Trump offers excuse for Puerto Rico while bragging about ‘A+’ response: ‘It’s an island in ... a big ocean’

President Donald Trump bragged about the federal response to hurricane damage in Puerto Rico while also citing geographical inaccuracies to excuse government failures.

The U.S. territory is on the brink of a humanitarian crisis after Hurricane Maria devastated the island last week, and Trump spent the weekend complaining about NFL players instead of directing relief efforts.

"The mayor of San Juan was very nice this morning, thanking us for the great job we've done with FEMA," Trump said Tuesday during a news conference. "We really have -- we've worked very, very hard in Puerto Rico. It's very tough because it's an island. In Texas, we can ship the trucks right out there and we can do -- we've gotten A-pluses on Texas and on Florida, and we will on Puerto Rico. But the difference is it's an island, sitting in the middle of an ocean."

JUST IN: Pres. Trump says he plans to go to Puerto Rico next Tuesday; discusses federal disaster response. https://t.co/skPepPVRp0

— NBC Nightly News (@NBCNightlyNews) September 26, 2017