Trump's Puerto Rico tweets spark backlash

[Yo_Mama_Been_Loggin]

Trump roiled Democrats and Republicans alike on Thursday with a pair of tweets alleging that Democrats inflated statistics on the number of people killed by hurricanes last year in Puerto Rico.

"3000 people did not die in the two hurricanes that hit Puerto Rico," Trump tweeted. He went on to claim, without evidence, that the number was purposefully exaggerated by Democrats "to make me look as bad as possible."

Link to tweet

Link to tweet

Both parties were quick to push back on the president's claim. Among those who issued statements were Gov. Rick Scott (R) and Rep. Ron DeSantis (R), two of Trump's staunchest defenders in Florida who are both currently running for office.

"I disagree with [the president] - an independent study said thousands were lost and Gov. [Ricardo] Rosselló agreed. I've been to Puerto Rico 7 times & saw devastation firsthand. The loss of any life is tragic; the extent of lives lost as a result of Maria is heart wrenching," Scott tweeted on Thursday afternoon.

http://thehill.com/homenews/administration/406523-trumps-puerto-rico-tweets-spark-backlash?userid=229233

[jberryhill]

1. My Goodness, but he is a dumb one

Over a large population, the rate at which people die is pretty steady. X number of people are going to fall down the stairs, Y are going to have a heart attack, Z are going to commit suicide, and so on. These numbers don't just jump around wildly at random.

It's almost a no-brainer to look at the time period involving Maria and its aftermath and calculate the number of excess deaths.

[eleny]

2. He doesn't understand simple cause and effect

It's like denying that anyone who died from the effects of radiation well after the bombs dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki had nothing to do with the bombings.

Tillerson was right when he called Trump an f*****g idiot.