President Joe Biden is preparing to go away at the end of this week while he has yet to announce plans to visit Hawaii in the wake of the wildfires.
A news release regarding Biden’s schedule for the upcoming week showed the president had plans to depart from Camp David on Friday for Lake Tahoe after returning from Rehoboth Beach, Delaware, this past weekend.
“The President will travel from Camp David to Lake Tahoe, Nevada, where he will remain until the following Thursday,” the news release said.
President Biden plans ritzy Lake Tahoe vacation next week while refusing to take questions on devastating fire that killed 10 that has killed nearly 100 Americans https://t.co/WvMlEHB3Wy pic.twitter.com/EwJjsskW1n
— Daily Mail US (@DailyMail) August 14, 2023
The news release from the White House noted Biden would be going to Camp David to welcome South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol and Japan’s Prime Minister Kishida Fumio to the Camp David Trilateral Summit.
Biden’s upcoming schedule comes after a reporter asked him on Sunday, as he was leaving Rehoboth Beach, for a comment on the rising death toll from the fires on Hawaii’s Big Island and Maui. The president allegedly could be seen by lip readers saying, “no comment.”
His alleged no comment on the death toll, which is currently reported to be at 99, according to Hawaii News Now, received criticism from people on X, formerly known as Twitter.
While biking in Rehoboth Beach, Biden was also asked if he and First Lady Jill Biden would visit Hawaii to which he said, “We’re looking at it,” according to the Daily Mail.
During a press conference on Monday, White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre defended Biden’s comment and said Biden would address the tragedy in Hawaii during his upcoming travel to Milwaukee, Wisconsin, this week, according to The Washington Post.
“You’ll hear from the president,” Jean-Pierre said. “This is something that the president is deeply concerned about.”
Jean-Pierre noted Biden has been communicating with Hawaii Gov. Josh Green (D), Hawaii Sen. Mazie Hirono (D), and Deanne Criswell, the head of the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), according to the outlet.