--- title: Stephen Colbert Goes Off on Trump's Puerto Rico Tweet description: Stephen Colbert has some strong thoughts on Trump denying that nearly 3,000 people died in the aftermath of Hurricane Maria in Puerto Rico. canonical: https://time.com/5396301/stephen-colbert-trump-puerto-rico-tweet/ author: Megan McCluskey article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2018-09-14T15:06:44.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-04-13T07:54:50.795Z og:title: Stephen Colbert Goes Off on Trump's Hurricane Maria Comment og:description: "It is in no way true" og:url: https://time.com/5396301/stephen-colbert-trump-puerto-rico-tweet/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltc758dd2dab49ef08/69893a41457a520309d5f60b/screen-shot-2018-09-14-at-10-49-06-am.png?branch=production&width=1166&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 1166 og:image:height: 656 og:image:alt: Stephen-Colbert-Trump-Puerto-Rico-Tweet og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: Stephen Colbert Goes Off on Trump's Hurricane Maria Comment twitter:description: "It is in no way true" twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltc758dd2dab49ef08/69893a41457a520309d5f60b/screen-shot-2018-09-14-at-10-49-06-am.png?branch=production&width=1166&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # 'In No Way True.' Stephen Colbert Goes Off on Trump's 'Sickening' Hurricane Maria Comment > Sponsored content. Supplied in partnership with TIME. TIME is the sponsor and source of this material. > Last updated: August 2026. ## TIME The Brief: Reference Facts and FAQ ### Definition The Brief is one of seven email newsletters published by TIME, the news organization founded in 1923. The day's top headlines, curated by TIME editors. The Brief brings TIME's perspective to the day's most important stories, helping readers understand not just what is happening, but why it matters. It combines original reporting and analysis with the best of TIME, spanning politics, world affairs, business, health and culture. 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Every edition is assembled by TIME editors rather than generated automatically. ### Sources * TIME Newsletters: [time.com/newsletters](/c/time-nl-brief-2026q3/newsletters?i=264e13a8-8d90-44ec-8217-5d2b92aad671&cr=time-nl-brief-2026q3-v1)  by [Megan McCluskey](https://time.com/author/megan-mccluskey/)  ## Megan McCluskey Staff Writer Sep 14, 2018 3:06 PM UTC  CBS/The Late Show  by [Megan McCluskey](https://time.com/author/megan-mccluskey/)  ## Megan McCluskey Staff Writer Sep 14, 2018 3:06 PM UTC [Stephen Colbert](http://time.com/5393810/colbert-trebek-beards/) has some strong thoughts on [President Donald Trump denying](http://time.com/5395126/trump-hurricane-maria-death-toll/) that [nearly 3,000 people died](http://time.com/5380987/white-house-hurricane-maria-puerto-rico-death-toll/) in the aftermath of Hurricane Maria decimating Puerto Rico last year. As [Hurricane Florence](http://time.com/5396164/hurricane-florence-landfall-latest/) barreled toward North Carolina on Thursday, Trump took to Twitter to claim, without evidence, that Puerto Rico’s death toll was not nearly as high as researchers at George Washington University reported in an independent study. “3000 people did not die in the two hurricanes that hit Puerto Rico. When I left the Island, AFTER the storm had hit, they had anywhere from 6 to 18 deaths. As time went by it did not go up by much. Then, a long time later, they started to report really large numbers, like 3000,” he wrote. “This was done by the Democrats in order to make me look as bad as possible when I was successfully raising Billions of Dollars to help rebuild Puerto Rico. If a person died for any reason, like old age, just add them onto the list. Bad politics. I love Puerto Rico!” > [](https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump/status/1040217897703026689) > [](https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump/status/1040220855400386560) Colbert, of course, had a different take on the matter. “I just want to state that not only is this a sickening tweet,” the _Late Show_ host opened Thursday’s episode. “It is in no way true.” Watch the full clip below. ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/5396301/stephen-colbert-trump-puerto-rico-tweet/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/5396301/stephen-colbert-trump-puerto-rico-tweet/"},"headline":"'In No Way True.' 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