What Happened?

President Donald Trump visited Texas on Tuesday to assess the damage caused by Hurricane Harvey.

Early Tuesday morning, Trump and the first lady Melania visited Corpus Christi and Austin to talk to officials and crews on the ground.
Since Friday, the Category 4 Hurricane Harvey has dumped more than 50 inches of rain throughout the southern part of the state, according to the emergency response center in Austin. The center also reported that tens of thousands of people were displaced from their homes and the area hit the worst was the fourth-largest city in the United States, Houston.

Trump was briefed by officials on the first stop in Corpus Christi and met with rescue crews and volunteers in Austin. According to the National Weather Service, by Tuesday morning the storm broke the U.S. continental record for the most rainfall by a hurricane with about 51 inches of total rain reported.

The National Weather Service said the record holder was Hurricane Hiki that dropped more than 52 inches of rain off the coast of Hawaii in 1950. According to the National Weather Service, there are 10 reported deaths due to Hurricane Harvey as of Tuesday morning.

Trump told reporters he didn’t visit the hardest hit areas, “to avoid disruption of the rescue.” On Sunday he tweeted, “HISTORIC rainfall in Houston, and all over Texas. Floods are unprecedented, and more rain coming. Spirit of the people is incredible.Thanks!”

Merchandise

Trump arrived in Corpus Christi wearing the white “45/USA” hat that is for sale for $40 on his website, shop.donaldjtrump.com.

This is the third time in four days the president wore his own merchandise during events related to Hurricane Harvey, including two previous meetings about the disaster. Melania boarded the flight to Texas in stiletto high heels, which led to the hashtag “#Outoftouch” trending on Twitter by Tuesday evening.

Several reporters asked her spokeswoman about the shoe selection, to which she responded that the first lady would change them before they touched down. When the plane landed Melania had on flat shoes and a completely different outfit, according to The Huffington Post.

The Washington Post, CNN, The Huffington Post and several other notable news organizations criticized Trump for seeming to “promote” apparel he has for sale during a tragedy like Hurricane Harvey.