'Disgraceful': Joe Biden Slammed For Refusing to Comment on Hawaii Wildfires That Killed 96 After Enjoying Day at Delaware Beach
Aug. 14 2023, Published 1:30 p.m. ET
President Joe Biden was slammed for refusing to comment on the catastrophic wildfires that engulfed Maui last week, RadarOnline.com has learned.
Thousands of Hawaiians were displaced from their homes after winds from Hurricane Dora in the Pacific fed flames. At least 96 people were killed and officials expect the death toll to rise as cadaver dogs were brought onto the island to search the charred historic city of Lahaina.
The Democrat president left Washington D.C. last week to spend the weekend on Rehoboth Beach in Delaware.
A White House correspondent reported on Twitter that when asked about the devastation in Maui, Biden had little to say and quickly dismissed the question.
"After a couple of hours on the Rehoboth beach, @potus was asked about the rising death toll in Hawaii," Bloomberg's Justin Sink posted on Twitter. "'No comment,’ he said before heading home."
Sink also included a photo of Biden and a large group lounging on the East Coast beach.
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Biden's comment — or lack thereof — was a shocking response given the level of heartbreak the tight-knit Maui community suffered.
While Biden moved quickly to declare the wildfires a major disaster, which kicked off federal relief aid, there has already been backlash over authorities' delayed response in the wake of the tragedy.
Worse for Biden was that his "no comment" remark while leaving Delaware wasn't the first time that he avoided the topic that weekend.
Earlier during the day on Sunday, after Biden enjoyed a leisurely bike ride, he was asked about the devastation on Maui.
"We’re looking at it," the commander-in-chief replied, offering little for grieving victims.
The statements were far from what the president told the country just a few days earlier when he vowed that "anyone who’s lost a loved one, or whose home has been damaged or destroyed, is going to get help immediately."
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While Biden appeared to dance around the subject, many celebrities with ties to Maui haven't had an issue addressing the heartbreak the island has endured.
Part-time resident Oprah Winfrey was seen with boots on the ground last week. The media mogul, who's recently purchased large swath of land on Maui was almost lost to the fires, met with displaced locals and found out what items they needed most to get them through these uncertain times.
Winfrey was later seen passing out donations to wildfire victims at a shelter on the island. Similar to Winfrey, longtime island resident and business owner Mick Fleetwood announced that while his Front Street restaurant was among the thousands of structures lost, the Fleetwood Mac co-founder was dedicated to helping the Lahaina community rebuild.
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