Puerto Rico governor slams Trump, seeks swifter storm recovery
SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico (AP) — Puerto Rico's governor pledged on Wednesday to lift the U.S. territory from a deep recession by creating more jobs, reversing a migration exodus and implementing a range of incentives as the island struggles to recover from Hurricane Maria.
During a nearly two-hour state of the commonwealth address that followed a brief power outage at the seaside Capitol, Gov. Ricardo Rossello also said he plans to hold a yes-or-no referendum on statehood. He also criticized President Donald Trump's response to Maria, a Category 4 storm that hit September 2017 and caused more than an estimated $100 billion in damage.
"As Americans, Puerto Ricans deserve a swift recovery from Hurricane Maria. It's been over a year after the catastrophic event. We are still waiting for the disbursement of most of the funds already allocated by Congress," Rossello said briefly in English before resuming his address in Spanish.
The governor said his administration has faced several obstacles amid hurricane recovery efforts, including what he called unfair conditions imposed to obtain federal funds and a hostile attitude from some federal officials.
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