President Donald Trump is cutting through bureaucratic red tape to help North Carolina recover, said the Rev. Franklin Graham, CEO of Samaritan's Purse.
"He came down to be with people that were still suffering and gave them ... hope," Franklin said Friday on Newsmax's "The Record With Greta Van Susteren" following Trump's visit to western North Carolina.
"The hope that he gave to people, the fact that he showed up. And of course, Melania [Trump]. ... She was so gracious and kind and sweet to everybody that she spoke to. And it just made people feel good.
"And, you know, no, this isn't going to solve all the problems. But what this does, it gives people hope. And I just appreciate the president doing that.
"And, of course, he's going to cut through the red tape. And he talked about FEMA [the Federal Emergency Management Agency] and how that needs to be fixed. And he had some ideas on how to do that.
"And so I'm behind him now. Samaritan's Purse, we don't take FEMA money. Our income comes from God's people. So we don't depend on government to do the work that we do," Graham said.
"But there are a lot of people out there that need help. And there's a lot more work to be done."
Trump on Friday promised to sign an executive order "slashing all red tape and bureaucratic barriers and permits to ensure the rapid reconstruction of the roads here in western North Carolina."
He added, "We're going to go through a permitting process that's called no permitting. Just get it done."
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Solange Reyner ✉
Solange Reyner is a writer and editor for Newsmax. She has more than 15 years in the journalism industry reporting and covering news, sports and politics.
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