Rep. McCarthy Visits Maui For First Time Since Deadly Fires, Avoids Answering Questions From Independent Journalists

House Speaker Kevin McCarthy traveled to Maui to tour several areas that were devastated by the deadly fires that hit the island.

In a comment to reporters, McCarthy stated “I’ve been fortunate enough to be able to come here with my family many times before.”

He continued “How can we make sure we find all those who are still lost? And how do we rebuild?”

Although McCarthy was happy to talk to establishment media outlets he refused to answer questions from investigative journalist Nick Sortor.

Take a look:

Hey @SpeakerMcCarthy: you shouldn’t be scoffing at independent journalists like myself when we ask you questions about the LIVES of the people of Maui.

You handpicked mainstream media friends to ask you questions. That’s not going to fly with me.

Either get serious or resign.… pic.twitter.com/dSOiZacOA5

— Nick Sortor (@nicksortor) September 4, 2023

Here’s what The Hill reported:

House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) on Saturday traveled to Maui to tour the areas affected by the recent wildfires that killed at least 115 people, calling it “sheer devastation” and vowing to help the island rebuild.

ADVERTISEMENT

“I’ve been fortunate enough to be able to come here with my family many times before. And knowing that area, spending time there in the restaurants down by the tree, and knowing how much that meant to everyone, and seeing how can we make sure we find all those who are still lost? And how do we rebuild?” McCarthy said during a press conference. “That’s the important part of why we’re here. We want to make sure we do it in the right manner. We want to work with the community.”

“We want to get the resources to individuals that could rebuild their life, we’ve got to focus on the children for the schools, get them back into the education so they don’t miss out,” he added.

McCarthy also took time to thank the residents of Maui that helped their neighbors and others escape from the fires, calling them “heroes.”

“I think there are a lot of heroes out there and individuals who brought their own boats, people that helped pull other people out to get them out of harm’s way,” he said. “We want to make sure that we honor those individuals too. You know, in every devastation in America, they’re tragic, but at the same time, it does show when you… look deep down the caringness of individuals.”

McCarthy travels to Maui after deadly wildfires: "Sheer devastation" https://t.co/eAkECkE3um pic.twitter.com/5ibrWrTI4V

— The Hill (@thehill) September 3, 2023

Speaker McCarthy Visits Maui Following Deadly Wildfires: ‘We Will Investigate’ https://t.co/kpfxnWDokt

— Brad Porcellato (@BradPorcellato) September 3, 2023

Per The Daily Wire:

House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) visited the town of Lahaina on Saturday to tour what he described as the “sheer devastation” inflicted by the deadly wildfires last month.

During the visit, McCarthy focused on how to help residents rebuild after a fire practically destroyed the entire city of Lahaina on the island of Maui, which experienced a series of blazes. He also vowed to get to the bottom of what many say is a lackluster response by all levels of government, vowing to use the resources of Congress to investigate.

“We want to get the resources to individuals that could rebuild their life, we’ve got to focus on the children for the schools, get them back into the education so they don’t miss out,” McCarthy said. “We will investigate to find out why did it happen, what went right, what went wrong, so other communities won’t ever have to see this,” he later added.

ADVERTISEMENT

The California Republican said the House would look into various factors that may have led to the rapid spreading of the fire and the inability to contain it, including overhead power lines, invasive grasses, resources for the fire department, and the adequacy of the county building codes, according to the Honolulu Civil Beat.

Maui/McCarthy pic.twitter.com/etjeDmiLH2

— Illinois girl Desi (@d_ewinger) September 3, 2023