Hillary Clinton Hillary Diane Rodham ClintonButtigieg stands in as Pence for Harris's debate practice Senate GOP sees early Supreme Court vote as political booster shot Poll: 51 percent of voters want to abolish the electoral college MORE slammed the Trump administration for its response to Hurricane Maria in Puerto Rico last year, saying that it’s time for the U.S. government to “step up & protect its people.”

Clinton cited in her tweet a study released this week that found that the death toll from the hurricane last year was more than 70 times the official government estimate.

“The US gov’t has failed its own citizens. The response itself is an American tragedy,” Clinton wrote.

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“Hurricane season is about to begin in Puerto Rico. The administration must step up & protect its people,” she added.

More than 4,600 lives lost in Puerto Rico. 70x the official number. The US gov’t has failed its own citizens. The response itself is an American tragedy.



Hurricane season is about to begin in Puerto Rico. The administration must step up & protect its people. — Hillary Clinton (@HillaryClinton) May 31, 2018

A recently released study from The New England Journal of Medicine found that there were as many as 5,740 more deaths caused by the hurricane than originally stated.

Puerto Rico’s government has listed the official death toll at 64.

Clinton has criticized Trump over his administration’s response to the hurricane before, saying last year that it was “most tragic example” of Trump only serving his base.

Critics of the administration's response to the storm said that officials did not react as quickly to the devastation in the U.S. territory as it did for hurricanes Irma and Harvey, which struck the U.S. mainland.

Trump visited Puerto Rico during the recovery efforts.