Biden walks back 'no comment' on Maui fires with announcement of FEMA funds for displaced residents

After having previously told reporters "no comment" while on a Delaware beach when he was asked about the Maui fires, President Joe Biden made a post on X to recover from his previous statement. 

On Sunday after talking to reporters, Biden told them, "No comment," when asked about the rising death toll in Maui.  

Biden posted on his X account Monday that as "residents of Hawai'i mourn the loss of life and devastation taking place across their beautiful home, we mourn with them." 

"Like I've said, not only our prayers are with those impacted – but every asset we have will be available to them," Biden continued.  

In a follow-up thread, he posted that the administration is "laser-focused on getting aid to survivors" and that "all residents [will] receive critical information so they can take steps to move forward in their recovery." 

Other resources to locate loved ones for families were also given.  

The post comes hours after sharp criticism has broken out online over Biden's comments to reporters.  

Users posted the footage of Biden talking to reporters and gave their own comments over his lack thereof. One large account, DC Draino, went as far as to say that Biden had "destroyed his 2024 campaign."

Under the follow-up thread posted by Biden on X, users were quick to double down on criticizing his previous comments.  

One posted a picture of the fires in Maui with Biden photoshopped in eating ice cream.  

Another suggested that naming the state Ukraine instead of Hawaii would get the Biden administration to "shower it with money." 

MSNBC reporter Medi Hassan, who is usually a defender of the Biden administration, called the response an "unforced error" that would "hurt him." 

The fires in Maui are the deadliest for the United States in over a century, with the death toll at 93 and still rising.