Donald Trump’s visit to Flint, Mich., on Wednesday was described as a last-minute distraction by the city’s mayor, who said her constituents wish to fix their water supply not engage in “photo ops.”
“Flint is focused on fixing the problems caused by lead contamination of our drinking water,” Mayor Karen Weaver said in a statement.
Weaver said she did not receive advance notification of Trump’s visit, nor has she heard from his campaign previously about the water crisis her city has faced. The statement released by her office said employees of the Flint Water Plant are “dealing with the continued contamination in the drinking water and cannot afford the disruption of a last-minute visit” from the Republican presidential nominee.
At the Democratic National Convention in July, Weaver praised Hillary Clinton for visiting Flint in February. “[Clinton] made a commitment that, when she is president, she will work for a lead-free America,” she said during remarks.
Trump told a local TV station ahead of his visit that the water crisis would “have never happened” if he had been president at the time.
“I will say this — my administration, we’ll get very much involved, and we’re going to get the problem solved,” he said in an interview. “But it’s still not solved, and it’s hard to believe, but it’s really harder to believe that they did it in the first place. Should have never happened.”
The GOP presidential hopeful had planned to tour the Flint Water Plant, though his campaign has not confirmed any details related to his visit. Trump and his running mate, Indiana Gov. Mike Pence, traveled to Baton Rouge last month to tour the flood damage in and the city.
