Puerto Rico

Hurricane Trump

Hurricane Maria is one of the best examples that prove Donald Trump was a disaster of a president, wasn’t prepared for the job, wasn’t qualified for it, and had no interest in serving anyone other than himself. Donald Trump’s pettiness in dealing with the disaster that hit Puerto Rico was only topped by his pettiness in dealing with the disaster of the coronavirus.

When Hurricane Maria hit Puerto Rico, Donald Trump wasn’t aware that the island was a U.S. territory or that it was even an island. He didn’t know the island had a governor and instead, tried to call Puerto Rico’s president. Unfortunately for Puerto Rico, and the rest of us, its president at the time was Donald Trump (sic).

In 2021, a report by the Department of Housing and Urban Development Office of Inspector General confirmed that the Trump administration blocked around $20 billion of congressionally-approved disaster relief from reaching Puerto Rico, and then blocked the investigation that was trying to find out why the aid was being blocked.

After the hurricane hit, Trump went to Puerto Rico and tossed out paper towels to victims. He then returned to Washington and told top officials in his administration “that he did not want a single dollar going to Puerto Rico.” He would later downplay the number of deaths from the hurricane which is what he later did with COVID.

Trump and his administration crafted talking points about there being too much corruption in Puerto Rico to send them disaster relief. It wouldn’t surprise me if Trump wasn’t trying to find a way to skim off some of that disaster relief for himself. He should’ve looked into funneling it through Brett Favre. It’s believed that Trump attempted to funnel the money toward his useless racist border wall he promised Mexico would pay for.

Donald Trump really hates brown people.

Florida and Texas were also hit by hurricanes in 2017 but the Trump administration didn’t block any funding for those Trump-voting states. Puerto Rico can’t vote in presidential elections.

By the time HUD released its report, Puerto Rico had received about $19 billion of $69 billion that the government allocated for the island. It took President Biden to start releasing the rest of it.

Trump feuded with officials in Puerto Rico, specifically the mayor of San Juan, Carmen Yulín Cruz. When Hurricane Florence was approaching the territory in 2018, Trump reignited his feuds with the island tweeting, “We got A Pluses for our recent hurricane work in Texas and Florida (and did an unappreciated great job in Puerto Rico, even though an inaccessible island with very poor electricity and a totally incompetent Mayor of San Juan). We are ready for the big one that is coming!”

Over 3,000 people died from the effects of Hurricane Maria, yet Trump and his administration repeatedly denied the facts and claimed the true total was only 64.

Cruz tweeted, “Pres Trump thinks loosing [sic] 3,000 lives is a success. Can you imagine what he thinks failure looks like?” Like he does with most women he feuds with, Trump called the mayor “nasty.”

Trump managed to make it all about him like he did with the pandemic, and like he’s doing with the documents he stole.

Trump claimed the stolen government documents he stole “are mine, not theirs.” He’s yet to explain why he took them or which ones he supposedly declassified. He’s yet to offer any proof of declassification and today, it’s something his lawyers are struggling with.

And in New York, the state is suing the Trump Organization for fraud and is seeking to bar Trump and his three oldest children, Jr, Eric, and Ivanka, from ever doing business in the state again. She’s also referring criminal charges to federal prosecutors.

Donald Trump is a grifter. His business, presidency (sic), and life have been nothing but a con. His cons have destroyed lives. People have died from the results of his cons. Donald Trump has never been a successful businessman but he’s a hugely successful con man.

Lock him up.

Music note: I listened to The Black Keys album “El Camino” while drawing today’s cartoon.

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Tossers For Trump

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After Hurricane Maria hit Puerto Rico in 2017, Donald Trump went to the island and threw paper towels at the victims.

To say Donald Trump wasn’t prepared for the hurricane would be an understatement. A response wasn’t prepared until after the damage. Supplies, boats, and rescue personnel weren’t organized until after. Trump didn’t even know the people were American citizens, that he was their president, or that Puerto Rico was even an island until afterward.

During the paper towel trip, Trump berated the victims saying, “I hate to tell you, Puerto Rico, but you threw out budget a little out of whack.” He told the victims they didn’t have a real catastrophe because it wasn’t like larger hurricanes that other presidents had to deal with. Afterward, he refused to accept that the death toll is nearly 3,000. He’s lied repeatedly about how much has been appropriated and spent on the recovery. To make matters worse, he engaged in feuds with the politicians of the island, calling them “corrupt.”

As Hurricane Dorian headed for Puerto Rico this week, Trump didn’t just tweet out concern for the citizens who are still recovering from Maria. He complained about having to spend government money on the island with, “Will it ever end?” He told the people that they should be thankful for the help, “not like last time,” and continued his feud with the mayor of San Juan (if you’re a Republican, San Juan is the capital of Puerto Rico), calling her “incompetent.” Then, he tweeted, “And by the way, I’m the best thing that’s ever happened to Puerto Rico!”

Puerto Rico was mostly spared and now Dorian is headed toward Florida. Did Trump start complaining about how much we may have to spend on hurricane relief for the state or start lobbing insults at the governor? Of course not.

Florida is a red state. The governor is a Republican. Trump won Florida and he’ll probably win it again as the state rejected the intelligent and eloquent Andrew Gillum for racist Ron DeSantis in 2018.

Trump praised DeSantis and even canceled a planned trip to Poland. Of course, neither Trump or DeSantis are mentioning that Trump has pulled funds away from FEMA to increase spending on punishing immigrants.

Trump likes to compare himself to President Obama, so let’s do that. When Hurricane Sandy hit New Jersey in 2012, President Obama didn’t complain about how much we’d have to spend on the recovery. He didn’t insult the citizens. He didn’t deny how big the storm was or how much damage was inflicted. He didn’t accuse the governor of having an eating disorder and call him a “fatty, fat, fat, fat.” Obama, like presidents before him, responded in a presidential manner. But maybe there’s something else that will drive Trump to give a presidential response to Dorian hitting Florida.

There’s more to Florida than just electoral votes or a population that’s not entirely made up of brown people. It contains two of his properties. Trump loves his properties. He mentions them every chance he gets. He visits them every chance he gets, spending over a quarter of his time as president at his golf resorts, driving on the green, cheating at golf, crashing weddings, eating chocolate cake, letting guests pose with the nuclear football, etc. Fun, fun. He’s even promoted his properties as president and has proposed his Doral club as the location for the 2020 G7 summit. He’s used the presidency to grift as much cash as he can into his resorts and hotels. It’ll be hard to do that if a hurricane wipes them out.

I’m not wishing for a hurricane to hit Florida. I’m not even hoping for a very precise strike that’ll only hit Mar-a-Lago and Trump Doral. But if it does, I’ll send paper towels.

Then, after sending paper towels, I can say, “I’m the best thing that’s ever happened to Donald Trump.”

Support the cartoonist.

As I noted in a previous cartoon, these are perilous times for political cartoonists. But you can help me continue to create cartoons, blogs, and videos by making a contribution. All support, large and small, is greatly appreciated. You can also support me by purchasing a signed print (8 1/2×11) for $40, or a signed poster (18×24) for $100 by clicking the PayPal button (just include a note if you’re purchasing a print). If you want to support but don’t want to use PayPal, you can send a contribution through the mail (address is on the contact page. Again, include a note for a print).I don’t plan on going anywhere and your support will help guarantee that. Whether you support, can’t. or just choose not to, please know that I am truly thankful that you visit my site and read my work.

You can purchase a signed print of this cartoon.

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Blackface Meets Rickyface

cjones07292019

Let’s recap. Last February, 35-year old photos emerged of what appeared to be Virginia’s governor, Ralph Northam, in blackface at a frat party standing next to someone in a Ku Klux Klan robe. The governor apologized for wearing blackface at the party, then later said he didn’t recall attending that party in blackface but did recall entering a moonwalk contest wearing blackface. Then, his wife had to stop him from physically performing the moonwalk for the press. Then, it was revealed the state’s attorney general, Mark Herring, had also once wore blackface. The state looked for salvation from it lieutenant governor, Justin Fairfax, whose face actually is black, until he was hit with accusations of committing rape…twice.

There were calls for resignations for all three men. Today, nearly six months later, all three still have their jobs.

Granted, there weren’t massive protests in the streets of Richmond requiring police to fire tear gas and rubber bullets into the crowd (most Virginians would have to know who their leaders are first), but maybe Puerto Rico’s governor, Ricardo Rossello, can take small comfort from Virginia’s leaders. Or not.

Puerto Rico’s 3.2 million people, who don’t have voting representation in Congress or a vote in presidential elections, have been suffering from heavy debt, bankruptcy, hurricanes, unemployment, economic restructuring, congressional-imposed austerity measures from a Congress they can’t vote for, and corruption for years. Now, the release of nearly 900 pages of transcripts of Telegram messaging app chats involving the governor and 11 of his friends and advisers may be the straw that broke the camel’s back for Puerto Ricans.

The chats display the arrogance of what many call a “bro” culture of elites. They joked about making chumps out of their own supporters, ridiculed an obese man, a gay pop star, and several women.

Now, hundreds of thousands of the island’s citizens have been protesting in the streets and in front of the governor’s mansion demanding Rossello’s resignation. The governor has promised to quit the leadership of his party, the New Progressive Party, and not to run for re-election in 2020 as if he stood any chance of winning anyway. That’s not good enough for Puerto Ricans as thousands, many flying in from the mainland, are demanding his resignation.

Appearing on Fox News, the governor was unable to name one Puerto Rican who supported him continuing as governor. He did name one mayor, but that mayor later denied supporting the governor.

Donald Trump, who has been feuding with the governor over disaster relief (and lying about it), accused him of being corrupt, which is like the time he accused someone else of sexual harassment, or yesterday when he accused other people of racism. Trump and Rossello have one thing in common. They both won their jobs with a minority of the vote. The majority of their constituents don’t want them.

Rossello says he’ll be able to focus on his job since he won’t be running for re-election. But, how can he focus on his job when there are thousands of people outside his house screaming for his resignation? I have a hard time working when someone’s doing laundry outside my door.

Puerto Rico is frustrated and they have every right to be. Washington treats them like an unwanted stepchild, the president seems confused over whether he’s president of Puerto Rico and only recently learned it’s an “island surrounded by water,” and the governor is mocking them while the majority of them live in poverty.

Virginia’s governor might have worn blackface, but Puerto Rico’s governor has a face no one wants to see anymore.

Support the cartoonist

As I noted in a previous cartoon, these are perilous times for political cartoonists. But you can help me continue to create cartoons, blogs, and videos by making a contribution. All support, large and small, is greatly appreciated. You can also support me by purchasing a signed print (8 1/2×11) for $40, or a signed poster (18×24) for $100 by clicking the PayPal button (just include a note if you’re purchasing a print). If you want to support but don’t want to use PayPal, you can send a contribution through the mail (address is on the contact page. Again, include a note for a print).I don’t plan on going anywhere and your support will help guarantee that. Whether you support, can’t. or just choose not to, please know that I am truly thankful that you visit my site and read my work.

You can purchase a signed print of this cartoon.

Watch me draw.

No Collusion/No Compassion

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I drew this cartoon for CNN’s opinion Newsletter. Please check it out and sign up to receive them in your email every Sunday. It’ll help me to continue drawing for them and buy luxuries like sandwiches.

That the Trump administration is full of heartless ogres, henchmen, troglodytes, goons, and squirmy, creepy icky bastards is about as shocking as Joe Biden making a woman feel uncomfortable, which is about as shocking as Donald Trump walking into a teenage girls’ changing room. He’s that guy who says “knock knock” after he’s 20 feet into the room and has already taken seven Polaroids.

After having a great week of not going to prison, Donald Trump was challenged to mess it up. He said, “Hold my Covfefe” and started ANOTHER initiative to repeal and replace Obamacare. I’m sorry. Did I say “repeal and replace?” There is no replacement. It’s just “repeal,” as kick your grandmother off her insurance and watch her die. Obama never had a death panel despite Sarah Palin’s claims, but the entire Trump administration is just one big angel of death. We’ve been waiting over nine years for the Republicans to propose an alternative to Obamacare other than noternative.

Trump has promised the best insurance, the cheapest, the greatest, the bestiest bestest where everyone is covered, even with pre-existing conditions. We’ve yet to see it. If they really had a great replacement, I’d like to see it. If it actually was better then I’d want it. Republicans have created this myth that they’re great with finances, budgets, and managing money…but they’ve actually proven it. They’ve only proven they don’t care about you.

Since Trump was on a roll of positivity, he went to the Senate to gloat over the Barr Memo’s summation of the Mueller Report not forcing Trump to spend the next seven years eating nutraloaf. While there, Trump complained about all the money Puerto Rico has received to recover from Hurricane Maria…that they actually have not received. Puerto Rico has only received about eleven billion, yet Trump claims they’ve gotten over $90. It’s like his penis. He greatly exaggerates to an unbelievable size. Fortunately, we don’t need Stormy Daniels to tell us his size on Puerto Rico is only in his dreams.

Too late for this cartoon, but on Thursday night at a hate rally in Michigan, Trump promised to shut down the border with Mexico. The man has ripped families apart, thrown babies in jail, forced babies to represent themselves in immigration court, won’t even allow people to apply for amnesty, and then after detaining thousands and thousands of immigrants, he dumps them on cities near the border. He has the gall to claim there’s a crisis. The only crisis and national emergency in this situation is Donald Trump. Is asshole a pre-existing condition? Because nobody assholes better than Donald Trump.

Finally, we come to Betsy.

Betsy DeVos testified before Congress without her Dalmatian fur coat and defended cutting the government’s funding of the Special Olympics. What kind of monstrous ghoul cuts funding for the Special Olympics? Did I mention the coat?

After three days of being beaten up in the media, Trump came to the rescue and said he was overruling his people and the Special Olympics will be funded. Hooray for pussygrabber.

There’s a theory that this was planned to make Trump look like a hero. I doubt this as plans aren’t really Trump’s strong suit. It’s like words that just fall out of his mouth without any thought beforehand what they may be. Oh look, there’s a “covfefe.”

It is plausible that Trump didn’t know about the cuts, because there’s a lot of shit he doesn’t know about…but they were a part of his budget. Oh yeah, he doesn’t read. But…this is their third time to try to cut the Olympics fundings. What also shows it’s a lie is that Betsy DeVos tweeted out that she and the president agreed to save the funding for the Special Olympics and she is so happy over this…which is about as believable at her joy when she discovers her coat isn’t from real Dalmatians and instead is from rabid possums. Oh, joy.

Here’s the thing, kids. Trump did not save the Special Olympics funding. Since Congress appropriates funding, Congress would have had to agree. In case this is your first day, the House is controlled by Democrats. Hell, Trump wasn’t even able to get the cuts when Republicans were controlling the House. The GOP might be dumb enough to vote for Trump, but even they wouldn’t cut the Special Olympics.

But, there was one piece of positive news for the administration this week. Trump finally got a dog. It’s a dalmatian.

Be Complicit

What kind of person would want to be part of something that disparages, slanders, and disrespects Dear Leader and his sycophantic followers? Hopefully, you. 
Making a contribution supports my work and keeps the cartoons, columns, and videos coming. My income is from newspapers that subscribe to my work and small contributors. George Soros hasn’t sent me a million dollar check in weeks. Making a contribution of any amount, or buying a print for $40.00, makes you part of this specific resistance, and a member of Team Claytoonz (we’re still working on the name). You are complicit, an accomplice, and in cahoots (and whatever gangster terms we can think of) with this political satire pointing out that the stupid emperor has no clothes. Contributions can be made through PayPal, checks, and wads of cash exchanged in back alleys.
Whether you can help support, can’t, or just choose not to, please continue to enjoy and keep reading my work. Thank you!!! 

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Making Trump Look Bad

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At this point, devotees and true believers of Kim Jong Un, the guy who they believe can talk to dolphins and doesn’t poop, are looking at Trump supporters and saying “damn.”

We all know Trump lies, I mean most us know it. But, damn. Not only does Trump lie, he takes it to despicable levels where he disrespects the dead and their survivors.

Trump is now claiming that 3,000 people did not die in Puerto Rico from Hurricane Maria.

Instead of focusing on the hurricane that’s currently hitting the Carolinas, Trump is still arguing about the “unsung success” that was his response to the two hurricanes that hit Puerto Rico a year ago.

In two tweets, Trump said, “3000 people did not die in the two hurricanes that hit Puerto Rico. When I left the Island, AFTER the storm had hit, they had anywhere from 6 to 18 deaths. As time went by it did not go up by much. Then, a long time later, they started to report really large numbers, like 3000. . . . This was done by the Democrats in order to make me look as bad as possible when I was successfully raising Billions of Dollars to help rebuild Puerto Rico. If a person died for any reason, like old age, just add them onto the list. Bad politics. I love Puerto Rico!”

Democrats did not fabricate a death toll to make Trump look bad. The count actually comes from a study conducted by The Milken Institute of Public Health at George Washington University. If they had actually counted deaths in Puerto Rico the way Trump accuses, the total would be around 16,000.

Trump’s statement was so horrible, that several Republicans almost criticized him for it.

The very first problem I have with Donald Trump is that he’s a liar. I’m a journalist so facts are important to me. Sure, all politicians lie, but Trump tells the truth about as often as other politicians lie. I believe we deserve better than a president who challenges facts so much and lies to us. What puzzles me is that Trump’s supporters don’t believe they deserve better, and maybe they’re right. But we do.

The second problem on the extremely long list of problems with Trump is that he’s heartless and focused only on himself. While aides are bringing in giant colored graphs and charts to keep his focus on Florence explaining how “big” and “wet” it is (because he needs pictures more than words), he’s still busy screaming at the mayor of San Juan, which is easy for him because she’s a she and Hispanic. His denial of the death toll perfectly illustrates how little Trump cares about others, and how much he cares about himself.

And, after those two problems with Trump, we can add all the others, like the stupidity, the corruption, the stealing from charities, the nepotism, colluding with Russia, the racism, the sexism, porking porn stars, lusting for his daughter, etc., take your pick. Donald Trump is a smorgasbord of awfulness.

With Trump’s supporters the way they are, why should Trump stop at denying the death toll? They’ll believe anything he says. He can tell them there wasn’t a hurricane. There’s not even a place called Puerto Rico. It’s just fictional like Namibia or the United Shtates. Why, the media, under Obama’s leadership, concocted Puerto Rico just to make Trump look bad. The entire Deep State is in on it. The hurricane was faked like the moon landing and the Access Hollywood tape. In fact, if 3,000 people did die in Puerto Rico, Ted Cruz’s dad killed them before Trump started liking Ted Cruz.

If you don’t believe him, just ask the dolphins. They’ll also tell you that he never poops.

Your support in the form of donations is appreciated. I am fully independent as I’m not employed by a newspaper or with a major syndicate (leaving one to be independent). It does take a lot of work to provide you with cartoons, columns, and videos almost every day (more than any other political cartoonist), and I don’t charge my clients much at all. If you can, please consider making a financial contribution to keep the fun flowing, or purchase a signed print for $40. Whether you can help support, can’t, or just choose not to, please continue to enjoy and keep reading my work. Thank you!!!

You can purchase a signed print of this cartoon.

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Go With The Flo

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If you are near the coastline in North Carolina, South Carolina, or Virginia, keep in mind while Hurricane Florence is approaching that Donald Trump believes he did a bang-up job with Puerto Rico.

While meeting with the director of FEMA, Trump told reporters, “I think probably the hardest one we had by far was Puerto Rico because of the island nature, and I actually think it was one of the best jobs that’s ever been done with respect to what this is all about. He continued, saying that Puerto Rico’s power grid was in “very bad shape” and that the U.S. territory was in “bankruptcy” before Hurricanes Maria and Irma hit last year. “I think that Puerto Rico was an incredible, unsung success,” he said.

Keep in mind, Hurricane Maria led to the deaths of nearly 3,000 Americans in Puerto Rico which would make it the second-deadliest hurricane in American history. This, for a president who refuses to believe in facts, qualifies as an “unsung success.” What else remains unsung in the Trump administration is Climate Change.

Don’t worry too much about the government not being ready this time, even though Trump won’t admit it wasn’t ready last time. Sure, Trump was surprised to learn the governor of Puerto Rico was not the president of what he later learned was an island, but he’s much more up to speed this time as he told reporters that this hurricane is “very big and wet.”

I feel better.

We also just learned that FEMA only gave 75 people funeral assistance, approving aid for just three percent of the 2,431 requests the agency received. Trump has called the situation in Puerto Rico not a “real catastrophe like Hurricane Katrina,” probably because that happened during another administration.

Another tidbit to keep in mind as Flo storms toward the Carolinas and Virginia is that FEMA just had $10 million diverted from its budget to Immigration and Customs Enforcement. What does ICE need the funds for? The official request stated it was for “higher priority detention and removal requirements.” That means baby jails. Diverting a huge chunk of FEMA’s budget at the start of hurricane season is a move made by people with the lack of compassion and empathy it takes to rip immigrant families apart.

While George W. Bush will be forever linked to Iraq and Katrina, Trump will have hurricanes and baby jails. His Democratic successor will have the rebuilding everything Trump destroyed.

While evacuating to escape Hurricane Florence, you won’t be blamed if you’re tempted to keep evacuating until you’re out the country.

Your support in the form of donations is appreciated. I am fully independent as I’m not employed by a newspaper or with a major syndicate (leaving one to be independent). It does take a lot of work to provide you with cartoons, columns, and videos almost every day (more than any other political cartoonist), and I don’t charge my clients much at all. If you can, please consider making a financial contribution to keep the fun flowing, or purchase a signed print for $40. Whether you can help support, can’t, or just choose not to, please continue to enjoy and keep reading my work. Thank you!!!

You can purchase a signed print of this cartoon.

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Puerto Rico Death Toll

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Mollie Tibbetts was a student at the University of Iowa who disappeared on July 18, 2018. Her body was found a month later and the suspect in her murder is a 24-year-old Mexican in this country illegally.

Conservatives have played this up as an argument for Trump’s racist border wall and for stronger anti-immigration policies.

The suspect was an employee at Yarrabee Farms, owned by Craig Lang, a prominent Republican in Iowa. As part of his employment, he was allowed to live rent-free on the farm’s property. The Lang family claimed they had vetted his immigration status through the E-Verify program. After that agency indicated Yarrabee Farms did not subscribe to the E-Verify program, they changed their story and said they had checked with the Social Security Administration and that the immigrant had given them false information on his status.

Donald Trump has played this up, much like he has with the murder of Kate Steinle. Mike Pence and other Republicans have piled on. The Tibbetts family has asked them to stop politicizing it.

Karin Housley, a Republican candidate for the U.S. Senate in Minnesota said, “liberal Democrats are more concerned about protecting criminal aliens than protecting innocent lives like Mollie Tibbetts.” That’s politicizing it. Tibbetts’ cousin told political commentator Candace Owens, “stop being a fucking snake and using my cousin’s death as political propaganda.” Of course, none of these conservatives are attacking the Republicans who illegally employed the accused murderer.

At Mollie’s funeral, her father said, “The Hispanic community are Iowans. They have the same values as Iowans. As far as I’m concerned, they’re Iowans with better food.”

Trump stated, “A person came in from Mexico illegally and killed her. We need the wall, we need our immigration laws changed, we need our border laws changed.” If one death should spark change, then 3,000 should demand it.

When Hurricane Maria hit Puerto Rico, Donald Trump was tweeting about NBA player Steph Curry not wanting to visit the White House. He waited two weeks to visit the island (which he helpfully informed us is “an island surrounded by water”). The two weekends before his visit, he was playing golf. When he finally did visit, he claimed the hurricane only killed 16 people, and he threw paper towels at survivors.

It took eleven months for power to be restored to Puerto Rico. You didn’t hear much from Trump on the subject except for how great of a job he did and that any blame should fall on the local leaders.

Trump didn’t pay any attention to Puerto Rico before Maria hit, and he hasn’t paid much more since. Trump thought the governor of Puerto Rico was the president of the island. On the day the government raised the death total to nearly 3,000, Trump said, “I think we did a fantastic job in Puerto Rico … I think most of the people in Puerto Rico really appreciate what we’ve done.” Nobody, especially the president of the United States, should believe that 3,000 deaths are a “fantastic” job.

I wouldn’t expect Trump to take blame, but at the very least he could promise to do better. He’d admit the government dropped the ball or didn’t do enough. Instead, in pure Trumpian obtuseness and fashion, he wants credit for a great job that never happened because he’s our “favorite president.” He stated, “it’s been incredible the results that we’ve had with respect to loss of life.” From there, he’s turned it into a culture war as he’s feuded with the mayor of San Juan, who has two qualities of his favorite bullying targets, being Hispanic and female.

We should be outraged by the murder of Mollie Tibbetts. One untimely death is too many. So are 3,000. We should demand change to prevent future deaths from psychopaths.

I suggest we make a change at the top.

Your support in the form of donations is appreciated. I am fully independent as I’m not employed by a newspaper or with a major syndicate (leaving one to be independent). It does take a lot of work to provide you with cartoons, columns, and videos almost every day (more than any other political cartoonist), and I don’t charge my clients much at all. If you can, please consider making a financial contribution to keep the fun flowing, or purchase a signed print for $40. Whether you can help support, can’t, or just choose not to, please continue to enjoy and keep reading my work. Thank you!!!

You can purchase a signed print of this cartoon.

Watch me draw.

Kilauea

cjones06082018

On September 11, 2001, my mother called me freaking out and afraid that terrorists were going to fly airplanes into my apartment. I live 50 miles from the Pentagon, but for mom, that was still too close. She passed away in 2002 but would have lost her mind if she had seen the events of the D.C. Sniper which spread to my town later that year (and just a few miles from the apartment spared by al Qaeda). So, I know if she was still alive, and I was still living on Oahu, which is about 200 miles from the Kilauea Volcano, she’d still be worried red-hot molten lava would be flowing through my bedroom window.

Kilauea was erupting when I lived on Oahu in 1997-98. It’s been erupting since 1983. To put it in perspective, The Police released Every Breath You Take, toured the world, broke up, bickered for nearly three decades, reunited for another world tour, and broke up again during the time of Kilauea’s current eruption. Sting’s solo album The Dream of the Blue Turtles was a larger tragedy than Kilauea.

The islands of Hawaii were created by volcanoes. The Big Island (how locals refer to island of Hawaii) has five volcanoes with three of them classified as active. Kilauea isn’t even the largest. The volcano’s eruption is changing the shape of the island by the minute, though the spots of eruptions and lava flows have fluctuated over the years. Last month, a new eruption started in lower Puna after a 5.0 earthquake. A 6.9 earthquake hit the next day, and 27 houses were destroyed within five days. Thankfully, no lives have been lost.

Hawaii knows how to take these things in stride. They’ve made a tourist attraction out of the erupting volcano.

All this brings an important question. Does the president know Hawaii is a part of the United States? It’s a good question because he was surprised to learn Puerto Rico was a part of our nation, that it’s an island, and islands are things surrounded by water. He once referred to the governor of the territory as the “president of Puerto Rico,” not realizing that he is the “president” of Puerto Rico.

I’m really glad Kilauea isn’t killing people yet, because Hawaii is also an island (several), and they too are surrounded by water (what a coincidence). And, there are a lot of dark people in Hawaii. My concern is that Trump would disregard a disaster there much in the same way he’s casually dismissed the death toll in Puerto Rico from Hurricane Maria.

Trump believes Maria killed 64 people, which is somehow a great personal achievement for him that the toll was lower than hurricane deaths during other presidential administrations. The New York Times estimates the death toll at 1,065. Other researchers have put the number roughly at 4,600. But, math is hard. Trump is still trying to open that big envelope Kim Jong Un sent him.

Puerto Rico and Hawaii are obviously not shithole countries. But, I’m not sure they’ll continue to elude that designation…as long as Donald Trump remains president over them.

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Putrid In Puerto Rico

cjones10182017

In addition to being without electricity, phone service, and internet for the majority of the citizens of Puerto Rico, access to clean water is extremely limited. For many Puerto Ricans, the water they do have access to is dangerous, and even life-threatening.

Since Hurricane Maria hit the island (which is a part of the United States and the people there are American citizens, Republicans), many people are drawing water from Superfund sites.

What many of those drawing water from these sites, like the Dorado Groundwater Contamination Superfund site, don’t realize is that the water is toxic. Drinking water from these sources can lead to liver disease and high risks of cancer. The local government has already attributed four deaths caused by drinking the water. Some residents have reported extreme stomach pains.

How are the residents supposed to know the water they’re drinking is toxic when they can’t get information? Most probably aren’t aware the president has expressed more concern over kneeling football players than starving Puerto Ricans.

Donald Trump has blamed the limited access to water on local authorities and said distribution efforts shouldn’t be the military’s job. Trump, who has responded like a baby with a full diaper to criticism of his response to the crisis, has warned Puerto Rico that the federal government can’t stay and help them forever. He’s made comments about the islands poor electrical grid before the storm, how Puerto Rico needs to figure out their debt situation, and that Puerto Ricans need to help themselves. How empathetic.

Democratic Bennie Thompson of Mississippi wants the Department of Homeland Security to investigate reports that people are drinking contaminated water. I’m not sure what that investigation will solve, as we already know people are drinking toxic water. We are aware the federal government is doing a lousy job helping the people of Puerto Rico.

The federal response to aid Puerto Rico has been atrocious. The U.S. Navy hospital ship, Comfort, arrived on October 3, thirteen days after the hurricane hit the island. Today, half the beds on the ship lie empty. So far, 48 deaths have been attributed to Maria.

There should be visible signs of improvement to an area three weeks after it has been hit by a hurricane. Not people dying, calls for investigations, and still trying to figure out how to respond better. The president shouldn’t be threatening to bail on American citizens within three weeks of a natural disaster.

Trump has done his best to contaminate the entire nation with his orange toxins. Now people are dying from Trumpism.

I want to thank everyone who has donated in the past. Your support helps me continue creating cartoons and columns with a little less stress in my life. Between competing syndicates with much larger resources, timid editors, and Trump supporters who attempt to intimidate the editors who do publish anything that criticizes their idol, it’s a challenge to make a career out of this. So your support (if you can) is appreciated. Want to help me continue to create cartoons and keep doing what I’m doing (pissing off conservatives)? Look to the right of this page and make a donation through PayPal. Every $40 donation will receive a signed print. All donations will receive my eternal gratitude.

Quicker-Picker-Upper-In-Chief

cjones10062017

Donald Trump has thrown more paper towels than any other president before him. Not even Roosevelt threw paper towels as tremendous and absorbent as the ones Trump threw.

Bill Clinton would go to the site of a tragedy and hug victims. George W. Bush climbed on top of a pile of rubble where dead bodies were still being searched for and declared, “we heard from those responsible and soon they’ll hear from us.” Barack Obama went to the African-American church where a racist shot up the congregation and sang “Amazing Grace.”

Donald Trump goes to Puerto Rico and throws rolls of paper towels to the victims. He berated them, saying “I hate to tell you, Puerto Rico, but you threw our budget a little out of whack” (ignoring his huge tax cut for the rich, his increased military spending, and his plans to spend billions on a useless border wall). He gets into a tiff with the mayor of San Juan (because he really doesn’t like being questioned by a woman, especially if she’s a minority woman). He accused Puerto Ricans of not helping themselves and wanting everything done for them. He informs the victims that they didn’t have a real catastrophe, like Katrina (because worse disasters happen to other presidents?). He told officials they should be “proud” of a death toll that stood in double digits instead of thousands. He spends the bulk of his four-hour visit telling everyone how much he’s being complimented.

Who could have foreseen that a TV reality show host would be terrible at dealing with a national disaster that turned life upside-down for over three million Americans? How do you deal with Trump’s failures with disaster relief (and life in general) if you’re a Trump sycophant? Oh yeah…those paper-towel throws. Woo-hoo! Over here, Cheeto McGrabberson. I’m open!

Folks in Puerto Rico may not have electricity, food, water, phone service, cash, fuel, etc…but if they spill something, they’re all set.

Trump did not prepare for the hurricane. Supplies were not stockpiled before the storm hit. Supplies, boats, and people weren’t organized to respond until after. There has been a lack of coordination. Last Thursday, over 10,000 shipping containers that had been delivered were still in port.

Yes. As Donald Trump has informed us, Puerto Rico is an island surrounded by water, big water, ocean water. Yet, this is a nation that conducted the invasion of Normandy, Iwo Jima, Okinawa, and is threatening to destroy North Korea, all locations across oceans and “big water.”

It’s not that Trump is un-presidential and embarrassing. He’s a disaster whose job is to deal with disasters. He did not want to become president because he had a broad vision for this nation. He became president to promote his brand and feed his ego. Unfortunately, 62 million Americans fell for the con. Trump needs to quit and let the adults take over now. Americans are dying from natural disasters and from mass shootings, meanwhile, he’s throwing paper towels.

Insiders say that Trump didn’t pay attention to Puerto Rico for a week because he lost interest. It probably took the criticism of a minority woman on the island to gauge his interest, because Trump loves a fight…especially with a woman.

Throwing paper towels is Trump’s way of being consoler-in-chief. It beats having to hug the great unwashed masses in times of their peril. They may have germs.

I want to thank everyone who has donated in the past. Your support helps me continue creating cartoons and columns with a little less stress in my life. Between competing syndicates with much larger resources, timid editors, and Trump supporters who attempt to intimidate the editors who do publish anything that criticizes their idol, it’s a challenge to make a career out of this. So your support (if you can) is appreciated. Want to help me continue to create cartoons and keep doing what I’m doing (pissing off conservatives)? Look to the right of this page and make a donation through PayPal. Every $40 donation will receive a signed print. All donations will receive my eternal gratitude.