What happened: President Joe Biden finally visited the fire-ravaged Hawaiian island of Maui this week, where he attempted to console traumatized residents by comparing their plight to the time lightning struck his house and started a small fire in his kitchen. "I almost lost my wife, my '67 Corvette, and my cat," he empathized. "But all kidding aside."
• Biden, 80, enjoyed two family vacations—at the beach in Delaware and a billionaire's mansion in Lake Tahoe—before finding time in his schedule to visit Maui, where wildfires killed at least a hundred people earlier this month.
• Officials fear that figure could reach as high as 1,000, which would make it one of the deadliest natural disasters in American history.
Why it matters: The president's supporters often claim that he "cares about people," that empathy is his "calling card." The evidence suggests otherwise.
• Biden still hasn't visited East Palestine, Ohio. It's been almost seven months since a train full of toxic chemicals derailed in the the small town, contaminating the soil, air, and water supply.
• Almost six months have passed since Biden insisted he would visit East Palestine "at some point."
• Biden sent officials from the Environmental Protection Agency to help alleviate the damage caused by the spill. After initially stating the clean up process would be finished by June, the EPA said recently they won't be done until sometime next year.
Crucial context: Maui is located in a congressional district that voted for Biden by a margin of 30 percentage points in the 2020 election. East Palestine resides in a congressional district that voted for Trump in 2020 by a margin of nearly 50 percentage points.
Bottom line: Biden doesn't care.