'm sure that if Puerto Rico could declare bankruptcy just like the president did in Puerto Rico, when he left the island an extra 33 Million in the hole, with his failed golf course, they would be that much better off. Maybe PR can learn from Trump, when you get into more debt than you can handle declare bankruptcy and don't pay. It's how Trump has done it, you know -lead by example and all.
26
Michelle,
I like the way you write - no mollycoddling this utter ignoramus of a 'president' for you. Well done.
The US is squarely in the Age of Diminished Expectations if the best it can hope for is "Yet, the country has held up pretty well, consider"
Yes, considering that a complete buffoon has the wheel. Indeed.
19
"Malevolent toddler" is right. Trump's failure of leadership on Puerto Rico was bad enough but what made it worse was his narcissistic bragging about what a great job he was doing from the comfort of his golf club and his spiteful criticism of the San Juan mayor and the rest of those brown-skinned Americans who "want everything done for them." Not only were the optics bad, his behavior was beneath contempt.
32
Trump and his administration are a celebration of the "un". Uninformed, uninterested, unengaged, "un"-effective, and "un"-present until his fragile ego is called out for "un"-compassion and "un"-civility. There is not an ounce of real understanding, any strategy or any presence in either the plight of Puerto Rico where he is more concerned about looking bad than people who have gone more than a week without potable water. I saw him make his post-disaster speech about Las Vegas, then heard it from another room. Pretty words written by a speech writer with a heavy leaning toward absolving all the responsibility to a god whom not everyone in our nation pays homage to. His voice was flat....and he can almost read, tho his speechwriters have some flaws in mastering the grammar and wide possibilities in semantics as does he.
Unfit. Unfit. Unfit. Thank you Michelle Goldberg.
16
Because most Americans have the attention span of a gnat (including our so-called president), Puerto Rico just got bumped off the news radar thanks to a massacre in Las Vegas, a city the president is very familiar with. He'll be visiting there on Wednesday. That didn't take long now, did it? Meanwhile, the United States citizens in Puerto Rico will continue to suffer and be ignored by this presidency.
14
He can go to Puerto Rico and Las Vegas now because the President's Cup is over. For golfers the President's Cup is a huge four day event that ended Sunday. Trump attended and when he wasn't there was probably watching it on TV.
2
In my lifetime I have never known a person as low as Donald Trump and yet it holds the highest office in the land.
15
Could very possibly spark off a push for Independence by Puerto Rico.
"An Unfit President Fails Puerto Rico". And the rest!
2
Unfit is an understatement. A complete ignoramus and then some. Throw in ego, bully, and semi-literate in this fray and one only begins to describe Trump. He is the worse there is, hopefully worse there ever will be.
DD
Manhattan
11
Michelle Goldberg's column is titled "An Unfit President Fails Puerto Rico" As Ronald Regan once said "There You Go Again". Trump voters heard this refrain all throughout the campaign. They decided he is fit and thumb their noses at the Michele Goldbergs. I despise Trump but when I see a title of a column with such a title, I don't bother reading it. Whether it is a left wing of right wing columnist.
3
Aw, it's cute that you still think we can have a functioning government under Trump and his enabling GOP lackies.
8
Michelle, thank God for you; and thank the NYT for hiring you. You, Frank Rich, Charles Blow, and Masha Gessen are my FAVORITE living writers. You all speak truth to power in ways no one else can - honestly, morally, powerfully.
Thank God for you.
10
Politically comes first.
THIS is exactly what happens when an abject amateur flails around in a professional position. Chaos, disaster " control " on a minute by minute basis. A circular firing squad. Yeah, anyone can be President. ON T.V..
In real life, not so much. Thanks, GOP.
11
Michelle's article is kind and well-meaning.
But---Let's tell it like it really is.
Trump's top priorities are: 1) Himself; 2) Himself); 3) Division; 4) Build his Brand and Business; and 5) Entertain the American people, as only he can.
As a result, NFL name-calling and weekend golf take priority over any other problems that the American masses may have. The Americans can wait, be they in Puerto Rico, Houston, Florida, Las Vegas or anywhere else.
Now that the destruction in Puerto Rico is clear, Trump will go throw a few pieces of cake around in San Juan. You can bet he'll be looking to grab up real estate at "bargain, incredible, fantastic prices". Trump will see many opportunities to bring golf to the, as he himself defines them, "lazy Puerto Ricans who can't do anything for themselves". Magnanimously, Trump will build the golf clubs and develop condos to benefit the Puerto Rican people and rescue them from their plight.
Trump's narcissism and condescension are reaching new heights during this Puerto Rican tragedy. We should all take note.
Trump's treatment of U.S. citizens is appalling. He is sworn to defend U.S. Citizens. That includes those citizens that live on islands that are U. S soil. He has failed.
For this reason, let alone many others, it is time to impeach and remove.
26
Trump’s utter incompetence is actually lazy malevolence: he hates the “kinds” of people who live in Puerto Rico, and is too lazy to effectively pretend to the contrary. Trump also knows his followers don’t care. He could say or do anything and they’d still be his followers.
15
Trump is trying to ignore that Puerto Rico is part of the U.S., not a foreign nation, and its residents are American citizens who have the same right to federal support during catastrophes as Texans and Floridians. Many have brown skin and their first language is Spanish, not English, but as refugees they cannot be banned from entering the U.S.
8
Ms Goldberg: Another great column. You have been on the NYT staff for over two weeks now. Great columns and keep up the great work. You are now on my must read list.
9
America will never be able reasonably to expect substance from a hollowed out shell of a figure that purports to be human, a presidential figure whose last and best response to a human catastrophe unfolding under his watch is to hurl personal insults at the messenger of the bad news.
What does that say about America? America put this figure in the White House.
7
Trump is boxed in by the devastation in Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands. Yes, we should do whatever it takes to restore power ASAP. But then Trump should insist that new power lines be buried in order to withstand the next killer hurricane so we're not stuck with another $100 billion disaster 5 or 10 years from now. But this edict would be an admission that global warming is likely to intensify future storms. Forget that. And underground power lines are expensive, so there goes that massive tax cut for the wealthy if he doesn't want to blow up the deficit. So forget that as well. And what if Maria turns out to be a mere water spout compared to future monsters? Trump could decide that the world's carbon footprint has rendered Puerto Rico uninhabitable forever more. But then he'd have to relocate all those lazy Puerto Ricans to the mainland. Not going to happen. So what's a bigoted blowhard and climate change denier supposed to do? Play another round of golf at Bedminster, I imagine.
15
They should bury the power lines in the US before Money is spent on Puerto Rico. I have electric power from Poles and lose ie to heavy storm. I want my power lines buried before those of Puerto Rico. Mainland comes first - not some island.
I wonder if President Trump has thought about the hundreds of thousands of Puerto Ricans who could move to Florida (since they are American citizens), register to vote, and swing the state? Perhaps that might matter to his pathetic, bloated ego.
4
We have seen it time and again, thunderstruck each time it seems to happen...Trump making a statement during a moment of national tragedy, as we all turn to our president for comfort. And, it feels hollow...insincere and flat...self serving usually, at times divisive attacks on others, always lacking true empathy. What will it be like when something really big, really terrible happens...what will we do when we really need a true leader....what will we do then....?
4
Speaking of expressions of empathy, he sent "warm condolences" to the survivors of the dead in the Las Vegas massacre. Frankly, I have never seen the word "warm" with the word condolences until now. Condolences were heart-felt or profound, only congratulations or greetings were warm or warmest.
2
The executive and legislative branches of our government have been paralyzed by the Republicans. There is no leadership in either branch any longer, thanks to the regressive ethos of the Republican Party and its incompetent and unfit leader, President Donald Trump. The rescue effort in Puerto Rico started too late, thanks to the President`s preoccupation with berating the NFL football players for benging knees instead of standing up while national anthem is played, and lambasting Puerto Ricans themselvesa for not pulling their island territory up by its bootstraps after Hurricane Maria`s total devastation. The horrors yesterday in Las Vegas occurred because there is no gun control in our sick society. You are correct, Michelle Goldberg, the never-ending crises in the Trump White House have been generated by the President hemself and his frightening habit of ignorant tweeting instead of leading. Lord help us survive.
4
Thank you, Michelle Goldberg, for reminding us of the ongoing humanitarian crisis in Puerto Rico. The horror in Las Vegas yesterday has eclipsed this story, but it must be kept 'front and center.'
Yes, you have enumerated many good points. But I ask you this, why are you surprised by Mr. Trump's slow (and nasty) response to P.R.'s woes? His behavior is actually very consistent with his past. ALSO, I am reminded of an old bromide that goes something like this: "you cannot make a silk purse out of a sow's ear." He is neither capable of a compassionate response nor competent. He has surrounded himself with sycophants who are frankly just as incompetent as he is. You cannot get something from nothing...
Each and every one of the compassionate and thinking adults in our nation have a responsibility right now. It goes something like this:
1. send money, if you can afford to do so. Every couple of weeks, send more money (the Red Cross is but one of many options);
2. open up a spare bedroom (or an unused den or finished basement room) to a family who has been displaced;
3. become an organizer in your community. Start knocking on doors - get to know your neighbors so that when you start up a recall campaign to throw the lame Congressman out of office, they will be inclined to sign that petition to "throw the bums out of Congress/Senate" for gross malfeasance. We all deserve a functioning government. We don't have one right now.
6
This disgraceful excuse for a "president" is overseeing, and I use that term very loosely, the worst response in modern history to an American disaster. Anyone who expected anything but total failure was simply deluding themselves.
As far as his battle with the NFL is concerned, drumpf is grandstanding on the issue of patriotism. This is the very same guy who, for eight long years, incessantly beat the birtherism drum. He was seeking to undermine the legitimacy of President Obama. That, in my humble opinion, is a perfect example of someone being totally unpatriotic.
The man is an absolute disgrace to our nation. The good news is that this egomaniacal, self-absorbed fool will go down for all time as the worst president in our history. No one else even comes close.
8
The President couldn't care less about Americans who are suffering. He boasts about what he will do in the future like a ten year old child and then turns his back on the matter. He declares his past non-existent efforts to be a great success without having a clue as to what actually happened. When a member of Congress has a professional disagreement with him about policy, he attacks them personally as if he were the King and their exercise of independent judgment were a sin. The republican members of Congress who support Trump must think the republican voters who elected Trump are so gullible and lacking in knowledge about government as not to know how dangerously incompetent Trump has shown himself to be.
8
We have passed a new milestone in the decline of America. According to initial reports, the Las Vegas mass murderer was just a regular guy with a nice house and a comfortable life, with no cause to be angry, no sign of being crazy and no particular motive. He was just another American guy with some new toys, and an urge to make headlines.
This is Trump's America. This is what anarchy looks like. We have become our own worst enemies. Puerto Rico's crumbling infrastructure isn't so different from the mainland's 48 states. The bridges, roads, and airports that DT promised to revitalize, are still crumbling, just waiting for the next flood or earthquake to remind us of our vulnerability.
Our ship of state is rudderless. Our president and our government have dedicated themselves to displaying unprecedented ignorance and incompetence. Unless the American People can stand up, get smart and do the right thing, we are lost. I'm not holding my breath.
13
Who needs a government when Donald Trump proclaimed "I alone can fix it!" Of course, now the Victim-blamer-in-Chief is calling out the Mayor of San Juan and her fellow American citizens (that's right Puerto Ricans are U.S. citizens) to "fix it." It's tragic beyond words, although I have called it "sadistic," to see such a destructive man adding to the misery and pain of people who are "begging" for help in order to survive. But now there is Las Vegas to distract him and us that needs comforting from an empathy-challenged man who embraces the N.R.A. and the second amendment to the exclusion of even considering protecting them from the endless epidemic of gun violence. And if anyone complains, there's always NFL players and Kim Jong-un to tweet about and change the conversation.
4
I think this opinion could be a template for describing almost any failed attempt by Trump to respond to any serious matter, which is to say every attempt by Trump to respond to all serious matters. Maybe just change the title to "An Unfit President fails again" and simply replace the names and descriptions of events as appropriate. The opinion may always conclude with the observation that we may not survive another XX months of this.
The key ingredients are always the same: a stunning inability to comprehend the real quality and magnitude of the event as indicated by an absurdly tone deaf and inappropriate response uninformed my facts, history, or analysis, a desperate need for validation of his own really terrific response to that event, the lashing out at those who would dare to question the nature of his response, and of course, the singling out of some (preferably brown skinned) group on which to redirect blame and hatred.
My fear is that one day soon we will not be able to speculate about how long the country can withstand this type of incompetence/dishonesty/narcissism/corruption because the most recent version of the story will have left us without the ability to imagine a better day.
5
No, Puerto Rico failed itself by not maintaining its infrastructure. The challenges faced by Puerto Rico have been in the making long before Trump even contemplating running for president. Puerto Rico's unpreparedness for the storms is not anyone's fault but its own. I commented on earlier articles that PR is, like most of the islands in the Caribbean, third world, if not second world, nation states. My conclusion is based on my extensive time spent in the region due to family connections. Even my wife's family calls the islands third world. Others, including Puerto Ricans themselves, have commented that the island's state of disrepair is the result of corruption, the kind of corruption that is characteristic of the typical "Banana Republic." I say the US should grant Puerto Rico its independence, as the territory serves no purpose. During the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, these territories served as military outposts; Puerto Rico served as an outpost to enforce the Monroe Doctrine after the Spanish American War, when the region was still vulnerable to foreign intrigue. Now it is nothing but an economic liability. This tragedy struck the island during the historic presidency of Donald J. Trump, but he is not cause of the Puerto Rico's misery. Its misery is of its own making. I support the President. I support Trump.
9
It's true that corruption and other factors put Puerto Rico in a state of unpreparedness for an event of this magnitude, but you left out the fact that it was people like Trump who were party to the corruption. A golf resort project in "third world, Banana Republic" conditions that had already burned $25M and was losing money on operations was a ready target for him. He signed on and claimed he could get the project back in the black but in actuality, he "made millions without investing a dime" according to his son, while the resort continued to lose money, another bond was issued to try to save it, and the inevitable bankruptcy followed. It was an ideal project for a corrupt, predatory businessman who saw a way to make money without taking on any of the risk. And now PR depends on that guy to get the right team together to help their leaders find a way forward through clean-up and rebuilding on this scale? Better hope someone else steps in.
6
@Southern Boy: Spoken like a true republican 'I've got mine get your own". The people of PR are asking for help to save lives what does it matter what the infrastructure is like. By your reckoning anybody in Florida or Houston who lost their house should be on their own too. How about Detroit, most of Mississippi etc, maybe it is the different demographic that shapes your opinion? After re-reading your post I concluded that while you have a greater command of the English language your self interest and lack of empathy are not too far from your hero Trump.
5
@Dresden.
Thank you.
What we need is for the 25th amendment to properly function. If the members of this cabinet had any integrity--and dignity--it would do so.
5
His cabinet? These people are the worst of the worst... by and large obscenely wealthy, and intending to use their positions to further that wealth at the expense of the American population.
The Don heads up an overtly criminal "leadership" in this country. I believe we have adequate federal facilities to house them... they can get together to chat and work out improvements to our federal prison system at mealtime and exercise breaks, a form of penal privatization which could actually serve our country.
5
"Home of the Brave". That's us. To be an American these days requires bravery. Going out for errands could involve being shot. Any natural disaster, and you're on your own. For those of us with critical thinking, just staying informed on political news takes bravery. I've never been so weary. To think that all my life, regardless of who was in the Whitehouse, I felt my government was on my side. Now I feel my government is my enemy. My government takes, without giving. My government wants me to be quiet and go away. My government lies to me daily. Worse, a sizeable portion of my fellows embrace this devolution. What will become of us?
8
I don't think the natural disaster in Puerto Rico is Trump's fault any more than it's his fault that the United States of America is not prepared a domestic humanitarian crisis. Until Hurricane Katrina, it was unimaginable that it could happen here. Now, it's not only imaginable, it's real. We're not safe from monster storms or earthquakes or vicious attacks by other humans.
The survival plan for catastrophe should be to evacuate the people whose "habitats" have been destroyed and possibly resettle them. That is what the U.S. does through the U.N. for people in other countries when, flying in aid is an ineffectual solution for the enormity of the problem.
In fact, I'm curious about what role the U.N. is playing to help Puerto Ricans get warm, dry and fed immediately.
3
Nobody's blaming Trump for the natural disaster. He is being blamed for not competently serving the people affected by it. It's his job, which he is clearly not capable of performing. You need to get out more, MK.
9
Trumps behavior always comes back to "how do I look". People are literally indispensable in his world. He only takes up humanitarian causes when he has to. And even then, his primary concern is his image. This is our "leader".
6
Ms. Goldberg,
I have quickly and readily become a regular reader of your column. Thank you for your incisive journalism, and please continue.
5
As time passes it becomes increasingly obvious that the President is not capable of understanding his critics. He exhibits a profound lack of ability at introspection and self- criticism. It is this lack that makes him defensive and angry. He simply 'doesn't get it.' Is he ill?
5
Let's get real here. We had 3 back to back hurricanes of epic proportions, stretching FEMA and volunteer resources well beyond what can reasonably be done. We're talking the 4th largest city in the USA, and virtually most of the state of Florida.
With the thousands of government workers and volunteers helping and doing their best, and the food and supplies and money sent to help Puerto Rico, the mayor is either ignoring that or unaware of what is going on. In either event, she comes across as someone who would be sitting in one of Titanic's lifeboats demanding breakfast and complaining the blankets not being warm enough.
6
hey saved, all i have to say is - what? look at the on site news from PR, look at the devastation, look at a country who can't even get water. how is that the same as TX? tell me please.
4
A breath of fresh air to the Times Editorial Page. It's good to finally have someone in the op-ed section of the Times who can speak critically of Republicans and especially President Trump. I'm truly happy that the Times has diversified their viewpoints, as one was beginning to wonder if all the columnists here spoke from the same song sheet.
In particular, Trump's reaction to the crisis on Puerto Rico has bordered on the criminal. It's just a short drive from DC to San Juan and FEMA, after going over a decade without a major hurricane event, was well rested and could have focused laser like given the lack of major storms. Their warehouses of supplies were well-stocked, given all the alarms over the last 15 years about global warm...er, climate change, having been unused.
The Democrats in power in PR for so many years did such a wonderful job preparing the territory for such an event - modernizing all of their infrastructure, managing their finances prudently, and having a plan so that first responders and emergency personnel could jump into action the minute the storm was gone. Who could have foreseen a hurricane of this magnitude hitting PR and taking out all of the infrastructure,
It truly is all Donald Trump's fault. One only need to look at the ineptitude of Republicans governing in Texas and Florida to see how much worse this could have been.
4
President Trump never "rises to the occasion", his responses are always inadequate, abnormal, and lacking in humanity. "Warm Condolences"? The Media and Republicans give him extra credit every time he goes out in public without soiling himself literally or figuratively.
68
It is much worse than Michelle Goldberg indicates in her column. The essence of the problem is not in her words but in the ad to the right touting various high tech devices to augment entertainment. There is no media outlet on planet Earth who will note the simplicity of the horror: no one can focus and identity modern fun as biological cul-de-sacs, snares that we are all caught in. At best columnists complain about Trump's incompetence, but never see the mote in their own eye: they can't change themselves. Worse: they can't see the problem; worst still the identification of the problem is so painful and against self-interest, ad dollars, there is no possibility of evolution. It is just more and more non-constructive nonsense.
Puerto Rico and Las Vegas are just this. It is always someone else who needs to change, so everybody keeps forever their heads in the sand. This work is followed by watching twitter feeds, texting, and in general entertaining oneself. Guess what the billionaire oligarchy has the same mentality, the president, the whole world! We are in cages engineered to give us information pleasure. Information, here-to-fore of great value, is too wonderful for us and captivating; we weren’t designed to withstand modern information environments.
Trump is emblematic of the phenomenon: we have bred (and will continue to breed) our own extinction. His incompetence is addressed by taking his picture with your i-phone and posting it for entertainment value.
27
I am old enough to remember when the media was a force to be reckoned with. No more. They are given their daily talking points, spend a few minutes on them and then move on. When Bush started the Iraq war he told the people to just go shopping. They did and still are.
6
Enjoyed the reference to Trump as "nasty" by this female critic, as that's how His Excellency refers to female critics in his tweets. And it fits him, not them.
So what do we do? Trump will not improve. We the people have to push on our mostly gutless self-interested slackers in Congress to pass the necessary appropriations and action legislation to get help to Puerto Rico. And we need to support the NGOs doing something. Both Move On and the Sierra Club have reached out to supporters for contributions to be used on the ground, and I'm sure many other NGOs have as well. I would guess International Rescue and Mercy Corps among others. Even our Trump sycophant governor here in Florida is offering help in housing, employment and schools to the limited number of arrivals from Puerto Rico. 'Course he's running for Senator, and Puerto Ricans in Florida can register and vote...
It's never enough to just wait for the next election.
Great writing Michelle Goldberg.
123
Michelle Goldberg is a welcome addition to the Times' Editorial staff. Here especially, in this marvelous piece, she points out unequivocally what has long been in front of our noses, the breathtaking ineptitude of this crude Presidency, exacerbated further by its willful lack of fundamental knowledge necessary for this office. Trump has always been deeply unworthy of the White House and Americans should not be in any way surprised by his behavior on view since November 9th last year. One of his initial tweeted(!) reactions to the Las Vegas horror was to extend his "...warmest condolences." Really? He is limited to being schoolyard articulate, sadly at his best when spewing cheap shots, derogatory remarks or flat out lies. Pathetic excellence. Too crippled by his megalomania he is incapable of composing words of empathy that convey deep regret and sincerity which would show a truly felt emotional connection to those whose profound grief and experienced horror of the Las Vegas shootings can only be unimaginable.
246
Maybe perhaps now, people who refused to partake in our elections will now see the error of their (our) ways.
There is no such thing as a perfect person, but one thing is clear.
EVERYTHING that Hillary Clinton pointed out about Trump has come to pass, and we have only been in this boat for about nine months.
If nothing else, it is my hope that the election of Trump will help folks realize the trues of how our government really works or not and that you can't really get a true picture until one actually reads a civics book or take a civics class.
If nothing else, go get a copy of School House Rocks about the passing of a BIll.
7
Stephen Miller is his speech writer. No empathy or maturity there either.
4
"she points out unequivocally what has long been in front of our noses"
I hope she gets around to also pointing out things that are not obvious.
Why does Trump neglect Puerto Rico? That is his revenge for the nasty, lazy Puerto Ricans failing to support his golf course there twenty years ago!
If they had only turned out with large wallets to play on his course, they could have reversed its obvious path to failure. Instead, his organization's calculation that the Trump name would save a sinking ship proved incorrect, so the Trumps had to extract whatever meager profits were available (Jr. got nearly $1 million) and leave the government of Puerto Rico on the hook for more than $30 million in bond guarantees.
194
really....all that is true? Trump stuck PR with a bankruptcy of 30 million? the question is, is Trump petty? you bet !
3
It is hard to listen to Trump's responses to himan disasters like Puerto Rico and Las Vegas without being repulsed by the apparent lack of humanity in the man. His words and gestures are simply hollow and his attrmpts at sincerity are empty and offensive. The greater the attempts he makes at sincerity, the more vacuous it all appears. Who wants to hear a huckster talk about scripture he has never read, or appreciated. Who wants to listen to him spouting words about "bringing us together" while every action he takes and slur that escapes from his mouth serve only to intentionally drive us apart. His "thoughts and prayers" echo from the soul of a man so repulsiive, mean spirited and childish that at least half the country would appreciate the sounds of silence to anything he has to say and his remaining "base" (what an aporopriate word) appear not to have the critical facility to judge his actions that God gave geese.
459
Thank you Robin
Trump's lack of empathy makes his attempts to touch those victimized by climate disasters or acts of violence as in Las Vegas almost impossible to listen to - so clear it is that the words he speaks are not his.
And then once he does open his mouth - any good that might have been accomplished is lost in the wake of another impulsive verbal disaster.
The American people are getting what they deserve. They cast aside volumes of clear evidence that Trump was an unqualified disaster (multi-layered pun intended) as a statesman, and as someone driven to pursue public service in order to care of his constituents...all of his constituents.
He wanted only to "win". Another trophy on his mantle.
He is an embarrassment whose ineptitude has only just begun to inflict serious negative consequences for the American people, and infect people so discouraged by their loss of confidence in the system that they were willing to o go all-in with a snake oil salesman.
3
Thank you for articulating exactly how I felt listening to this hollow man's insipid empty words. God help us.
4
I am having a very hard time remembering that this incompetent braggart is one of God's children, just like me and Saint Peter and Martin Luther King--and Hitler and Vlad the Impaler. How do you fight without hating? And we must fight him.
Let's face it, Trump is racist and his lack of leadership on this issue has a lot to do with the fact that he doesn't see Puerto Ricans as real Americans. If these people made up his base like those who were impacted on the mainland his response would have been different.
Right now, sad as it is to say we're going to need the MSM to shame him into a proper response. Trump only cares about optics and his brand so hit him where it hurts.
In the meantime we need to do our part. Years ago during the Northridge earthquake my youth group piled into a van and drove to California to help. We spent a week cooking for 100,000 people working with the red Cross. This gave some breathing room while waiting for a government response. We kept sending people a week at a time until we were no longer needed.
Not everyone can physically go to Puerto Rico to help. But help us organize supplies to send through credible sources. Thanks for not allowing todays shooting to distract from an ongoing humanitarian crisis.
79
Yes. If you contributed to help after Harvey, and then Irma came--you may feel tapped out. But here's Maria, even worse. If you can help, please do. My own choice is Episcopal Relief and Development, but I'm an Episcopalian. However, they have a very good rating on the charity rating sites.
2
By now it's obvious that the president's "America First" didn't include all of America's citizens, at least not those who have no voting power. Hurricane Maria destroyed an island, the recovery of which seems not to be a presidential priority. Now, after the carnage in Las Vegas Sunday night, the crisis in Puerto Rico will be all but forgotten.
28
While our attentions are diverted to the horrible tragedy in Las Vegas let's not forget the humanitarian crisis that is unfolding in Puerto Rico. Puerto Rico needs help now. The Jones Act must be repealed now. The news media must not forget and 45 must be held accountable for the continued crisis' our country continues to be subject to without proper leadership. Thank you Ms. Goldberg for your thoughtful write-up and for keeping us focused on the facts.
86
I think its Trump but its also kind of like the drug problem too, right? That is, African-Americans caught up in a CIA sponsored crack cocaine epidemic - go to jail and do not collect $200 for passing Go but white Americans caught up in a Big Pharma sponsored opioid epidemic - treatment programs, treatment programs and more treatment programs. Similarly, Houston devastated by a flood, well lets get help there yesterday but bi-lingual and brown Puerto Rico hammered by two hurricanes , no big rush until the vulture capitalists can figure out a way to maximize profit. Go figure.
62
Excellent commentary. Thanks for keeping the crisis in Puerto Rico on the pages of the NYTimes. Instead of beating on Puerto Rico when it's down, or dedicating useless golf trophies, the President should be sending words of support along with massive aid and personnel to distribute it. And yes, get rid of the Jones Act . Help Puerto Rico rebuild a better infrastructure in the challenging times ahead.
96
Don't forget the Virgin Islands! They were slammed before Maria came close to PR, were as devastated and have become invisible since Puerto Rico was so badly pummeled. I am not taking anything away from the necessity of urgent aid to Puerto Rico; I am just imploring Americans to remember that there are more US citizens in dire need--and have been even longer!
2
I'm not sure why Trump's response can be considered incompetence. If the strategy is America First, and president doesn't consider Puerto Rico as part of America, isn't this business as usual? He called the people of Puerto Rico "lazy," thought first of "the shipping people" when he heard of the Jones act, and reminded us all that Puerto Rico is in debt to Wall Street. Can you imagine him saying this about Florida or Houston?
Donald Trump is not my president. I don't say that because I'm upset he won, but rather in the literal sense. Trump himself refuses to be my president because I am not his constituent. Trump will only provide governance for the people who directly voted for him and those who praise him. As for the rest of the nation, Donald Trump will only think of us when he can punish us for not bowing down before him. Like Puerto Rico, we are all on our own.
308
Great column. So many US voters talk with horror about the large Federal bureaucracy, but don't understand that when most government agencies simply go on doing their work as career civil servants during a change in administrations, that inertia allows the new administration time to change from "campaign mode" to "governing mode". It is clear that Trump/Pence will never leave campaign mode. Thus our only hope for a functioning federal government is the inertia of the career employees doing their work without leadership from political appointees; A mixed blessing given how the actual appointees of Trump have performed so far. There will be far too many "acting" whatevers in the Trump/Pence administration which means people doing jobs they may not be qualified, paid or hired to do.
As Ms. Goldberg emphasizes, the time has come for Trump/Pence to govern. They have had 9 months to get organized and get over their surprise at being elected. The US is lucky another 9/11 has not happened as it did for Bush II. But the prospect of Trump/Pence managing a recovery in Puerto Rico and VI with any competency is unlikely and untold human suffering has already occurred.
The idea that Trump/Pence can handle the complexities of nuclear North Korea is beyond comprehension. Trump might find a military conflict useful as the Mueller investigation continues is a real fear. The consequences of electing to the presidency an unfit man like Trump will be more obvious and serious soon.
77
No, wait. Trump has a three-level strategy for containing the danger of North Korean nuclear weapons: Hollow threats, ineffective sanctions, and insulting tweets. What's the worst that could happen?
Already Trump and Kim have found one common endeavor: undermine the US Dept of State.
7
My belief, as soon as Trump commented to Tillerson about the pointlessness of talking to N. Korea, is that he has already made up his mind to attack that nation and is simply waiting for an “appropriate” moment. Only a bully thinks that talk is “pointless.”
1
I'm waiting for Trump's negative comparison of Las Vegas citizens and their excellent response to the needs of the victims, to what he calls the unwillingness of Puerto Ricans to help themselves in the midst of the
destruction of their homes, their environment, their livelihoods, lack of food, water, transportation, medical care, electrical power, communication, etc.
He'll undoubtedly see it as a fair comparison.
19
Unfit yes but the only one we have .
1
for now, a period we need to make as short as possible...
1
America needs a mass exorcism, one that would begin with Trump and his lackeys being perp-walked out of the White House and into custody. We all know the current version of the GOP will never act against guns, just like we know the GOP will never aid any investigations into the stolen 2016 election.
If you're looking to fix blame for the Vegas atrocities, look no further than the Republican Party.
144
Jones Act revocation would not help clear Puerto Rico's roads. Jones Act had absolutely no effect on relief efforts for the first 10 days, as the Puerto Ricans could not even clear the roads to enable delivery of gasoline, foodstuff and water. Material piled up at the ports, in effect hitting a wall as there was absolutely no delivery system set up internally. Like Illinois, Puerto Rico suffers from generations of corrupt governance in which the island's electrical system is denied capital funding so that politicians can pay out largesse in "human services." Time to fix 'er up and flip it. Put money in and let them embark as a free and independent nation.
9
For years, the Jones Act has resulted in goods costing 40% or more than on the mainland, especially building materials. Continuation of the Jones Act will seriously hinder recovery on the island.
5
yes, the market plunged when investors saw that trump would be elected but then realized that nothing, not even trump, could stop obama's economic recovery.
104
Is the right immune to reality and sensible decision-making? I write this after Las Vegas, and before God-knows-what the next civil disaster will be, but I have lost hope. I think I care more for my fellow Americans than the President, and much of the Congress. How can they be so against the basic precepts that have made USA the shiny light for 200 years? I don't get it.
37
Indeed Trump has failed Puerto Rico. His two-week MIA act is no accident and was deliberately designed to broadcast a clear message of his upholding of bigotry to please his voter base. And to broadcast a middle finger to everyone else with at least a minimum modicum of human decency. By the same token, major natural disasters are complex endeavors and demand a long time for recovery, if recovery can ever be attained. Ask the people affected by Katrina, Sandy, Harvey and Irma. Many are still waiting for a miracle years after. What I am trying to say is that we can't lay Maria at Trump's feet since neither the shabby infrastructure of the island nor the island's bankruptcy nor the hurricane are his fault. With the withdrawal from the Paris Climate accord and with the upturning of environmental regulations, yes, future storms we can lay at his feet, perhaps. In any case, by using the dire situation our fellow American citizens in Puerto Rico find themselves in as red-meat fodder for his base, Trump has once again flagrantly failed our nation, the world, decency, and humanity. I am ashamed on his and our behalf. To end, Puerto Rico and Congress need to urgently resolve the political status of the island: let it join the union permanently as an equal or cut loose. It is more than obvious that the status quo has collapsed alongside the infrastructure and much more.
20
Oh so right you are.
Even a casual observer such as myself can see that the island should be at least partially evacuated, starting with small children and their parents, the elderly and infirm.
11
I'm not sure that mere incompetence is the sole reason for Trump's poor response to troubled Puerto Rico. I think his attention to the NFL is a double-winner for his base who I imagine is as loath to help Hispanics as they would be to help Colin Kaepernick to his feet after the anthem is over.
16
America should have the capability to give quick help to the people of Puerto Rico but is not using it. Why are the USAF tanker aircraft not running a shuttle service to get desperately needed fuel to the island? When the Russians isolated the British and American sectors after the war Berlin was kept going by airlift. If runway space is a problem the USAF solved that problem in the 1960's. A system was developed to drop all the parts of a runway including the men to build it from the air. I learned about this from an RAF pilot, involved in British trials, who was being trained to drop bulldozers by parachute to prepare the ground. The runway was surfaced with perforated aluminium sheets also air dropped.
Of course!! Trump is president.
15
The tanker idea sounds good, but those planes are not equipped to carry that kind of fuel. The carry jet fuel, and the tanks can not be contaminated with other kinds.
Good idea but not possible.
Almost as bad as these calamities themselves is the ordeal of having to listen to Trump quote scripture with all the absurdity and profundity of Jeffrey Dahmer reading a dinner menu out loud.
The animatronics at Disneyland are more realistic, and believable.
197
I was gagging, Ken. That speech was clearly written by someone else. 45 is godless and prayerless by his actions.
3
There is nothing wrong with a politician giving some thought about how his or her action in a specific situation will affect the political equation.
In matters of emergency, normal politicians take the action required to save lives and property, putting the best spin on things AFTER the requisite action has been taken successfully.
Donald Trump is not a normal politician or a normal person..
Trump’s action or inaction regarding the tragedy in Puerto Rico was predicated from the start with concern about his image. Trump, who is also very lazy, played golf while our fellow citizens in Puerto Rico were enduring unimaginable misery.
In effect, Donald Trump blamed the tragic events on the Puerto Rican people. Disgusting.
53
And yet, roughly 36% of the population still supports Trump. Maybe Trump was right after all. He could shoot someone on the street and not lose voters.
Whereas I don't agree with Ms. Goldberg's assertion that this is Trump's first real test - I believe he has failed many others including Charlottesville, the crisis in Puerto Rico demonstrates yet again how unfit and disgraceful both he and his administration are. And I am ashamed, yet again.
51
Well, Trump probably had to be reminded (and convinced?) that indeed Puerto Rico is part of the USA. After all, his favorite slogan is "America First."
4
If the message to Puerto Rican Americans was unsympathetic, the optics were even worse: Trump's tweet attacks on the mayor of San Juan--who was photographed in a life preserver standing in waist deep water helping others--were sent from the safety of his opulent golf club in New Jersey. Then in an act of unimaginable obtuseness, Trump helicoptered from Bedminister to Liberty National Golf Club--site of the President's Cup--to present the trophy to the winning American team while dedicating the victory to the victims of recent hurricanes. Wow! Mission Accomplishd!
82
the residents of puerto rico have been trying to escape the island for years; trump's lack of leadership will accelerate their abandonment and escape from the island. No one will want to live there anymore after seeing the US government fail them miserably.
3
Ms Goldberg's points are well taken. On every count she is correct. It is particularly the devastation in Puerto Rico that has blatantly and before the world revealed once and for all the decay of Trump's soul. We see it, millions see it. But the stock market is soaring; FOX news relentlessly defends, distracts, and diverts when it pertains to an inept and unfit president. The Republican Congress does nothing other than aid and abet, for lack of better words. And legions of those who elected Trump continue to support him and refuse to accept the fact that rather than make America "safer and better" he has threatened our health and welfare at every turn.
But here is the real problem. We talk, lament, and fret. But our words are just words. They are meaningless unless we continue to put pressure on, in particular, those individuals in Congress. This executive branch has lost all credibility. That leaves us with the legislative branch at the helm. They are now accountable, and we have the power, and votes, to make sure that they get this country back on the right track again.
490
But Congress with Republicans in charge is worse than Trump. Their eyes are fixed on one prize and one prize alone - tax cuts for the wealthy and absolute and total deregulation of all industries.
1
Well before the hurricanes PR was just like many of the poorest countries in the world. Their leaders bankrupted their land, and allowed its infrastructure to decline. The president is highly competent, as is his teams. Expecting a miracle is idiotic. Sure Obama or Hillary would emote a lot, but that does little to nothing to assist real people in reality.
13
The president and his team are NOT highly competent for all the reasons Ms Goldberg describes.
27
Perhaps you can provide us with some evidence of his high level of competence or at least that he has put competent people in positions of power. From the first day of his presidency, he hasn't even shown the ability to count and those Cabinet members or high level administrators that he has chosen raise more questions than their skills address.
16
Not sure the "leaders" were entirely responsible for the financial debacle in PR, any more than they were in Greece.
3
It’s pretty clear that hundreds of thousands of Puerto Ricans are going to have to take up residence on the mainland. Assuming that establishing residency entitles them to register to vote, we will have an augmented voter bloc hostile to the Republican Party. That would be the only good thing to come out of this.
321
Possibly, but why talk about this now, when people literally have no water or electricity?
6
This is precisely correct. Puerto Ricans who move to the he US can vote in the presidential election. I hope they all come, first to be safe, second to vote.
Trump has erred and lied about this situation.
7
Puerto Ricans ARE citizens of the United States. They may reside anywhere in the United States they choose. Once the residency requirements have been met, they may vote. There is no question of their being allowed to vote. They are citizens. Why is that so hard to understand?
6