Donald Trump wanted to sell Puerto Rico following Hurricane Maria: Report

US President Donald Trump considered selling Puerto Rico in the aftermath of the destructive Hurricane Maria in 2017, former acting Homeland Security Secretary Elaine Duke has told the New York Times

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Donald Trump | Puerto Rico | Hurricane Maria

IANS  |  Washington 

US President considered selling in the aftermath of the destructive in 2017, former acting Homeland Security Secretary Elaine Duke has told the New York Times.

In an interview with the newspaper on Friday, Duke said that "the president's initial ideas were more of as a businessman", Xinhua news agency reported.

"Can we outsource the electricity? Can we sell the island? You know, or divest of that asset?" Trump reportedly said, according to the New York Times interview.

Nonetheless, the idea of selling the US territory was never seriously considered or discussed after it was raised, Duke said.

struck in September 2017 and caused an estimated 2,982 fatalities and US $90 billion in damage, according to official data.

Trump has criticized Puerto Rican officials for their management of the relief fund that his administration provided for the island's recovery. In November 2018, White House officials told Congress that Trump didn't want any additional relief funding to the island.

--IANS

rt/

(Only the headline and picture of this report may have been reworked by the Business Standard staff; the rest of the content is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)

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First Published: Mon, July 13 2020. 09:35 IST