Trump hopes for quick recovery
President greets hurricane victims in visit to Houston
President Trump said the “wonderful” recovery from Hurricane Harvey would be “a hopefully quick process” after he arrived in Houston on Saturday to tour damage caused by the Gulf Coast storm.
Trump and his wife, Melania, mingled with victims as they visited the NRG Center, one of Houston’s designated emergency refuge areas. The president helped serve lunch, handing out hot dogs in white containers with the Red Cross logo.
Trump said the families with whom he spoke at the center seemed happy.
“It’s been very nice. It’s been a wonderful thing. It’s — as tough as this was, it’s been a wonderful thing,” Trump said. “I think even for the country to watch and for the world to watch. It’s been beautiful.
“There’s a lot of water, but it’s mov-
“It’s — as tough as this was, it’s been a wonderful thing.” President Trump
ing out. Most importantly, the governor, the relationship with the governor, the mayor and everybody, it’s been fantastic,” Trump told reporters while touring the relief center. “We’re signing a lot of documents now to get money,” and it’s “going through a hopefully quick process.”
Speaking at First Church in Pearland, Texas, Trump said the coordination between local, state and federal government officials was “terrific.” Texas Gov. Greg Abbott, Texas Sen. Ted Cruz and four Cabinet secretaries joined the president on stage.
“You got a lot of hardworking people, I’ll tell you that,” Trump said. The Trumps met more storm victims in Louisiana.
Shortly after arriving in Houston, Trump took to Twitter to underscore his commitment to rebuilding efforts: “We are with you today, we are with you tomorrow, and we will be with you EVERY SINGLE DAY AFTER, to restore, recover, and REBUILD!”
Hurricane Harvey is Trump’s first natural disaster as president and could be the costliest natural disaster in U. S. history.
The trip is his second to Texas since the hurricane made landfall. On Tuesday, Trump visited Corpus Christi and Austin to meet with local officials, drawing some criticism for failing to mention the victims of the storm.
Vice President Pence later visited the area with his wife, Karen, to meet directly with survivors and underscore the administration’s commitment to rebuilding the affected communities.
On Saturday, Trump made his way through a relief center and, with television cameras in tow, crouched to engage with children while hugging others and shaking hands.
On Friday, Trump asked Congress for $ 7.9 billion in emergency spending to help Texas and Louisiana recover from the flooding disaster.