Trey Pollard, trey.pollard@sierraclub.org
WASHINGTON, D.C. -- Last night, Senator Jeff Merkley revealed documents that show the Trump administration diverted $10 million meant for the Federal Emergency Management Agency to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement to fund more detention centers for asylum seekers.
These findings came hours after Trump falsely claimed he did a “great job” in response to Maria, days after the death toll in Puerto Rico from Maria was revised from 64 to 2,795, and hours before the massive category 4 Hurricane Florence is expected to hit the U.S. Southeast.
In response, Sierra Club Executive Director Michael Brune released the following statement:
"Our thoughts are with those in the path of Hurricane Florence, and we urge them to get out of harm’s way as quickly as possible. This is urgent, because we have clearly seen both the devastating effects of the violent storms made stronger by the climate crisis and the utter failure of the Trump Administration to respond to reality.
“A President who boasts of a response that led to the deaths of nearly 3,000 American citizens as a ‘success’ cannot be trusted to protect our communities. A President who diverts funds from disaster recovery to imprisoning immigrant children has made his contempt for communities of color obvious two times over -- in just this one instance -- cannot be trusted. And a President who ignores science and seeks to block efforts to help our country adapt to climate change cannot be trusted.
“Trump’s failure in Puerto Rico is a global scandal that is only made worse by his exploitation of that crisis to fund his sickening compulsion to tear apart immigrant families. This administration lacks all shame and compassion, and we deeply fear that it lacks the capacity to protect the families in Florence’s path. That is why we stand in full support of the first responders and hard-working officials on every level of government who are doing their best to respond to this massive, dangerous storm.”
About the Sierra Club
The Sierra Club is America’s largest and most influential grassroots environmental organization, with more than 3 million members and supporters. In addition to helping people from all backgrounds explore nature and our outdoor heritage, the Sierra Club works to promote clean energy, safeguard the health of our communities, protect wildlife, and preserve our remaining wild places through grassroots activism, public education, lobbying, and legal action. For more information, visit www.sierraclub.org.