In the past few weeks, we've seen a multitude of hurricanes
hitting the Caribbean and the U.S.
And though the storms have moved on,
millions are still dealing with the effects.
We turn next here to the catastrophic damage
in Puerto Rico, home to 3.5 million American citizens.
Hurricane Maria, the worst storm to batter that island
in nearly a century.
REPORTER: All over the U.S. territory,
these American citizens are struggling to survive.
No running water, gas is scarce,
and they could be without power for months.
That's right. Due to Hurricane Maria,
much of Puerto Rico has no running water,
limited gas, and no power.
And although having no power may be okay for Democrats,
it's not okay for an island full of people, all right?
And since-since Puerto Rico is a part of the United States
and its citizens are American citizens,
the man they are looking to for answers
is, unfortunately, President Trump.
And the good news is,
the good news is he knows where Puerto Rico is.
We've gotten A-pluses on Texas and on Florida
and, uh, we will also on Puerto Rico.
But the difference is this is an island
sitting in the middle of an ocean.
And it's a big ocean.
It's a very big ocean.
(laughter)
It-it is a big ocean. Yeah? Yeah?
You know what? I know it seems like
President Trump doesn't know what he's speaking about,
but that's just because he doesn't know how to speak.
You see, the essence of what he's trying to say is true,
and that is, compared to states on the mainland,
it's harder to get help to Puerto Rico.
That is what he meant to say. You know what I'm thinking?
Instead of stressing ourselves, we should just accept
that Trump cannot speak English, okay?
And from now on, we just get him a translator
like we do for foreign leaders.
We've got an A plus...
MAN (translating): While states such as Texas
and Florida are easily accessible,
there are vast logistical difficulties
in delivering essential supplies and services
to an island approximately 1,000 miles
from the U.S. mainland.
You see? Presidential. Presidential.
Now, look, the truth is President Trump's response
to this disaster hasn't been perfect.
He tweeted some (bleep) about Puerto Rico.
He wasn't quick to get rid off the Jones Act,
but... but he hasn't been the only reason
that Puerto Rico is struggling right now.
Because as it turns out,
there are at least some emergency supplies
that are reaching Puerto Rico.
The problem is, once they reach the island,
there's another issue.
WOMAN: Supplies have arrived,
but they're not getting delivered
to the three point four million American citizens on the island.
MAN: More than 3,000 shipping containers are sitting
at the Port of San Juan.
In these containers, we have medicines, there's water.
MAN: The governor, Ricardo Rossello, told us
there's a shortage of truck drivers
to deliver the essentials.
If you want to help drive a truck here in Puerto Rico,
here's a number the governor's office just gave me.
Well, wait. Wait a second.
Puerto Rico just needs some truck drivers?
Maybe Trump can help after all, huh?
-(laughter) -Come on!
He spent his whole presidency learning to drive trucks.
Finally it paid off! Yeah!
Yeah, and you guys thought he wasn't being presidential.
-That was practice. -(laughter)
Now I know this isn't a popular phrase on this show,
but in Donald Trump's defense...
"Boo! Boo!"
"Aah, tweet, tweet, Trevor. Aah!"
"Centrist shill!"
"Tweet, tweet. Boo!"
Thank you.
-In his... in his defense... -(laughter)
...the federal government is responding to the crisis.
America's military is boosting its efforts to help Puerto Rico.
FEMA is asking for military vehicles
to clear roads and bring in supplies.
10,000 responders, more than four and a half million meals,
four point six million liters of water, and they're working
to reopen some of the necessary airfields and access.
In addition to FEMA and the Department of Homeland Security,
the Army Corps of Engineers is now in Puerto Rico
working on restoring the electrical grid there.
And the Navy is sending their floating hospital,
the Comfort, which should arrive next week.
Man, you've got to be impressed
with how much the U.S. military can do,
especially the part about having a hospital on a ship.
That is amazing, right,
unless you're suffering from seasickness.
Then they can't really help you.
Like, they're the problem and the solution at the same time.
"Take this. Now you're sick. Take this. Now you're sick.
This is not going anywhere."
Uh, could-could there be more help? Sure.
One thing that isn't helping is
that nearly half of Americans, though, don't even realize
that Puerto Rico is a part of the U.S.
And that matters, because Americans who know
Puerto Ricans are U.S. citizens are twice as likely
to support the federal government sending them aid,
which is a raw deal for Puerto Ricans,
if you think about it, right?
Imagine if half of your family didn't know
that you were a part of their family.
-(laughter) -That would suck.
I think there's a term for it, actually.
It's called "Tiffany Syndrome," and it's not fair.
-(laughter and groaning) -It really isn't fair.
Just half of them don't know.
And if...
And as if that wasn't enough,
there's another thing that is working against Puerto Rico.
The mayor of San Juan, Puerto Rico is now begging for help,
but many there feel like they're just getting overlooked.
Some experts say donor fatigue is a real thing here.
So many people jumped in
to help after hurricanes Harvey and Irma.
They say, people are now feeling hopeless,
like their donations aren't really making a difference.
That's right. One of the saddest things is,
people are not giving aid to Puerto Rico
the way they did for Texas and Florida,
because they're suffering from donor fatigue.
And I'm sure we can all understand the feeling.
It's probably happened to you. I know it's happened to me.
You know, on a day you walk by a homeless person on the street,
and you go like, "You know what? I'm feeling generous."
You look in your wallet, you're like,
"I'm giving them everything. Everything.
"I've got 50 bucks in my wallet. Take it all. Yeah!"
And then you turn the corner and there's another homeless guy,
he's like, "Hey," and you're like, "Aw, man. Okay, uh...
"you should have seen me earlier.
"I gave... you... like...
"Wow, if we go back, maybe we can try...
"Aw, man, maybe we can split it...
All right, I'm sorry, man." And you have to move on.
And I know people don't want to do it, but it's how we feel.
And look, people, I know it feels like
that there's a new hurricane every week.
The truth is, though, everyone still needs to help.
Right? And it's no excuse that we get fatigued
for letting Puerto Rico fall through the cracks.
And don't think of it as a donation.
Think of it as paying Puerto Rico back
for all they've given us.
"Despacito."
(laughter)
Lin-Manuel Miranda.
-(laughter, cheering) -Jennifer Lopez.
(whooping, applause)
Like, you realize if everyone who listened to "Despacito"
just gave one dollar to Puerto Rico, that's billions.
Billions. We just... That's all we should do.
If you've ever listened to "Despacito," give a dollar.
Yeah. If you're a fan of Hamilton...
-(applause, cheering) -Yeah. Yeah.
If you're a fan of Hamilton, give a dollar.
If you've ever fantasized about J.Lo,
give a dollar.
Yeah. And you know what?
Fine, I'll be the first to admit, fine, okay,
J.Lo, fine, I will give my dollar. There.
There we go. I have fantasized. There you go.
-(laughter) -So... All right, fine,
maybe it was more than one time.
-(laughter) -But the point is...
Okay, fine, you know what, I'll write a check,
'cause I can't afford to just keep giving out dollars here.
Mr. Trevor Lopez.
There you go.
The point-- don't judge me. We've all fantasized about J.Lo.
She's amazing, okay?
-(applause) -Triple threat.
But look, the truth is, for those of you at home,
if you can donate, no matter how small it is, please try.
Go to one of these worthy charities.
Your fellow Americans could use the help.