Biden didn't hear question on Maui wildfires before his 'no comment,' White House says

WASHINGTON − President Joe Biden didn’t hear the question when he said “no comment” about the rising death toll from the Maui wildfires, the White House said, offering its first explanation for a heavily criticized remark he made nearly two weeks ago.

Republicans have made Biden's refusal to comment Aug. 13 on a reporter's question about the devastating Maui wildfires the focus of new attacks on the administration. Republican critics say Biden's response to the Hawaii wildfires, which have killed a confirmed 115 people with a remaining 388 individuals missing, has been insensitive and slow.

While relaxing in Rehoboth Beach, Del., Biden paused, looked at the traveling White House press corps and said "no comment" before smiling and entering a vehicle when a reporter asked whether he had any comment about the rising death toll in Maui. The president had just spent his Sunday afternoon at the beach.

What seemed like a dismissal from Biden to discuss the topic ran counter to the president's reputation as empathizer-in-chief and a consoler of victims of tragedies.

“He didn’t hear the question. He absolutely didn’t say ‘no comment’ in relation to Maui," Olivia Dalton, White House principal press secretary, said in a statement Thursday. "And in fact, he had already spoken to the nation about Maui at that point, in addition to being in daily contact with senior staff, FEMA, and state officials as he marshalled a whole-of-government response to the fires.”

Biden visited Maui after devastating wildfires. He was met with grief over relief efforts.

Biden was standing several feet from the reporter who asked the question. A White House pool reporter present during the exchange relayed that Biden's response − which was picked up by television cameras − could not be made out in person.

The New York Times first reported on the White House's new explanation for the no comment.

The moment was raised during Wednesday's first Republican presidential debate in Milwaukee.

"Biden was on the beach while those people were suffering. He was asked about it and he said no comment. Are you kidding me?" Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis said. "As somebody that's handled disasters in Florida, you've got to be activated. You've got to be there. You've got to be present."

Former President Donald Trump weighed in on Truth Social the day after Biden's remark. "To say ‘no comment’ is oftentimes fine, but to be smiling when you say it, especially against such a tragedy as this, is absolutely horrible and unacceptable," Trump said.

Amid scrutiny over the remark, the Biden administration has made extra efforts to detail how the federal government is responding to the deadliest U.S. wildfires in more than a century.

Biden visited Maui on Monday, pledging to provide federal assistance "as long as it takes" to ensure Maui recovers. Biden waited nearly two weeks to visit Hawaii, a delay the White House said was necessary to avoid interfering with search and rescue efforts. Biden spoke publicly about the wildfires three times before his visit.

The Biden administration approved more than $10 million in federal assistance to more than 3,000 households in response to the Maui wildfires as of Tuesday, according to the Federal Emergency Management Agency. More than 1,000 federal personnel have been on the ground in Maui assisting resident including 430 search and rescue teams.

Contributing: USA TODAY White House correspondent Maureen Groppe.

Reach Joey Garrison on X @joeygarrison.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Biden didn't hear question on Maui wildfires when he brushed it off: White House