As Hurricane Harvey descended on the state of Texas, U.S. President Donald Trump made plenty of headlines… for lots of other reasons.
On Friday afternoon, as Hurricane Harvey was heralded as the worst tropical storm the United States has seen since 2005, the White House took the time to officially announce a transgender ban in the military, pardon convicted sheriff Joe Arpaio and oust White House advisor Sebastian Gorka.
WATCH: Donald Trump pardons former Sheriff Joe Arpaio
New York Senator Chuck Schumer tweeted Friday evening that “as millions of people in TX and LA are prepping for the hurricane, the President is using the cover of the storm to pardon a man who violated a court’s order to stop discriminating against Latinos and ban courageous transgender men and women from serving our nation’s Armed Forces. Then he ran to Camp David. The only reason to do these right now is to use the cover of Hurricane Harvey to avoid scrutiny. So sad, so weak,” Schumer wrote in several tweets.
Earlier Friday, Trump signed the memorandum reinstating the ban on transgender troops, turning back an Obama-era initiative.
At 8 p.m. Friday evening, the White House said in a statement that Trump had officially pardoned Arpaio, who had been found guilty in contempt of court for disregarding a court order in a racial profiling case.
Shortly after, news broke that Sebastian Gorka would be leaving the White House. Gorka was known for being combative with the press and for his friendship with former White House Chief Strategist Steve Bannon. CNN reports that Gorka’s resignation was expected since Bannon was ousted last Friday.
It’s unclear whether these announcements were a coordinated event by the White House.
Hurricane Harvey hit Texas Saturday and at its peak, reached wind speeds of approximately 130 mph.
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