Trump suggested selling Puerto Rico in response to Hurricane Maria, says former Cabinet official

A former cabinet official has revealed that President Donald Trump suggested that one response to the devastation of Puerto Rico by Hurricane Maria would be to sell the US territory.

Elaine Duke, who served as Mr Trump’s second secretary of Homeland Security when John Kelly was promoted to chief-of-staff, recalled the president’s initial reaction in an interview with The New York Times this week.

“The president’s initial ideas were more of as a businessman, you know,” she said. “Can we outsource the electricity? Can we sell the island? You know, or divest of that asset?”

In his time in office, the president has also suggested buying Greenland from Denmark or trading the Arctic territory for Puerto Rico.

Ms Duke clarified that the idea of selling Puerto Rico was never seriously considered or discussed after it was raised, and that the president had shown concern for the suffering of the island’s people after the disaster.

[link to www.independent.co.uk (secure)]

When in crisis, sell the people and the territory