On Tuesday's edition of CNN's "Anderson Cooper 360," San Juan Mayor Carmen Yulín Cruz fiercely rebuked President Donald Trump for complaining about how much disaster aid Puerto Rico is getting.
"We say to the president of the United States, will his lie ever end?" said Cruz. "Will that ever end? Will his racism and vindictive behavior towards the people of Puerto ever end? As you have said, this is not how a president behaves. This is not how a human behaves in the face of adversity. I have to thank the American people, because once again, they have stepped up to the plate."
"Let me ask you, because you brought up the president and people should know, you have a past with him," said anchor John Berman. "You've been critical. You called him vindictive before, you call him vindictive right now, and you referred to Hurricane María as Trump's Katrina. Reaction to the death toll, you said his administration 'killed the Puerto Ricans with neglect.' So what is your exact reaction to his latest tweet where he keeps on saying $92 million — $92 billion has been appropriated?"
"The president continues to express lies, because the truth really does not suit him," said Cruz. "As you said, it is not $92 billion ... It's close between $12.6 and $14 billion that's come to Puerto Rico and still, things have not worked appropriately. Things continue to change. Different attitudes and different laws and restrictions are brought upon Puerto Rico that are different from any other jurisdiction."
"However I have to say it appears, it appears that FEMA has learned some of the lessons from the past from Irma and Maria," added Cruz. "I got off the phone with Alejandro de la Campa, and it appears they have, you know, 3.2 million liters of water. They have five warehouses there in Puerto Rico. He told me that they have around 200,000 blue tarps. So it seems like some people have learned the lessons of the past, or are willing to say that they didn't do right by us the first time, and they're trying to do their best."
"That is not the case with the president of the United States," said Cruz flatly. "We are not going to be concerned by, frankly, his behavior, his lack of understanding, and it is ludicrous. 3,000 Puerto Ricans did not open their eyes this morning because this racist man did not have it within him to do his job. So get out of the way, President Trump, and let the people that can do the job get the job done."
Watch below:
