Severe flooding hit Montana earlier in the week, but the state’s governor was missing for days. Where is Greg Gianforte, many wondered, the hashtag #WhereIsGreg was trending on social media. Now it is known: The politician was on vacation in Italy.
–
Red Lodge. After severe flooding in Montana, the governor of the US state came under criticism for a trip abroad that was not initially made public during the period in question. Greg Gianforte’s office confirmed on Friday that the governor had flown to Italy with his wife. However, he was regularly informed about the floods that devastated large parts of Yellowstone National Park and neighboring communities from Monday.
Read more after the ad
–
Read more after the ad
–
Roads and bridges were washed away, hundreds of homes were damaged, and the park was closed. The Republican governor’s absence was not noticed until Tuesday, when reporters questioned why a declaration of disaster had been signed by the lieutenant governor. Gianforte’s critics took the opportunity to circulate the hashtag #WhereIsGreg (Where’s Greg) on social media.
The governor’s office spoke of a long-planned trip
The governor’s office finally acknowledged on Wednesday that Gianforte was on a long-planned trip out of the country and preparing to return. Where he was staying was still not disclosed, citing security concerns.
Read more after the ad
–
Read more after the ad
–
At a time of unprecedented disaster and economic uncertainty, Gianforte deliberately kept the people of Montana in the dark about his whereabouts, said Sheila Hogan, leader of the Montana Democratic Party.
The governor returned to Montana Thursday night and made his first public comment since the floods on Friday. He did not respond to his absence, but urged visitors to keep coming to the Yellowstone region.
RND/AP
—
Related
/cloudfront-eu-central-1.images.arcpublishing.com/madsack/GSB3AKJOHJB2ZBUEFM4OCJWIIQ.jpg?fit=%2C&ssl=1)
