>> Sreenivasan: FOR MORE ON

PUERTO RICO, I'M JOINED NOW BY

"WASHINGTON POST" REPORTER

ARELIS HERNANDEZ VIA SKYPE.

SO TELL ME A LITTLE BIT ABOUT

WHAT WAS THE TIPPING POINT, WHY

DID THESE PROTESTS EMERGE

THIS WEEK?

>> SO PUERTO RICO HAS BEEN GOING

THROUGH QUITE A BIT OF DRAMA

HISTORICALLY IN THE LAST SEVERAL

YEARS, NOT THE LEAST OF WHICH

HAVING TO DO TWO YEARS AGO WITH

HURRICANE MARIA.

SO THERE HAS BEEN A LOT OF

SUFFERING ACCUMULATED.

BUT WHAT REALLY SORT OF TIPPED

THE SCALES FOR FOLKS WAS A

SERIES OF LEAKED TEXTS THAT CAME

THROUGH THE LOCAL INVESTIGATIVE

JOURNALISM HERE IN PUERTO RICO

IN WHICH SEVERAL JOKES WERE MADE

BETWEEN THE GOVERNOR RICARDO

ROSSELLO AND MEMBERS OF HIS

INNER CIRCLE, WHICH INCLUDE

LOBBYISTS AND FRIENDS AND

GOVERNMENT OFFICIALS JOKING

ABOUT VARIOUS THINGS, AMONG THEM

THE CADAVERS OF PEOPLE WHO HAD

DIED DURING HURRICANE MARIA AND

THE BODIES SORT OF PILING UP IN

THE MORGUE.

THEY JOKED ABOUT THAT, AND THAT

IN AND OF ITSELF IS WHAT SET

PEOPLE OFF.

>> Sreenivasan: AND THIS WAS

RIGHT ON THE HEELS ON AN F.B.I.

INVESTIGATION WHERE THERE WERE

ALLEGATIONS AGAINST SOME OF

HIS, WHAT, MEMBERS OF THE

INNER CIRCLE?

>> RIGHT, NO, HE ACTUALLY HAD TO

END HIS EUROPEAN VACATION EARLY

AND COME BACK TO PUERTO RICO

BECAUSE TWO TOP MEMBERS,

INCLUDING THE EDUCATION

SECRETARY, WERE INDICTED AND

ARRESTED BY THE F.B.I.

ON CORRUPTION CHARGES, INCLUDING

MONEY LAUNDERING.

BASICALLY THEY ARE BEING ACCUSED

OF HAVING STEERED BILLIONS...

MILLIONS OF DOLLARS IN FEDERAL

AID TO SPECIFIC PREFERRED

CANDIDATES IN CONTRACTS.

>> Sreenivasan: YOU MENTIONED

HURRICANE MARIA, AND YOU HAVE

BEEN REPORTING ON THIS EVER

SINCE THE STORM.

BUT YOU JUST WERE OUT THERE

REPORTING OVER THIS PAST

WEEK AND YOU WERE TALKING TO

PEOPLE WHO DIDN'T HAVE POWER

OR WATER FOR MONTHS.

>> YEAH, NO, I THINK THAT'S

PART OF WHAT HAS UPSET PEOPLE SO

MUCH IS THAT TO SEE, SORT OF

HAVE A REAL LOOK AT WHAT THE

GOVERNOR AND HIS INNER CIRCLE

WERE THINKING AND TALKED ABOUT

WHILE PEOPLE WERE SUFFERING IN

PUERTO RICO.

AND TO THEM IT'S AN INDIFFERENCE

TO THEIR SUFFERING.

>> Sreenivasan: TELL ME A LITTLE

BIT ABOUT WHAT SORT OF SUPPORT

NOW THAT THE GOVERNOR STILL HAS.

BECAUSE HERE ON THE MAINLAND WE

ARE SEEING LOTS OF DEMOCRATIC

PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATES AND

OTHER MEMBERS OF THE PARTY

DISTANCING THEMSELVES FROM HIM.

>> RIGHT, THE GOVERNOR RIGHT NOW

HAS VERY LITTLE SUPPORT ACROSS

PUERTO RICO FROM POLITICS TO

BUSINESS PEOPLE HAVE BEEN

CALLING FOR HIM TO RESIGN,

MEMBERS OF HIS OWN PARTY,

JENNIFFER GONZALEZ, WHO'S

THE RESIDENT COMMISSIONER, WHICH

IS PUERTO RICO'S REPRESENTATIVE

IN THE HOUSE, BASICALLY ASKED

HIM TO RESIGN ALSO THIS WEEK.

I'M GUESSING HIS FAMILY IS STILL

BEHIND HIM.

HE STILL HAS A FEW SUPPORTERS IN

THE PARTY, BUT THE LEGISLATURE

RIGHT NOW IS ACTIVELY LOOKING

AT IMPEACHMENT.

>> Sreenivasan: OKAY, SO THERE'S

A CATCH HERE, BECAUSE IF HE DOES

RESIGN THE SECOND IN LINE IS

THE SECRETARY OF STATE, BUT THAT

PERSON IS ALSO RESIGNED AFTER

THESE CHATS.

>> YES, THE SECRETARY OF

STATE WAS A PART OF THIS CHAT

ROOM, THIS FRAT BOY CLUB THAT

SOME PEOPLE HAVE CALLED IT OUT

HERE.

AND HE... IT'S UNCLEAR IF HE

STILL IN HIS POST BUT HE

BASICALLY RESIGNED SO IF

ROSSELLO WERE TO DOWN OR IF HE

WERE TO BE IMPEACHED RIGHT NOW

THERE IS NO CLEAR SUCCESSOR.

>> Sreenivasan: OKAY, SO YOU

DON'T HAVE A CLEAR SUCCESSOR

EVEN IF THERE IS A RESIGNATION.

YOU STILL HAVE PEOPLE WHO ARE

TRYING TO RECOVER FROM THE

STORM, ALL OF THE AID HAS NOT

ALREADY MADE IT TO PUERTO

RICO, RIGHT?

>> RIGHT, NO, PUERTO RICO IS AT

A TURNING POINT.

THIS IS A MOMENT OF CRISIS FOR I

AM GOING TO SAY COUNTRY BECAUSE

THAT IS HOW FOLKS DESCRIBE

PUERTO RICO AS A U.S. TERRITORY.

BUT IT'S A MOMENT WHERE FOLKS

ARE REALLY STARTING TO CALL IN

ALL THE GRIEVANCES THAT THEY

HAVE BEEN ENDURING FOR YEARS.

>> Sreenivasan: FROM PUERTO

RICO, "WASHINGTON POST" REPORTER

ARELIS HERNANDEZ, THANK YOU

SO MUCH.

>> THANK YOU FOR HAVING ME.