Donald Trump loves ratings and attention, and he certainly doesn’t love the Constitution, which is the reason he can’t stop talking about the national anthem. On Tuesday night, he even dragged running legend Usain Bolt into the fray, tweeting out a video of the GOAT stopping an interview so that he could acknowledge “The Star-Spangled Banner.”
The Jamaican national track team, if you were wondering, was not having it.
And neither was fellow islander and Bajan queen Rihanna. Shortly before 3 a.m. EDT Wednesday, the pop star, fashion icon and makeup mogul called out Trump by his Twitter name to draw attention to a heartbreaking interview the mayor of San Juan, Puerto Rico, Carmen Yulín Cruz, gave to CBS News.
“I know leaders are not supposed to cry, and especially not on TV, but we are having a humanitarian crisis here,” Cruz told CBS. “The worst fear is that we cannot get to everyone in time.”
The mayor held back tears as she told interviewer David Begnaud about two people who had died in a hospital because there wasn’t any gas to power the building.
“We need to get our shit together and help needs to get in people’s hands now. Not tomorrow, not later, now,” said Cruz.
She praised U.S. Federal Emergency Management Agency employees, who she said were “dying to go out in the streets and save people,” but couldn’t because they were waiting for marching orders from the Trump administration. Cruz also called out Trump’s debt tweets, warning that hundreds of people could die if help isn’t deployed immediately.
It’s a painful, necessary video to watch, and Cruz’s compassion and commitment to Puerto Ricans offer a startling contrast to the way Trump has referred to the crisis.
Hopefully, Rihanna, who is no stranger to humanitarian work, can finally get Trump to pay attention.