'Island the where you see...' Joe Biden forgets Maui's name after weeks of silence on the tragedy

U.S. President Biden finally broke his silence on the Hawaii wildfires on Tuesday, but he appeared to forget the name of Maui, the island that was most affected by the disaster. He also said that he usually likes to keep his speeches short, but he would make an exception for this occasion.

“The Army helicopters helped fire suppression efforts on the Big Island because there’s still some burning on the Big Island — not the one that, not the one where you see on television all the time,” he said, confusing Hawaii, which is also known as the Big Island, and Maui.

The president faced harsh criticism for spending Sunday on the beach and saying “no comment” when reporters asked him about the fires. The wildfires have killed at least 99 people so far, making them the deadliest in the US in more than a century.

Biden was speaking in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, where he was supposed to promote his economic agenda. However, he deviated from his prepared remarks on the teleprompters and mentioned Hawaii.

“I apologize because I try very hard to keep my speeches between 15 and 18 minutes, but I got to talk a little bit about Hawaii,” Biden said.

The 80-year-old then described the federal assistance that was being provided to the victims of the wildfires, including a one-time grant of $700 from FEMA. He also praised the efforts of the Coast Guard, Navy, and Army in helping with rescue and fire suppression operations.

Biden said that he and his wife Jill planned to visit Hawaii as soon as possible, but he did not give a specific date. He said that he did not want to interfere with the ongoing recovery efforts and that he wanted to make sure that Hawaii had everything it needed.

“My wife Jill and I are going to travel to Hawaii as soon as we can,” he said. “That’s what I’ve been talking to the governor about. I don’t want to get in the way. I’ve been to too many disaster areas. But I want to go make sure we got everything they need. Want to be sure we don’t disrupt the ongoing recovery efforts.”

Biden’s lack of attention to the natural disaster had drawn comparisons to former President George W. Bush’s response to Hurricane Katrina in 2005, when he was widely criticized for praising FEMA’s performance while locals were suffering from the aftermath of the storm.

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The president's “no comment” on Sunday angered some of his own supporters, including former Hawaii lawmaker Kaniela Ing, who tweeted: “I campaigned for you. Now, when I lose dozens of my friends, family, and neighbors. This?”

White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre also made some embarrassing mistakes on Monday when she tried to defend Biden’s handling of the situation. She mispronounced the names of both of Hawaii’s Democratic senators, calling Sen. Mazie Hirono “Harino” and using “he” instead of “she” for her. She also called Sen. Brian Schatz as “Senator Shorts, Shwots, Sharts, Schatz.”

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