Fresh questions have been raised about Trump's health and age after he appeared to not hear a question from a reporter about the Texas floods.
Answering questions quickly before hand, one reporter asked the US President about federal cuts in relation to the devastating Texas floods.
“Democrats are blaming your federal cuts for the deaths over in Texas,” the reporter asked.
The president leaned in to hear better but then waved off the question. He said: "I can't hear you," as he moved on to the next reporter.
Questions about Trump's age remain after he became the oldest person ever inaugurated as President earlier this year.
Later another reporter asked a similar question, about whether the cuts to the National Weather Service left residents vulnerable, both Trump and Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick, who accompanied him, shook it off.
The President attempted to deflect blame saying: “They didn’t. I’ll tell you: You look at that water situation, that was really the Biden setup. That was not our setup. But I wouldn’t blame Biden for it either. I would just say this is a hundred-year catastrophe, and it’s just so horrible to watch.”
The National Weather Service has said it conducted forecast briefings and issued warnings hours before the floods came.
“Flash Flood Warnings were also issued on the night of July 3 and in the early morning of July 4, giving preliminary lead times of more than three hours before flash flooding conditions occurred,” a spokesperson said.
On Thursday the National Weather Service advised of potential flooding and then sent out a series of flash flood warnings in the early hours of Friday before issuing flash flood emergencies — a rare alert notifying of imminent danger.
Authorities and elected officials have said they did not expect such an intense downpour, the equivalent of months’ worth of rain for the area.
Kerrville City Manager Dalton Rice said authorities are committed to a full review of the emergency response.
Trump, asked whether he was still planning to phase out the Federal Emergency Management Agency, said that was something “we can talk about later, but right now we are busy working.” He has said he wants to overhaul if not completely eliminate FEMA and sharply criticized its performance.
Trump also was asked whether he planned to rehire any of the federal meteorologists who were fired this year as part of widespread government spending cuts.
“I would think not. This was a thing that happened in seconds. Nobody expected it. Nobody saw it. Very talented people there, and they didn’t see it,” the president said.
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Age concerns as Trump 'can't hear' difficult question on Texas floods as he blames 'Biden setup' – Irish Star
