All 5 living former presidents are teaming up to raise money for hurricane victims
(Former president George W. Bush in a public service announcement for One America Appeal.YouTube/One America Appeal)
All five living former US presidents are teaming up to urge people to donate to the recovery and relief efforts for Hurricanes Harvey and Irma.
The "One America Appeal," as it's called, will launch Thursday evening with a public-service announcement from Barack Obama, George W. Bush, Bill Clinton, George H.W. Bush, and Jimmy Carter, according to a statement from the initiative.
"People are hurting down here," George W. Bush, a native Texan, says in the 30-second television spot. "But as one Texan put it, we've got more love in Texas than water."
President Donald Trump tweeted his support for the initiative Thursday night: "We will confront ANY challenge, no matter how strong the winds or high the water. I’m proud to stand with Presidents for #OneAmericaAppeal."
The commercial encourages viewers to visit OneAmericaAppeal.org where they can donate to the relief effort. According to the statement, "100 cents out of every dollar" will go directly to assisting hurricane victims.
The presidents' appeal originally was directed solely at Hurricane Harvey victims, according to the statement, but will expand to include victims of Hurricane Irma, which has battered several islands in the Caribbean and is expected to make landfall in Florida this weekend.
More than one million people were displaced because of Harvey, which pounded southeastern Texas and Louisiana last month, leaving at least 70 dead.
Relief efforts for Harvey could cost hundreds of billions of dollars, Texas Gov. Greg Abbott estimated.
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