House Republicans plan to examine the Biden administration’s response to the deadly wildfire in Maui, House Oversight Committee chairman Rep. James Comer, R-Ky., said Wednesday.
President Biden faced heavy criticism for his slow response to the wildfire, and many Maui residents have said the federal government did little to support them after the blaze. More than 110 people died in the tragedy, and search efforts are still ongoing.
“The response by federal, state, and local officials to the catastrophic wildfire in Maui raises serious questions and Americans, especially those impacted by this tragedy, deserve answers,” Comer said Wednesday. “As recovery efforts continue, the House Oversight Committee has a responsibility to ensure taxpayer dollars are being used efficiently and effectively.”
“To minimize the risk of waste, fraud, and abuse of taxpayer dollars, the Oversight Committee will examine the federal government’s response in Maui and work with other committees of jurisdiction to ensure accountability,” he added.
Fox News Digital reached out to the White House and the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) for comment, but they did not immediately respond.
Critics blasted Biden for refusing to acknowledge the fire earlier this month, telling a reporter he had “no comment” on the then-rising death toll while on vacation in Delaware.
The president and first lady Jill Biden did not visit the island until more than a week later on Aug. 21. There, he made another misstep by comparing the deadly wildfire to a kitchen fire in his home.
“I don’t want to compare difficulties, but we have a little sense, Jill and I, of what it was like to lose a home,” Biden said during his visit. “Years ago, now 15 years, I was in Washington doing ‘Meet the Press.’ … Lightning struck at home on a little lake outside the home. Not a lake, a big pond. It hit the wire and came up underneath our home, into the … air condition ducts.
“To make a long story short, I almost lost my wife, my ’67 Corvette and my cat,” he said.
HAWAII DEMOCRAT SAYS BIDEN’S ‘NO COMMENT’ ON WILDFIRES ‘SHOCKING’: ‘I WOULD EXPECT MORE’
Residents also complained of a lagging response by FEMA, though the White House says it was working with Hawaii Gov. Josh Green throughout the crisis to provided anything needed.
