President Joe Biden is set to break away from his summer vacation on Monday to fly to Hawaii to inspect damage wrought by wildfires that have killed more than 100 people and effectively wiped out a coastal town on the island of Maui.

Biden, who is spending the week on Lake Tahoe in Nevada with his family, will
be joined on the trip to Hawaii by First Lady Jill Biden and will meet with survivors of
the fires as well as with emergency workers and state
and local officials, his aides said.

The President has come under criticism from Republicans for saying relatively
little in public about the fires that turned the town of Lahaina into an inferno on August 8. The Honolulu Star-Advertiser warned that “a warm welcome may not be assured for Biden in some circles on Maui” because of frustrations over applying for aid and cultural sensitivities involving native Hawaiians.

New York Times News Service