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 centre 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 Republican 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 queries about inadequate flood warnings “ridiculous”.
SEEING THE DAMAGE CLOSE UP
Prior to the roundtable, Air Force One landed in San Antonio and Trump deplaned in a suit while the first lady wore more casual clothing – although both wore ball caps against the heat.
The Trumps then boarded a helicopter to Kerrville and saw the flooding aftermath from the air. They later walked close to the Guadalupe River to receive a briefing from officials near an overturned tractor trailer, numerous downed trees and other debris.
Roads in the centre of town were shut down, and people lined the streets, some wearing Trump hats and T-shirts and waving American flags. Green ribbons recognising 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.”
Harris Currie, a rancher from Utopia, Texas, near Kerrville, said the flood devastation can be fully understood only by seeing it firsthand.
“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 major 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 criticised the administration of his predecessor, President Joe Biden, and officials from deep-blue California.
“The state of Texas, No 1, they do it right and they’ve done it right for a long time,” Trump said. “And it’s a very special place to me.”
