President Donald Trump on Friday toured the devastation from catastrophic flooding in Texas and lauded state and local officials, even amid mounting criticism that they may have failed to warn residents quickly enough that a deadly wall of water was coming their way.
Trump has repeatedly promised to do away with the Federal Emergency Management Agency as part of his larger pledges to dramatically shrink the size of government, and he's fond of decrying officials in Democrat-run states hit by past natural disasters and tragedy.
But the president struck a far more somber and sympathetic tone while visiting America's largest Republican state, highlighting the heartbreak of what happened while effusively praising elected officials and first responders alike.
"The search for the missing continues. The people that are doing it are unbelievable," Trump, seated with officials around a table with emblazoned with a black-and-white "Texas Strong" banner, said at a makeshift emergency operations center inside an expo hall in Kerrville.
He later added, "You couldn’t get better people, and they’re doing the job like I don’t think anybody else could, frankly."
Since the July 4 disaster, which killed at least 120 people and left more than 170 missing, the president has been conspicuously silent on his past promises to shutter FEMA and return disaster response to the states. Instead, he's focused on the once-in-a-lifetime nature of what occurred in central Texas' Hill Country and its human toll.
"We just visited with incredible families. They’ve been devastated," the president said of a closed-door meeting he and first lady Melania Trump had with the relatives of some of those killed or missing.
Trump’s shift in focus underscores how tragedy can complicate political calculations, even though he has made slashing the federal workforce a centerpiece of his administration’s opening months. He spent a lot of time Friday discussing the victims from Camp Mystic, the century-old all-girls Christian summer camp where at least 27 people were killed.
"They were there because they loved God. And, as we grieve this unthinkable tragedy, we take comfort in the knowledge that God has welcomed those little beautiful girls into his comforting arms in heaven," Trump said.
The first lady described meeting "beautiful young ladies" from the area who she said gave her a "special bracelet from the camp in honor of all the little girls that lost their lives."
"We are here to honor them," she said, promising to return to support the camp in the future.
Before arriving for his tour, Trump approved Texas’ request to extend the major disaster declaration beyond Kerr County to eight additional counties, making them eligible for direct financial assistance to recover and rebuild.
"All across the country Americans’ hearts are shattered. I had to be here as president," he said. "All the beautiful souls, and we’re filled with grief and devastation. This, the loss of life. And unfortunately, they’re still looking."
Trump also tried to steer away from partisanship, even saying at one point, "I don’t want to say politics" while still bragging about reducing the cost of eggs around the country.
He also still insisted his administration "is doing everything it can to help Texas" and "we’ve got some good people" running FEMA. That is nonetheless a far cry from his call mere weeks ago to begin "phasing out" FEMA.
At the White House, Russell Vought, director of the Office of Management and Budget, similarly dodged questions Friday about FEMA’s future. He said that the agency has billions of dollars in reserves "to continue to pay for necessary expenses" and that the president has promised Texas, "Anything it needs, it will get."
"We also want FEMA to be reformed," Vought said. "The president is going to continue to be asking tough questions of all of us agencies, no different than any other opportunity to have better government."
On the ground in devastated communities, meanwhile, some state and local officials have faced questions about how well they were prepared and how quickly they acted, including if warning systems might have given more people time to evacuate.
Asked about such concerns during his appearance at the operations center in Kerrville, Trump called a reporter "evil" and said he thought "everyone did an incredible job under the circumstances."
"I admire you, and I consider you heroes," Trump said of the officials around him.
He also praised a long list of Texas Republicans and had especially kind words for Rep. Chip Roy, who represents some of the hardest-hit areas. A staunch conservative, Roy initially opposed Trump’s sweeping tax-cut and spending package but ultimately supported it.
"He’s not easy, but he’s good," Trump said of Roy. The congressman, for his part, bristled at questions about authorities' flood response, calling the question about inadequate flood warnings "ridiculous."
The visit began with Air Force One landing in San Antonio and Trump deplaning in a suit while the first lady wore more casual clothing — though both wore ball caps against the heat. The Trumps then boarded a helicopter to Kerrville and saw the flooding aftermath from the air, before meeting with victims' families and first responders.
Roads in the center of town were shut down, and people lined the streets, some wearing Trump hats and T-shirts and waving American flags. Green ribbons recognizing the lives lost at Camp Mystic were tied around trees, poles and along bridges, and marquees featured slogans such as "Hill Country Strong" and "Thank you first responders."
Trump won Kerr County with 77% of the vote last year.
Harris Currie, a rancher from Utopia, Texas, near Kerrville, said the flood devastation can be fully understood only by seeing it first-hand.
"Pictures do not do it justice," Currie said.
Asked what officials on the ground needed most urgently from federal sources, Kerr County Commissioner Jeff Holt, who also is a volunteer firefighter, stressed the need for repairs to nonworking phone towers and "maybe a little better early warning system."
Trump himself has suggested that a warning system should be established, though few details have been offered on what that might eventually entail.
Friday's visit was far different from the other times the first couple visited natural disaster sites, during Trump's first weekend back in the White House in January. They toured North Carolina to scope out damage from Hurricane Helene and saw the aftermath of wildfires in Los Angeles, and the president sharply criticized the administration of his predecessor, President Joe Biden, and officials from deep-blue California.
"We’ll be helping you from Washington, DC, like no other president would," Trump said Friday. "The state of Texas, No. 1 they do it right and they've done it right for a long time. And it's a very special place to me."
