It has been one year since the tragic train derailment in East Palestine, Ohio, that continues to torment residents in the surrounding areas. Conveniently, President Joe Biden recently announced he plans to visit the small Midwest town sometime this month after failing to visit at any point this past year.
This past September, the president said he had been too busy to visit East Palestine. When recently pressed on the subject, Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said Biden would go when it is found “most helpful.” She also made the audacious claim that the administration was “on the ground … within hours” when the derailment initially took place, given that personnel from the Environmental Protection Agency were present. Still, no actual date has been set for Biden to visit.
President Donald Trump, on the other hand, sent supplies to East Palestine and personally visited within weeks of the incident to show his support. The town’s mayor, Trent Conaway, endorsed Trump afterward, crediting him with sparking real progress for the community.
This year’s presidential election is heating up, and Biden is trailing behind Trump, the leading Republican candidate in nearly every poll. It’s no surprise that residents in Ohio and the neighboring swing state of Pennsylvania are polling in favor of a former president who’s proven to help during times of crisis versus a sitting one who refuses to honor their suffering by even showing up.
Local resident DJ Yokley recently said Biden is “going to show up because it’s an election year. … President Trump came and supported us when he didn’t have to.” Biden isn’t fooling anyone, especially residents of East Palestine. He didn’t care when his position wasn’t on the line, and this last-ditch effort to court their votes ahead of the election is a pathetic display and about 12 months too late. Democrat senators in both Ohio and Pennsylvania are notably up for reelection as well.
Biden may not have had time to visit East Palestine, but he did have time for a reprehensible “Pride Month” display. This past June, the White House hosted a gay pride event where one trans-identifying celebrant removed the top of his dress and flaunted his surgically augmented breasts at what was deemed a “family-friendly” function. This vulgarity, at a taxpayer-funded event at the White House, was so severe that Biden had to denounce the individual.
Biden also found time for leisure in the Virgin Islands, taking some time off for a little beach vacation this December. Biden could spend more than 100 days on vacation but not make time for East Palestine.
Perhaps the most egregious example yet was Biden’s recent trip to Lake Tahoe. He scheduled the vacation before visiting Maui, where families were burned alive in devastating wildfires, once again illustrating a selfish commitment to leisure over those he claims to serve. His family, including his derelict son Hunter, stayed in an $18 million rental mansion.
The residents of East Palestine have suffered from innumerable health problems. Many of their animals have perished, and their air and water are polluted. What more do they need to warrant a visit from their nation’s leader? Maybe if they put in a new ice cream shop, they would be more of a priority.
Biden only has time for the people who can benefit him. The people affected by last year’s train derailment in Ohio show how Biden’s incompetency is hurting all of us. And now that he might lose his job, he needs to save face.
As families across the country suffer from a historically bad economy, he touts Bidenomics as helping. After wreaking havoc on our border and immigration system, he blames Republicans for their failure to pass legislation. The voters know what they’re experiencing, however, and should be steadfast in holding Biden accountable for the consequences of his dereliction come November.
