Coconino News

A column authored by Arizona Sen. Jake Hoffman was published Aug. 21, in which he openly voiced criticism of the Biden administration. In the column, he highlighted their failure to allocate sufficient funding to assist the victims of the Maui wildfire, all the while having provided billions to Ukraine.

"Federal assistance to now-homeless Hawaiians was $700 per household," Hoffman wrote. "This is from the same government that has sent over $100 billion to Ukraine, in many cases with little or no accountability on how it is spent. This insults the Hawaii survivors."

The town of Lahaina on the island of Maui was ravaged by a wildfire on Aug. 8, resulting in the destruction of 3.5 square miles of land. The tragic event has already led to the loss of 114 lives, with the potential for this number to increase as recovery operations continue. Over 1,000 are still reported as missing. The wildfire is said to have been fueled by intense drought conditions and wind gusts reaching speeds of up to 67 mph, according to NBC News.

Criticism has been directed toward the Biden administration for its apparent lack of concern regarding the Maui wildfire disaster. The administration has faced backlash for refraining from commenting on the situation on multiple occasions and for not visiting the island until nearly two weeks after the incident occurred. Furthermore, the relief efforts have come under scrutiny as FEMA provided "one-time payments of $700 per household to help assist survivors with immediate essentials, including clothing, food and transportation," according to USA Today.

The Biden administration's criticized response and assistance shortfall have been linked to the substantial financial support sent to Ukraine in the past year. In total, the United States has allocated over $111 billion in aid to Ukraine, with a focus on "humanitarian, financial and military assistance." As recently as last month, additional funding of $24 billion was requested by Biden for Ukraine, which would bring the total to $135 billion, according to the Center for Strategic and International Studies.

"This has become an undeniable pattern with Biden and his administration," Hoffman wrote, according to the column on Townhall. "Earlier this year, when a train carrying toxic chemicals derailed in East Palestine, Ohio, spewing deadly poison into the air and groundwater, the Biden administration was nowhere to be found. It was only after three weeks of shaming by conservative media that Biden’s Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg finally visited East Palestine. Biden still has not visited."