Just hours after President Trump criticized the San Juan Mayor for “poor leadership” after she begged for help from the government in the aftermath of Hurricane Maria, Lt. Gen. Jeffrey S. Buchanan toured the damage and pronounced, “This is the worst I’ve ever seen.â€
Watch the top general speaking to PBS NewsHour in an exclusive:
Buchanan, who is the Department of Defense’s primary military liaison with FEMA, said he is neither a Republican nor a Democrat.
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On Saturday he toured the damage on a helicopter ride going from San Juan to Ceiba and spoke to PBS NewsHour upon landing in Ceiba.
“Sometimes we don’t know what’s going to happen until the storm actually hits, and this is the worst I’ve ever seen,” Buchanan said.
This assessment flies in the face of the leaked talking points the Trump administration is trying to push.
President Trump has blamed the Mayor of San Juan and the Puerto Rican people for the failed response of his administration to the humanitarian crisis in Puerto Rico.
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