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When Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Michael Regan came to East Palestine, Ohio, on Thursday, he was the first top Biden administration official on the scene since Norfolk Southern rail cars filled with toxic chemicals derailed near the town two weeks ago.
The incident has since sparked intense health and environmental concerns that forced hundreds to flee their homes.
His visit came amid daily headline news coverage depicting angry residents and Republican and Democratic criticism of the federal government’s response that had the White House on the defensive.
The day before Regan arrived, the town’s mayor he was ill-equipped to handle such a large-scale catastrophe.
„I need help,“ East Palestine Mayor Trent Conaway said at a town hall on Wednesday night. „I’m not ready for this. I wasn’t built for this.“
And Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg — a favorite GOP target, who heads the agency that regulates railways, has been singled out by not only East Palestine residents, but also by conservative news outlets and on social media.
„What happened in East Palestine is unacceptable,“ Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, said on Fox News this week before blasting Buttigieg — just one of many critics saying he waited 10 days before addressing the disaster on Twitter.
„And I gotta say, Secretary Buttigieg has been nowhere to be found on this issue,“ Cruz continued. „You know, it really is a remarkable thing that he hasn’t gone to East Palestine to see what happened there. He hasn’t come to Congress to explain what happened … I know he’s got aspirations, but he actually has a day job — he has a job he’s been appointed to do that is incredibly important. And we need serious leadership.“
Florida Republican Sen. Marco Rubio has written to President Joe Biden, calling on Buttigieg to resign.
The criticism has also come from the political left.
Democratic Reps. Rashida Tlaib of Michigan and Ilhan Omar of Minnesota called directly on Buttigieg to „address the tragedy“ and ensure it „never happens again.“
And West Virginia Democratic Sen.
