At a stop during his trip to visit victims and responders of Tropical Storm Harvey on Tuesday, President Donald Trump praised the size of the crowd that gathered to see him outside a fire station in Corpus Christi, Texas.
“What a crowd, what a turnout,” Trump said in the middle of remarks about how rescue forces were going to take care of victims of the storm, which has claimed 10 lives and left an estimated 30,000 in shelters. He followed his remark on the size of the crowd with thanks to Texas Governor Greg Abbott and senators Ted Cruz and John Cornyn.
“This has been a total collaborative effort,” Trump said. “It’s historic, it’s epic, but I tell you it happened in Texas, and Texas can handle anything.”
Trump has, in the past, sparred with media organizations about the size of the crowd at his inauguration, which former Press Secretary Sean Spicer incorrectly called “the largest audience to ever witness an inauguration, period, both in person and around the globe.”
The Hill reports that some members of the crowd were holding banners that criticized Trump, one calling him a “liar” and one chastising him for pardoning Arizona Sheriff Joe Arpaio.
President Trump: "This is historic. It's epic what happened, but you know what, it happened in Texas and Texas can handle anything." #Harvey pic.twitter.com/OvRhjUlteG
— CSPAN (@cspan) August 29, 2017
