Donald Trump has an excuse for his neglect of Puerto Rico and the US Virgin Islands:

"This is an island sitting in the middle of an ocean," he insisted. "It’s a big ocean, it’s a very big ocean."

As Twitter Jillian Hurley pointed out, we have a Navy to cross those big oceans and bring aid and comfort.

She Who Might Have Been President mentioned the Navy a couple of days ago.

God forbid we should have a president with even a tiny bit of compassion for people who are not white. God forbid.

Update: The administration is also refusing to waive the Jones Act, placing a heavy burden on Puerto Rico and in spite of the fact that they did it for Harvey and Irma.

The Trump administration on Tuesday denied a request to waive shipping restrictions to help get fuel and supplies to storm-ravaged Puerto Rico, saying it would do nothing to address the island’s main impediment to shipping, damaged ports.

The Jones Act limits shipping between coasts to U.S. flagged vessels. However, in the wake of brutal storms, the government has occasionally issued temporary waivers to allow the use of cheaper, tax free, or more readily available foreign flagged ships.

The Department of Homeland Security, which waived the act after hurricanes Harvey and Irma, did not agree an exemption would help this time.

Of course they didn't agree. Of course.