Puerto Rican Miguel Juan Munoz said on Tuesday in Charleston, South Carolina, outside of the Democrat debate venue, he survived Hurricane Maria in 2017 even as President Donald Trump’s efforts to help the U.S. territory were thwarted by government corruption.
“Hurricane Maria in 2017, I was there,” Munoz told Breitbart News. “And let me tell you. It was catastrophic.”
“But President Trump was sending aid and the Puerto Rican government was stealing it, hiding it from people,” said Munoz, who left the U.S. territory to resettle in the states one month after the hurricane.
“They stole $74 billion dollars with a “B” and the people back home, they blame President Trump,” Munoz said. “It’s time for Puerto Ricans to come out and join President Trump and apologize for blaming him for the hurricane and whatever happened.”
Munoz said infrastructure on the island was already dysfunctional before the hurricane.
“Let me tell you the water company, the power company, before the Hurricane Maria never worked before,” Munoz said.
“They don’t fix nothing; they don’t take care,” Munoz said. “They only pocket the money of the American people.”
“And that’s not fair and they are still blaming President Trump,” Munoz said.
He also said the claim that 4,000 people died in inaccurate.
“That is not true,” Munoz said. “They are looking for more money.”
Munoz, who was wearing a Trump baseball cap, said his fellow Puerto Ricans have an option if they unhappy on the island.
“This is my country, this is their country and they can come over here to survive if they want to,” Munoz said.
A White House fact sheet reveals how much money went to Puerto Rico for recovery and how much is still pending:
- The Federal Government has allocated over $40 billion for Puerto Rico disaster recovery and could spend up to $91 billion, far exceeding funding for States hit by other recent disasters.
- Puerto Rico currently has access to $1.5 billion in Community Development Block Grant Disaster Recovery funds and the Department of Housing and Urban Development has approved an action plan for an additional $8.2 billion.
The fact sheet also documents the corruption taking place on the island, including in the government and public utilities. Videos have also surfaced of huge stashes of supplies languishing in warehouses.
A warehouse of supplies was discovered today in Ponce, Puerto Rico by a man who did a Facebook live showing people what's inside. The video went viral & the govt responded, defensively.
Here's what we know & don't know, as of now.
Here's the Facebook live: https://t.co/mj7lkgpuDW pic.twitter.com/aSzSvPy6pl— David Begnaud (@DavidBegnaud) January 18, 2020
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