Hurricane Helene made landfall in the Florida panhandle last week. Florida is well-versed on hurricane preparedness, and panhandle Floridians got several days’ warning to evacuate. Meteorologists seemed to know what to expect when it came to Florida. The problem was, Helene was still a monster storm and a huge flooding event as it barreled through the South. Georgia, North Carolina and Virginia all saw major flooding. The worst was in Asheville, NC and throughout Appalachia. Many North Carolinians were caught off-guard by the flooding and massive destruction. One of the biggest issues is that people so far inland, people who live in the mountains, so far above sea level, never thought they would get this kind of historic flooding. How could people get to higher land when they were already there?
Helene’s destruction in the South has become a political football, sort of. The extreme left and the MAGA cult are trying to make this situation into a political catastrophe for Kamala Harris and Joe Biden. The cries of “why aren’t they in North Carolina?” fall flat – the emergency workers and first responders are focused on getting to people in need, and many of those people would have to stop what they’re doing to prepare for Biden or Harris’s visit to the affected area. President Biden has been managing the situation from the start, making emergency declarations and freeing up federal funds and resources, and staying in close contact with people at the state level. VP Harris has also been monitoring the situation and speaking to governors. She visited FEMA’s headquarters yesterday as well. Meanwhile, Trump just settled on a new conspiracy:
Donald Trump spoke in front of a furniture store gutted by Hurricane Helene in Valdosta, Georgia, on Monday, claiming falsely that Georgia’s governor had not been able to reach Joe Biden. Upon landing in Valdosta, Trump claimed to reporters the president had been “sleeping” and that Brian Kemp, the governor, had been “calling the president and hasn’t been able to get him”. He repeated the false claim when speaking in front of the store.
Kemp refuted the allegation earlier in the day. He said he had been playing phone tag with vice-president Kamala Harris, but also said: “The president just called me yesterday afternoon and he just said: ‘Hey, what do you need?’ … He offered that if there’s other things we need, just to call him directly, which, I appreciate that.”
During the White House press briefing on Monday, the homeland security adviser Elizabeth Sherwood-Randall said Biden had offered Kemp “anything” Georgia needed in terms of storm response.
“So, if the governor would like to speak to the president again, of course, the president will take his call,” Sherwood-Randall said.
When a pool reporter on Monday evening questioned Biden on the former president’s comments, Biden angrily interjected before the question was finished. “He’s lying and the governor told him he was lying. The governor told him he’s lying. I’ve spoken to the governor, spent time with him, and he told him he’s lying. I don’t know why he does it … that’s simply not true, and it’s irresponsible.”
Gov. Kemp, a Republican, absolutely stood by the federal response, as did Virginia’s horrible Republican governor Glenn Youngkin. NC’s Democratic governor Roy Cooper has been in close contact with Pres. Biden and the White House. There is complete and total coordination between state governments and the federal government, all without drama and without those governors playing politics. Trump wants to lie about the Biden-Harris response because when he was president, he routinely used natural disasters and hurricanes to play politics. Trump even withheld federal disaster relief to North Carolina in 2017.
Donald Trump is a liar.
I’m working with governors and local officials to help those impacted by Hurricane Helene. pic.twitter.com/N2rzfFEftV
— Joe Biden (@JoeBiden) October 1, 2024
Photos courtesy of Avalon Red, Getty, Backgrid.
-
- Sterling, VA – Former US President Donald Trump and son Eric were seen golfing at Trump National Golf Club in Sterling, Virginia. Pictured: Donald Trump BACKGRID USA 25 MAY 2023 BYLINE MUST READ: MediaPunch / BACKGRID USA: +1 310 798 9111 / usasales@backgrid.com UK: +44 208 344 2007 / uksales@backgrid.com *UK Clients – Pictures Containing Children Please Pixelate Face Prior To Publication*
-
- Sterling, VA – Former US President Donald Trump and son Eric were seen golfing at Trump National Golf Club in Sterling, Virginia. Pictured: Donald Trump BACKGRID USA 25 MAY 2023 BYLINE MUST READ: MediaPunch / BACKGRID USA: +1 310 798 9111 / usasales@backgrid.com UK: +44 208 344 2007 / uksales@backgrid.com *UK Clients – Pictures Containing Children Please Pixelate Face Prior To Publication*
-
- Sterling, VA – Former US President Donald Trump and son Eric were seen golfing at Trump National Golf Club in Sterling, Virginia. Pictured: Donald Trump BACKGRID USA 25 MAY 2023 BYLINE MUST READ: MediaPunch / BACKGRID USA: +1 310 798 9111 / usasales@backgrid.com UK: +44 208 344 2007 / uksales@backgrid.com *UK Clients – Pictures Containing Children Please Pixelate Face Prior To Publication*
-
- (190110) — WASHINGTON, Jan. 10, 2019 () — U.S. President Donald Trump speaks to reporters before leaving the White House in Washington D.C., the United States, on Jan. 10, 2019. Donald Trump said Thursday he “would almost say definitely” that he would declare a national emergency at the U.S.-Mexico border, a controversial option he has been publicly contemplating since last week. (/Ting Shen)
-
- (190110) — WASHINGTON, Jan. 10, 2019 () — U.S. President Donald Trump speaks to reporters before leaving the White House in Washington D.C., the United States, on Jan. 10, 2019. Donald Trump said Thursday he “would almost say definitely” that he would declare a national emergency at the U.S.-Mexico border, a controversial option he has been publicly contemplating since last week. (/Ting Shen)
He really is an awful person. Good for Biden for correcting this. I wonder how tonights vide Presidental Debat will go when Vance lies since the moderators won’t do livechecking.
PS didn’t Trump defund Fema?
Donald Trump has to be the most deceitful person on planet Earth. JD Vance recently declared on camera that he is willing to make up any lie in order to improve his chances of winning the election. So, you can expect the hillbilly to tell all kinds of lies tonight that will go mostly not factchecked. And yes, he wants to end FEMA and defund the national weather service.
Sigh. What doesn’t he spread lies about? I’d imagine any funds he raises in the name of hurricane relief also somehow end up in his pocket, ie his “foundation” to support veterans, etc.
@Dave, his lies are endless!
But can anyone explain why some of these more blatant lies are not considered defamation? Obviously the lies are intended to harm Biden and Harris (via loss of votes, donations, reputation, etc.).
I would love to see all these politicians he lies blatantly about (let’s get the Squad in too!) to sue him for at least as much money as Giuliani was found liable for when the GA election workers sued him for defamation.
I have seen several republicans (who live nowhere near where the hurricane hit–all in Texas!) post stuff like “Not one more dollar to Ukraine when Appalachia is under water” and yelling about Biden and Harris ignoring American suffering from the hurricane It’s maddening and untrue! Like they were just looking for something to fit the narrative in their head.
What they mean, of course, is “not one more dollar to Ukraine OR Appalachia because we have a hard-on for Putin and Appalachia will vote Republican against their own interests anyway”.
Russian bots have been swarming social media spreading disinformation about the Biden administration and the federal response.
I guess the “good” thing is that he’s consistently a lying piece of utter, rancid shit, so everybody who matters knows and even anticipates that he will lie. It’s not going to cost Kamala any votes because the only people who believe him would likely never vote for her even if she personally came to their homes with a bucket and started bailing out their basements. It’s f–king exhausting, and oh my God, I can’t wait to see this asshole die in prison, but I doubt this particular lie will actually help him.
His entire campaign is based on lies.. exploiting a horrific natural disaster with lies for political gain truly is not surprising for the gop since they used fema help as a reward for state governments they approved of when Trump was last in office.
Kaiser, I hope you watched Maddows latest on Vance and his following of Curtis Yarvin’s writing/beliefs and will write about it here. It’s time to get very scared, registration deadlines are looming and everyone needs to vote.
all the bitching about spending money on Ukraine and not on disaster relief feels like it’s a talking point coming straight from the kremlin.
1) we’re not yet a fully failed state and can allocate vast amounts of resources to multiple things at once
2) the vast majority of the “money for ukraine” is flowing into our own military industrial complex to produce the shit we’re sending them, which means manufacturing jobs and economic stimulus- we’re not literally sending them billions of dollars for them to spend where they will.
3) the GOP were the ones threatening a gov’t shut down and voting against funding FEMA just a week ago, not the Biden administration.
4) Trump withheld disaster aid from blue states when he was president and every accusation is a confession with him.
In conclusion, fuck all these people and please donate to the relief orgs on the ground if you can.
🎯
Of course our governor in Florida didn’t take the president’s call. He’s refused Federal aid. Meanwhile, people in Florida also need help. DeSantis is just evil
Uh, Bill Lee of TN, too. And Gaetz bragging about not paying for FEMA. It kills me that some Republicans scream against the aid they need and then smirk when they get it and take credit.
I’m in TN suffering under Bill Lee as well. We keep hearing about how many people from California are moving to the Nashville area. Hopefully these California transplants will register and vote in droves this year. We have a real chance to get rid of Marsha Blackburn this year, with one of the “Tennessee Three”. Yeah it’s the middle aged white woman of the Three, but it’s something! Let’s send Marsha Blackburn packing so she can scupper off and work for the NRA, her true love.
Gabby, fellow Tennessean here and the problem is our state is so gerrymandered that it would be so hard for a good democrat to win a senator’s seat or the governor. I have high hopes for Gloria Johnson and hope she wins vs Marsha Blackburn, but it will be hard. I mean, they split the Nashville voting district up because it was so solidly blue and they wanted to steal another house seat.
For what it’s worth, I always hated the idea that a president, governor or other politician should immediately tour disaster areas. It takes focus and resources away from the recovery efforts and I can’t think of a time when I’ve actually seen one roll up their sleeves and help cut drywall out of a ruined home or anything like that. It’s much better if they speak with local officials on the phone and find out their needs, then secure funding for that as soon as possible. Visit six months later and see what still needs to be done.
don’t be so grateful for California transplants. you’d think they’d help move the state’s politics to the left, but you’d be sadly mistaken. the ones leaving to move to states like Tennessee (or Texas, in my case) are often political refugees looking for solid red states to live in, and the ones who don’t immediately realize their terrible mistake when their quality of life falls off a cliff and go back have been fucking it up for the ones who’ve been living here and trying to fix the political shitshow for years by voting ruby red. Just when the longtime population were finally starting to trend things purple. it’s maddening.
@Kelly, you understand that gerrymandering doesn’t affect statewide elections, like for state governor and US Senator, right?
This man has no moral fiber in his body. He was called by those governors. To use this time of suffering for votes is ridiculous. Nobody needs bounty paper towels being thrown at them. His llies should have consequences but his voters don’t care! When he was the president, he gave half of what North Carolina needed for a hurricane. Please….
Donald Trump is a malignant narcissist and a sociopath. That means he is fundamentally incapable of thinking of (much less helping) anyone other than himself. This was on full display yesterday as he barged into Georgia after being told to stay away because his presence would require first responders to respond to him rather than continuing to search for the hundreds of people still missing. President Biden and VP Harris both did the responsible thing and stayed away with both promising they would visit affected areas as soon as they could do so responsibly. Donald Trump knows how disruptive of rescue efforts his presence in a disaster area is. The fact is he doesn’t care. Not just unfit. EXTRAORDINARILY UNFIT.
I’m glad that Biden is calling him and saying what they are–lies. People dance around his malignant lies and say misrepresentation or something else. He lies. Periodt.
So much this! Biden doesn’t have to choose his words anymore, he can call Trump out for exactly what he is and I am so here for it.
And who here is suprised anymore by this lying fascist clown?
I was driving today in my very blue state, in a very blue town and wouldn’t you know it, the one and only Trump sticker I’ve seen in this area was on a Maserati. Because if it’s not someone with a pickup truck, it will be someone with an obnoxiously expensive car who only cares about tax cuts and sticking it to the “woke” people. This person had two stickers plus some weird window sticker with his side profile, like he is sitting in the Maserati’s back seat. They all make me sick.
I despise this man and his sycophants. I hope for their demise on a daily basis!
VOTE BLUE is what ya gotta do!
Trump is once again projecting.
Remember during the COVID pandemic when blue states were begging for masks and respirators from the federal supply and Trump’s pick to lead the COVID response, Jared, basically told them no while Florida received all the supplies they wanted?
And when they decided to dump all responsibility to each state as a political strategy because blue states were getting hit the hardest. That is so cold-blooded and repulsive. Trump assumes everyone thinks the same sick way he does.
From nymag.com:
“Most troubling of all, perhaps, was a sentiment the expert said a member of Kushner’s team expressed: that because the virus had hit blue states hardest, a national plan was unnecessary and would not make sense politically. “The political folks believed that because it was going to be relegated to Democratic states, that they could blame those governors, and that would be an effective political strategy,” said the expert.”
I live adjacent to the areas in TN and North Carolina devastated by flooding. The scale of this disaster is unimaginable. Dozens of small towns (not just the larger cities like Asheville) have been wiped off the map. Many of these places were difficult to reach even in the best of times. I do not know how help can reach some of these people in the isolated mountains. The area is severely economically depressed and very few people will have insurance to cover the damage. Areas flooded that no one believed could flood are decimated and local corruption allowed people to build in flood prone areas, so more people are affected than would have been in properly governed areas. The magat peabrain governor of Tennessee did nothing proactive before the storm. (The tRump sycophant called for a day of prayer and fasting and did not publically support calls to evacuate 2 miles around the Nolichucky River or set any contingencies into motion, including reguesting federal aid like governors in all other states affected by Helene). TN Republicans are criticizing the federal response when they failed to ask for federal aid on the state and county levels. I do not know how to help people who refuse ro help themselves and continue to blindly follow the magat agenda. Please vote blue. No other part of the county should be stuck with ineptide on such a scale. The arrogance, ignorance and failure to believe in science tthat made covid such a cluster@#$% is playing out during this tragedy. Without federal aid hundreds of thousands of people will never recover from this disaster.
I really hope Walz uses the debate tonight to set the record straight on what the White House is doing and offered to do. Pretty sure Vance will try to spread some lies so the opening will definitely be there.
Trump lies constantly. Nothing new here.
Are his lips moving? Then he is lying.
I think that the title for this article could have just been “Donald Trump is Spreading Lies” period!
The mainstream media not fact checking this insane BS in real time are CRIMINALLY NEGLIGENT. 😡😡😡
No one can stop Trump. But the media can stop publishing and talking about anything he says or does. Call him a liar, everytime he opens his mouth. And vote Harris in November.
ironic considering his epic mishandling of Covid