During Donald Trump's trip to Puerto Rico earlier this week, the president received criticism for tossing Paper Towels to hurricane survivors in Puerto Rico. In his defense, Trump explained his actions during a recent interview.

Trump on Puerto Rico

Last month, the island of Puerto Rico was devastated after being hit by Hurricane Maria. The storm knocked power out on the entire island, causing food and water to become scarce. Dozens of deaths have since been confirmed, while thousands were forced to evacuate and flee their homes in a last-ditch effort to save their lives.

Back in the United States, Donald Trump came under fire for his slow response, with critics ripping on the president for spending more time on his feud with the National Football League instead of the tragedy in Puerto Rico. When Trump did respond, he made sure to point out the island's debt to the United States and Wall Street, before questioning the Mayor of San Juan's leadership skills. By the time Trump arrived in Puerto Rico this week, he once again brought up the debt, while downplaying the deaths on the island by comparing the body counts in Hurricane Maria to Hurricane Katrina. Another aspect of Trump's visit that came under fire was when he tossed paper towels to desperate hurricane survivors, which the president commented on during an October 7 interview, as reported by The Hill on October 7.

(Trump's remarks about paper towel throwing start at 8:00 in the above video.)

While sitting down for an interview with former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee on the Trinity Broadcasting Network Christian channel, Donald Trump addressed the criticism surrounding his trip to Puerto Rico, most notably his decision to throw paper towels into a crowd.

"They had these beautiful, soft towels, very good towels," Trump said, explaining that when he entered the room of hurricane survivors, "they were screaming and they were loving everything."

"They said, 'throw 'em to me!

Throw 'em to me Mr. President!" Donald Trump explained. "Oh the next day they said, 'oh it was so disrespectful to the people,'" he continued in a shot at the mainstream media, noting, "It was just a made-up thing." As expected, Trump went on to say that the "media is fake" and that he was treated "unfairly."

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While Donald Trump continues to defend his actions in Puerto Rico, his popularity with the majority of the American people remains in the basement. According to the most recent round of polling, Trump's favorability rating has dropped to just 35 percent.
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