Former President Donald Trump has scheduled a trip to East Palestine, Ohio. Following the announcement, the Biden administration also proceeded to take more action in response to the toxic spill that was the result of a train derailment in the area.
Trump took to Truth Social on Saturday morning to state that the Biden administration and FEMA had previously stated they would not be sending federal aid to East Palestine, but as soon as Trump announced his trip to the area, the Biden administration proceeded to announce that they too would be sending a team to East Palestine. Trump said that the “good news” is that “they got them to ‘move.’” He added that the residents of East Palestine required assistance.
President Joe Biden who had previously denied aid has now changed his mind and is providing federal assistance to Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine and Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro. The Federal Emergency Management Agency is also coordinating the operations in the area along with other partners and agencies.
The Biden administration has been criticized by both local leaders and Congress members for their response to the toxic freight train derailment. However, they have repeatedly defended their approach to the incident.
On Feb 3, a train was derailed in East Palestine, Ohio which resulted in a toxic spill. Some of the chemicals released were also burned off which led to the area being evacuated out of fear about the contamination levels. The White House had noted that in response to the incident officials from the Environmental Protection Agency, National Transportation Safety Board, and other agencies were sent to the area within hours of the Norfolk Southern train derailment.
