President Joe Biden appeared confused Thursday when asked by a reporter about aid to states hit by a massive hurricane despite the preside...
President Joe Biden appeared confused Thursday when asked by a reporter about aid to states hit by a massive hurricane despite the president having just spent the day in the storm zone.
Biden had just returned from visiting North Carolina, which was hit hardest by Hurricane Helene, with a deluge of water destroying entire communities, including the city of Asheville.
“What do the states in the storm zone need, Mr. President?” a reporter asked Biden as he returned to the White House.
“Eh?” Biden said.
“What do the states in the storm zone, what do they need after what you saw today?” the reporter repeated.
“Oh in the storm zone,” Biden responded. “I’m wondering what storm you’re talking about. They’re getting everything they need, and they’re very happy across the board.”
At least 215 people are dead and hundreds more are missing in the aftermath of the hurricane, which made landfall in Florida a week ago.
Photos and videos of Asheville and other areas show houses and cars underwater and wreckage trapping people from coming in and out. In the days after the storm, tragic stories came to light. One Asheville family, a couple in their 70s and their six-year-old grandson drowned after the roof they were on collapsed while the boy’s mother survived wedged between objects nearby.
Biden announced Thursday that up to 1,000 active-duty soldiers would join the North Carolina National Guard in delivering food, water, and supplies to communities cut off by the storm.
Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas said Thursday that the Federal Emergency Management Administration (FEMA) has funding for immediate needs but will run out before the end of the hurricane season. FEMA has requested more money from Congress, he said.
Vice President Kamala Harris said FEMA has been providing $750 to people for “immediate needs” like baby formula.
The Biden administration’s response to the storm has sparked anger among critics, who pointed out that FEMA spent $1.4 billion on housing illegal migrants over the last two years.
Former President Donald Trump ripped into the administration’s response during his rally in Michigan on Thursday, accusing Biden and Harris of the “worst response in the history of hurricanes.”
“If you want to see how sick and distorted Kamala Harris’ priorities are, just consider FEMA,” Trump said. “Now we have a horrific disaster in North Carolina, Georgia, South Carolina, Alabama, Tennessee, Florida, and Virginia. And the Harris-Biden administration says they don’t have any money … they spent it all on illegal migrants.”
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