WASHINGTON — Vice President Kamala Harris Called former president on Monday Donald Trump “incredibly irresponsible” for spreading falsehoods about the federal response to it Hurricane Helene ‘s destruction, with particularly sharp words like a new storm negatively impacts Florida, with just weeks until Election Day.
“There is a lot of misinformation and disinformation being put out by the former president about what is available, especially for the survivors of Helene,” Harris told reporters before boarding Air Force Two to fly to New York. ‘It’s extremely irresponsible. about him. It’s not about you.”
Helene has killed more than 220 people in six states, and Category 5 Hurricane Milton is heading toward Florida’s Gulf Coast.
Trump has made a series of false claims in the wake of Helene, including falsely saying that the federal government is the intentional withholding of support to Republican disaster victims. He also falsely claimed that the Federal Emergency Management Agency had run out of money because it had all gone illegally to immigrant programs in the country.
Harris said, “The reality is that FEMA has so many resources that are available to people who desperately need them right now, and resources that are focused on helping people get back on their feet and rebuild and have a place to go be able to.”
“People have a right to these resources, and it is critical that people apply for the assistance that is out there to support them,” the vice president added. “All these resources were created for exactly these types of moments, in an emergency, knowing that people are entitled to the help they so rightly need.”
Trump also said during a visit to Valdosta, Georgia, last week that President Joe Biden was “asleep” and did not respond to calls from Georgia Governor Brian Kemp. Biden had indeed spoken to Kemp and said of Trump: “He’s lying, and the governor told him he was lying.”
Harris also criticized another high-profile Republican, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, suggesting he is “playing politics” and engaging in “political games” in Helene’s wake.
Harris’ office says the vice president contacted DeSantis last week in the aftermath of the storm. DeSantis said Monday that he “didn’t know she called” and “they didn’t call me.”
“It wasn’t something that anyone in my office did by saying it was political,” DeSantis said.
But Harris, asked about DeSantis, said “people are in desperate need of support right now and playing political games right now in these crisis situations … is completely irresponsible.”
“It’s selfish and it’s about political gamesmanship instead of doing the job you took an oath to do, which is putting the people first,” Harris said without mentioning DeSantis by name.
DeSantis later spoke with President Joe Biden to discuss preparations for the coming storm. According to the White House, Biden has asked DeSantis to “call him directly if anything can be done to further support the response and recovery efforts.”
White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre noted during her briefing with reporters Monday that DeSantis was invited to tour Helene Damage in Florida with Biden but did not join him.
“If you have the president, and you have the vice president, reach out to provide assistance – by providing for your constituents, the people who live in your state, to make sure that we do everything we need to do from the federal response,” said Jean-Pierre. “It’s up to the governor, it’s up to him whether he wants to respond to us or not.”