San Juan Mayor Carmen Yulin Cruz said that if the perfect “10” President Donald Trump gave his administration for its response to Hurricane Maria was right, it must be a 10 out of 100.
“If it is a 10 out of a scale of 100, of course, it is still a failing grade,” she said, speaking on CNN’s “New Day” on Friday.
Hurricane Maria devastated Puerto Rico on September 20.
The mayor, who has been an outspoken critic of the President, also accused him of living in his own world.
“I think the President lives in an alternative reality world that only he believes the things that he’s saying,” she said. “People … are still without electricity. We knew it was going to take a long time for that to happen, but the basic services are not there yet, and there doesn’t seem to be any sight of how it’s supposed to go.”
Trump gave the White House what he described as a perfect grade on Thursday, saying the agencies he controls had performed well in providing relief efforts, especially in the context of three destructive hurricanes within a short period of time.
“I’d say it was a 10,” Trump said during a White House meeting with Puerto Rico Gov. Ricardo Rosselló. “I’d say it was probably the most difficult — when you talk about relief, when you talk about search, when you talk about all of the different levels, and even when you talk about lives saved.”
But as of Thursday, only 21.6% of the island had power and 78.6% of its gas stations are up and running, according to an official website with updates on recovery efforts. Rosselló said Thursday morning that the death toll stood at 48 but it could change.
Last week, the House approved a $36.5 billion disaster relief bill in the wake of not only Hurricane Maria but the devastating hurricanes that hit Florida and Texas, as well as a string of wildfires out West. The bill awaits passage by the Senate.
Friday hardly marked the first time Cruz has criticized the President for his response to Hurricane Maria. Earlier in the month, she called Trump the “hater in chief” in a tweet responding to his suggestion that the federal government’s emergency responders couldn’t stay on the island “forever.”
The feud has gone back and forth. Ten days after the storm hit, Trump accused Cruz of “poor leadership” and suggested that the island’s residents were not doing enough to help themselves following the hurricane.
