{"id":165678,"date":"2023-08-21T23:41:31","date_gmt":"2023-08-22T06:41:31","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/new.thepinetree.net\/?p=165678"},"modified":"2023-08-21T23:41:31","modified_gmt":"2023-08-22T06:41:31","slug":"president-biden-paying-respects-to-the-lives-lost-in-maui-and-reaffirming-his-commitment-to-supporting-residents","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/new.thepinetree.net\/?p=165678","title":{"rendered":"President Biden Paying Respects to the Lives Lost in Maui and Reaffirming His Commitment to Supporting Residents"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>Lahaina, HI&#8230;Well, hello, people of Maui. You\u2019ve shown such absolute, incredible courage, and that\u2019s not hyperbole. I want you to know, on behalf of the United States of America and all the nation, the American people stand with you.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/new.thepinetree.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/369876425_633251908988933_112411147752406257_n-1.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone wp-image-165680\" src=\"https:\/\/new.thepinetree.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/369876425_633251908988933_112411147752406257_n-1.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" srcset=\"https:\/\/new.thepinetree.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/369876425_633251908988933_112411147752406257_n-1.jpg 2048w, https:\/\/new.thepinetree.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/369876425_633251908988933_112411147752406257_n-1-300x200.jpg 300w, https:\/\/new.thepinetree.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/369876425_633251908988933_112411147752406257_n-1-1024x683.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/new.thepinetree.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/369876425_633251908988933_112411147752406257_n-1-768x512.jpg 768w, https:\/\/new.thepinetree.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/369876425_633251908988933_112411147752406257_n-1-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/new.thepinetree.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/369876425_633251908988933_112411147752406257_n-1-570x380.jpg 570w, https:\/\/new.thepinetree.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/369876425_633251908988933_112411147752406257_n-1-701x467.jpg 701w, https:\/\/new.thepinetree.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/369876425_633251908988933_112411147752406257_n-1-1067x711.jpg 1067w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"President Biden Delivers Remarks on the Maui Wildfires\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/2TWp4cs0qLI\" width=\"640\" height=\"360\" frameborder=\"0\" allowfullscreen=\"allowfullscreen\"><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p>Governor Josh Green, you\u2019ve been incredible. From the day we\u2019ve spoken on this, you\u2019ve been way ahead of the curve. Lieutenant Governor Sylvia Luke; Brian Schantz [Schatz], our senator; Senator Mazie Hir- \u2014 by the way, Mazie, I told my granddaughter, whose name is Maisy as well \u2014 she said, \u201cThat\u2019s why I like her.\u201d (Laughter.) Anyway. But her name is Maisy as well.<\/p>\n<p>And \u2014 and Jill To- \u2014 Tokuda, Representative Ed Chase, and Mayor Rick Bassen [Bissen]. Rick, when we talked on the phone, I never \u2014 you look like you played in defensive tackle for \u2014 I don\u2019t know who, but somebody good. But, anyway, I want to thank you for your leadership in this unimaginable \u2014 during this unimaginable travedy \u2014 tragedy.<\/p>\n<p>To my left is the banyan tree beloved by this community for over 150 years here in the former capital of the Kingdom of Hawaii, that has stood for generations as a sacred spot of exceptional significance.<\/p>\n<p>One of the people who took me under his wing when I first got to the Senate was Danny Inouye. He used to talk about \u2014 used to talk about the Kingdom of Hawaii. He was J- \u2014 came from Japan, but it was amazing to listen to him.<\/p>\n<p>Today, it\u2019s burned, but it\u2019s still standing. The tree survived for a reason. I believe it\u2019s a powerful \u2014 a very powerful symbol of what we can and will do to get through this crisis. And for this \u2014 for as long as it takes, we\u2019re going to be with you \u2014 the whole country will be with you.<\/p>\n<p>You know, we will be respectful of these sacred grounds and the traditions that rebuild the way the people of Maui want to build, not the way others want to build. We\u2019re going to rebuild the way the people of Maui want to build.<\/p>\n<p>But, you know, it\u2019s going to be hard. America\u2019s deadly wildfire \u2014 deadliest wildfire in over a century.<\/p>\n<p>And Jill and I have what\u2019s left of \u2014 walked Front Street, what\u2019s left of it. We\u2019ve surveyed the damage from the air as well. The devastation is overwhelming.<\/p>\n<p>To date, 114 dead. Hundreds of people are unaccounted for.<\/p>\n<p>I remember when I got the call \u2014 my first wife and daughter \u2014 I was a young senator, and I got a call in Washington. I hadn\u2019t been sworn in yet. I wasn\u2019t old enough. And I was hiring staff in the Capitol in Teddy Kennedy\u2019s office. And I got a phone call saying \u2014 from my fire department, and a young first responder kind of panicked and said, \u201cYou\u2019ve got to come home. There\u2019s been an accident.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>I said, \u201cWhat happened?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>He said, \u201cYour wife, she \u2014 she\u2019s dead. Come home. Come home.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>A tractor-trailer had broadsided her and killed her in a car accident along with my little daughter. And \u2014 and I remember all the way down from Washington home wondering what a lot of people here are wondering: What about my two boys? How are they? They were in the car. I never got a read on that. Were they going to be all right or badly injured? Were they going to make it? Had they made it? It wasn\u2019t until I walked into the emergency room, and I saw that they were there.<\/p>\n<p>The difference between knowing somebody is gone and worrying whether they\u2019re available to come back are two different things.<\/p>\n<p>You know, and I \u2014 I remember one of the people who helped me the most was Danny Inouye. He helped bring me back. So I know the feeling that \u2014 as many of the people in this town, this community, that hollow feeling you have in your chest like you\u2019re being sucked into a black hole, wondering, \u201cWill I ever \u2014 will I ever get by this?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>You know, it\u2019s one thing to know, but it\u2019s quite another thing to have to wait, to wonder whether your family members are going to be okay.<\/p>\n<p>Imagine being a parent wondering where your child is \u2014 where he is. I remember, as I said. You know, press reports of grandfathers crying for lost neighbors while trying to be strong for the ones who survived. Of a woman distributing clothing to survivors who says she didn\u2019t lose her home, but she lost her hometown.<\/p>\n<p>But I also want all of you to know the country grieves with you, stands with you, and we\u2019ll do everything possible to help you recover, rebuild, and respect culture and traditions when the rebuilding takes place.<\/p>\n<p>My administration has been in constant contact with the governor and congressional delegation and local leaders. As soon as I got the governor \u2014 governor\u2019s request, I signed the master \u2014 the major disaster declaration that mobilized the whole-of-government response, which means whatever you need, you\u2019re going to get.<\/p>\n<p>For example, the Coast Guard and Navy immediately supported maritime search and rescue operations, while the Army helped fire suppression.<\/p>\n<p>Here\u2019s what \u2014 here\u2019s what we\u2019ve been doing since. First, we focused on search and rescue, which is still going on. Right now, there are over 450 search and rescue experts working around the clock.<\/p>\n<p>Second, I\u2019ve identified FEMA\u2019s Administrator Griswell [Criswell] to lean forward, as she always has done, to help survivors get immediate aid. FEMA has quickly provided 5 \u2014 55,000 meals, 75,000 liters of water, 5,000 beds, 10,000 blankets. We\u2019re working to help remove the debris, repair roads, and restore power.<\/p>\n<p>Additionally, my Department of Homeland \u2014 of Housing and Urban Development is working with the state to make sure survivors can move from emergency shelters into temporary housing to finally have a permanent place to call home as well.<\/p>\n<p>The Small Business Administration is making low-interest federal disaster loans available to Hawaiian businesses \u2014 many of them you see here \u2014 burned to the ground; homeowners and renters; and nonprofits.<\/p>\n<p>If you need help, you can visit FEMA\u2019s disaster recovery center at Maui College or go to DisasterAssistance.gov \u2014 DisasterAssistance.gov.<\/p>\n<p>Today, I\u2019m appointing Bob Fenton, who\u2019s here \u2014 where are you, Bob?<\/p>\n<p>MR. FENTON: I\u2019m right here, sir.<\/p>\n<p>THE PRESIDENT: There he is. I\u2019m appointing Bob Fenton as our Chief Federal Response Coordinator for Maui to lead our long-term recovery work. He\u2019s one of the nation\u2019s most experienced disaster response and recovery experts in America, and I\u2019m dict- \u2014 I\u2019m directing him to make sure the community has everything \u2014 everything the federal government can offer to heal and to rebuild as fast as possible.<\/p>\n<p>And we\u2019re focused on what\u2019s next. That\u2019s rebuilding a long \u2014 long-term \u2014 rebuilding for long-term and doing it together to help get us back on our feet, to rebuild the way we want to rebuild by making sure your voices are heard, by respecting your traditions, by understanding the deep history and meaning of this sacred ground and establishing your community, not to change it \u2014 its character, but to reestablish it.<\/p>\n<p>We\u2019re also going to bring the capabilities to help you rebuild so your critical infrastructure is more resilient in the future. All this matters.<\/p>\n<p>Let me close with this. From stories of grief, we\u2019ve seen so many stories of hope and heroism, of the aloha spirit. Every emergency responder put their lives on the line for \u2014 to save others.<\/p>\n<p>Everyday heroes, neighbors helping neighbors, Native Hawaiian leaders offering solace and strength.<\/p>\n<p>And this banyan tree. One called it the diamond in the rough of hope. Another referred to \u2014 \u201cFire cannot reach its roots\u201d is what he said. \u201cFire cannot reach its roots.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>That\u2019s Maui. That\u2019s America. And to the people of Hawaii, we\u2019re with you for as long as it takes, I promise you.<\/p>\n<p>May God bless all those we\u2019ve lost. May God find those who we haven\u2019t determined yet. And may God bless you all. And may God protect our troops.<\/p>\n<p>Now I\u2019m going to \u2014 happy to turn this over to the governor, Governor Green.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Lahaina, HI&#8230;Well, hello, people of Maui. You\u2019ve shown such absolute, incredible courage, and that\u2019s not hyperbole. I want you to know, on behalf of the United States of America and all the nation, the American people stand with you. Governor Josh Green, you\u2019ve been incredible. From the day we\u2019ve spoken on this, you\u2019ve been way [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":165679,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_cbd_carousel_blocks":"[]","jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[20,5,1,13],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-165678","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-featured","category-government","category-news","category-traffic-fire","last_archivepost"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/new.thepinetree.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/369876425_633251908988933_112411147752406257_n.jpg","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/new.thepinetree.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/165678","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/new.thepinetree.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/new.thepinetree.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/new.thepinetree.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/new.thepinetree.net\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=165678"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/new.thepinetree.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/165678\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":165681,"href":"https:\/\/new.thepinetree.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/165678\/revisions\/165681"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/new.thepinetree.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/165679"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/new.thepinetree.net\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=165678"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/new.thepinetree.net\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=165678"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/new.thepinetree.net\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=165678"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}