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Photo: Alamy

Joe Biden has received harsh criticism for his response to the Hawaii wildfires, and he recently defended his choice to not visit destroyed Maui by stating, “I don’t want to get in the way.”

According to the Washington Times, Biden expressed this Tuesday that he plans to visit “soon.”

He spoke about talking to the governor and noted, “I’ve been to too many disaster areas, but I want to go and make sure they get everything they need.”

Hawaii Gov. Josh Green is also facing pushback after making statements about allowing the state to “acquire land” in the aftermath, per the Post Millennial.

He made the announcement Monday, stating, “I’m already thinking of ways for the state to acquire that land so that we can put it into workforce housing, to put it back into families, or make it open spaces in perpetuity as a memorial to the people who were lost.”

The Post Millennial report also noted that he did clarify the meaning of state-acquired land attempts in a later press conference. He said, “I will try to allow no one from outside our state to buy any land until we get through this crisis and decide what Lahaina should be in the future.”

Just how residents will “get through the crisis” and which outsiders will be allowed to buy land after the cleanup remains to be seen. 

President Trump released a video criticizing Green’s and Biden’s responses on Monday, per RSBN.

He said, “Our government was not prepared, and very importantly, the aftermath is going very poorly with the governor of the island wanting to do nothing but blame it on global warming—and other things that just happen to pop into his head.”

Turning Point USA founder and CEO Charlie Kirk suggested on X that Trump travel to Hawaii in light of Biden’s absence.

He said, “Trump should go to Maui. Bring relief and aid with him. Beat Biden to it. The President will show the way to lead.”

Trump should go to Maui. Bring relief and aid with him. Beat Biden to it. The President will show the way to lead.

— Charlie Kirk (@charliekirk11) August 14, 2023

But due to President Trump’s current legal battles, it is unclear whether or not he is legally allowed to travel outside of the continental U.S.

Wednesday, Biden posted on X that he and his wife plan to visit Maui on Aug. 21.

Jill and I will travel to Maui on Monday, August 21 to meet with first responders, survivors, and federal, state, and local officials.

I remain committed to delivering everything the people of Hawai’i need as they recover from this disaster.

— President Biden (@POTUS) August 16, 2023

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