People From Finland Collectively Said "Excuse Me?" After Trump Said The Country Rakes Its Forests To Prevent Fires

"I perhaps wouldn't compare Finland and California climate-wise..."

President Trump on Saturday said that the country of Finland doesn't have an issue with fires because the people there “spend a lot of time on raking."

The president made the comments while visiting the devastation in Paradise caused by the Camp fire in Northern California.

The fire has become the most deadly in the state's history. At least 76 people have died and more than 1,200 others are missing.

Trump: "You gotta take care of the floors. You know the floors of the forest, very important... I was with the President of Finland... he called it a forest nation and they spent a lot of time on raking and cleaning and doing things and they don't have any problem." https://t.co/cC8syQobdC

“We’ve gotta take care of the floors, you know, the floors of the forest. It’s very important,” Trump said.

“You look at other countries where they do it differently, and it’s a whole different story,” he said. "I was with the president of Finland, and he said, 'We have a much different— we're a forest nation,' he called it a 'forest nation.'"

“And they spend a lot of time on raking and cleaning and doing things," he said of the Finns. "And they don’t have any problem."

While Finland’s president, Sauli Niinisto, said that he spoke to Trump on Nov. 11 in Paris about how it uses a surveillance system to monitor its forest, Niinisto couldn't remember raking being discussed, according to the Associated Press.

Niinisto, in an interview published in the Ilta-Sanomat newspaper on Sunday, said that he told Trump: “Finland is a country covered by forests but we also have a good surveillance system and network."

Also, as the LA Times reported, fires in the two countries are completely different due to their different climates.

In response to Trump's comment, the Finns collectively said, "Excuse me?"

@BeautyBind @PeterCorless What people in Finland really think about Trump

Hi!

Hi from Finland. We never rake forests, never. Parks yes, but forest, no. Has Trump inhaled too much smoke, and what smoke. Btw we have here the cleanest air, by far. https://t.co/Bo5Y5dwz7x

I perhaps wouldn't...

I perhaps wouldn't compare Finland and California climate-wise... And besides, 80% of the country is classified as forest land. We don't exactly manicure all of it. https://t.co/fthi7FUw0N

"No friggin body is raking the forests."

@JenniferJJacobs I grew up in Finland. a) it rains all year round. b) we have a lengthy and cold winter. c) Finland is a sparsely populated country with just over 5mil ppl, with land size ~3/4 of CA and most of it forests and lakes. d) no friggin body is raking the forests.

"Just an ordinary day in the Finnish forest."

Just an ordinary day in the Finnish forest ~ Ihan normipäivä suomalaisessa metsässä #Trump #forest #firesafety #raking #forestry #Finland #Finnish #CaliforniaFire #RakingAmericaGreatAgain #rakingtheforest #Suomi #haravointi #metsäpalot #rakingleaves https://t.co/YOKA3D6C2K

"Yeah um no."

@TheContemptor Yeah um no. I’ve lived in Finland my whole life and not once have I seen or heard that someone would’ve been raking or cleaning our forests. We pick up trash from the forests and that’s it. Maybe we don’t have the problems California does because it’s colder and more wet here🤔🇫🇮

Trump has repeatedly blamed forest management for the fires in California, and this weekend he dodged questions about what role climate change played in the fires.

“Does the devastation change your opinion on climate change at all, Mr. President?” a reporter asked him on Saturday.

“No, no. I have a strong opinion," Trump responded. "I want great climate, and we’re going to have that."



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