A White House spokesman referred to Puerto Rico as 'that country,' even though it's a U.S. territory. He later said it was a 'slip of the tongue.'
White House Deputy Press Secretary Hogan Gidley on Tuesday referred to Puerto Rico as "that country," adding fuel to the flame that the White House does not treat the island as part of the United States.
During an interview on MSNBC, Gidley railed against the Puerto Rican government's handling of federal hurricane aid, claiming officials left food to rot at the island's ports. His comments came after President Donald Trump falsely claimed that "Puerto Rico got 91 Billion Dollars for the hurricane, more money than has ever been gotten for a hurricane before.”"They have not come to $91 billion with all we've done in that country," Gidley said, without correcting himself.
Gidley later clarified his statement after being asked whether he meant to call Puerto Rico a country, when it is actually a U.S. territory.When asked if that mistake contributes to how the White House views Puerto Rico, Gidley said once again that it was just a slip.Trump received backlash after he claimed during a series of tweets on Tuesday morning that Puerto Rico only takes from the United States. In addition to being a U.S. territory, its residents are U.S. citizens.
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