Still no plans for Biden to visit East Palestine trends now

The White House on Monday said there are still no plans for President Joe Biden to visit East Palestine, Ohio - even though he promised he would visit the site of the train derailment.

'I don't have anything to share on a planned visit by the president,' press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said when asked about it at her press briefing.

Biden said last week he would visit the area, which suffered from a toxic chemical spill after the railway accident and is facing a long cleanup, at 'some point.'

'I have spoken with every official in Ohio, Democrat and Republican, on a continuing basis,' Biden told reporters after meeting with Senate Democrats, asked whether he would visit. 'We will be out there at some point.'

But no trip has been announced. 

Biden's administration, particularly Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg, was heavily criticized for a slow response to the accident. 

It has been 31 days since 5,000 people were forcded to evacuate and tens of thousands of animals died after a Norfolk Southern train derailed and spilled hundreds of thousands of pounds of toxic chemicals into the air, soil and water around the small Ohio community.

In the weeks since, authorities have undertaken a massive clean up operation.

More than 700 tons of contaminated soil and nearly two million gallons of liquid have been collected from the derailment site, Ohio officials said, with much more left to clean up under the order of the Environmental Protection Agency.

Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine, a Republican, needled Biden to visit East Palestine. 

'He should come, there's no doubt about it,' DeWine said in an interview with Fox News. 'The president needs to come. The people want to see the president. He should be there.'