Trump praises Coast Guard, swipes at media in Texas

By Julia Manchester - 09/02/17 09:00 PM EDT

President Trump praised the Coast Guard and took a swipe at the media Saturday during a stop on his trip to Texas to visit victims and local responders in the aftermath of Hurricane Harvey.

“I hear the Coast Guard saved 11,000 people," Trump told the Coast Guard and other first responders at Ellington Field Joint Reserve Base in Houston before leaving for Louisiana.

"Think of it, almost 11,000 people by going into winds that the media would not go into," Trump continued, before gesturing toward the press, "They will not go into those winds, unless it’s a really good story."

Trump took a more hands-on approach during his trip to Houston on Saturday after catching flak for not meeting with storm victims or touring hurricane-ravaged areas during his first trip to Texas earlier this week.

The president looked to set a different tone during his visit on Saturday, visiting those who had sought shelter after the storm and handing out food.

"It’s been really nice. It’s been a wonderful thing," Trump said after visiting a shelter in Houston. "As tough as this was, it’s been a wonderful thing, I think even for the country to watch it and for the world to watch. It’s been beautiful."

Harvey made landfall as a Category 4 hurricane last week, bringing rain and catastrophic flooding to southeastern Texas and southwest Louisiana.

Local and national news outlets have reported from areas directly hit during the storm, providing coverage from affected regions throughout the storm’s aftermath.

The death toll from the storm, which stands at 47, is expected to grow as search and rescue teams look for missing people.