A Hawaiian business slammed President Joe Biden for comparing the deadly Maui fire to a small fire in his home nearly two decades ago that was contained to his kitchen.
At least 115 people on Maui were killed and hundreds are still missing after deadly fires ripped through the island earlier this month. The response to the fire has placed scrutiny on local officials, emergency response plans, and the president, whose early response to one of the deadliest wildfires in American history was “no comment.”
Hawaiian Rent-All, a company based in Honolulu that rents out tools and other heavy machinery, took a shot this week at Biden, posting criticism of the president on a sign outside its office.
“Sorry you almost lost your ’67 Corvette in a fire, Mr. President. Maui strong!” a sign from the company read.
“Genuine sympathy is better than contrived empathy. It’s not always about you Mr. President,” the company posted on Facebook alongside a picture of the sign. The sign and post was a reference to a story Biden told in Hawaii about a fire at one of his homes.
“I don’t want to compare difficulties, but we have a little sense, Jill and I, what it’s like to lose a home,” Biden said. “Years ago — now 15 years ago — I was in Washington doing ‘Meet the Press.’ It was a sunny Sunday, and lightning struck at home on a little lake that’s outside of our home — not a lake, a big pond — and hit a wire and came up underneath our home into the heating ducts — the air conditioning ducts.”
“To make a long story short, I almost lost my wife, my ‘67 Corvette, and my cat,” he continued. “But all kidding aside, I watched the firefighters, the way they responded.”
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Biden has told the story of the kitchen fire before, and has taken criticism for exaggerating the nature of the fire. A report from the Associated Press at the time said that the fire was “small” and “contained to the kitchen.” The Delaware fire chief said they got to the home quickly, and the situation was under control in a matter of minutes.
Biden, who has often cited his supposed “empathy” as a reason to vote for him, has faced criticism over his response to the Maui disaster, including offering “no comment” after spending a day at the beach outside his Delaware home.