President Joe Biden on Wednesday slammed former President Donald Trump for what he known as an “onslaught of lies” concerning the federal response to Hurricane Helene and preparation for Hurricane Milton.
“Over the previous couple of weeks, there was a reckless, irresponsible, and relentless promotion of disinformation and outright lies which are disturbing individuals,” Biden stated as he gathered officers on the White Home to debate the back-to-back storms.
“It is undermining confidence within the unbelievable rescue and restoration work that has already been taken and can proceed to be taken, and it is dangerous to those that need assistance probably the most,” Biden continued. “There’s merely no place for this to occur.”
Biden, Vice President Kamala Harris, FEMA Administrator Deanne Criswell, Homeland Safety Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas and different officers mentioned ongoing efforts to assist the Southeast recuperate from Helene’s destruction. The storm killed greater than 230 individuals and left lots of displaced.
Biden took purpose at a few of the particular falsehoods unfold by Trump or his Republican allies, together with misinformation concerning the FEMA assist obtainable for individuals to obtain and the place its being spent.
“Former President Trump has led the onslaught of lies. Assertions have been made that property is being confiscated. That is merely not true,” Biden stated. “They’re saying individuals impacted by these storms will obtain $750 in money and no extra. That is merely not true. They’re saying the cash wanted for this disaster is being diverted to migrants. What a ridiculous factor to say, it is not true.”
Trump, later at a rally in battleground Pennsylvania, continued to blast the administration’s dealing with of the storm because the “worst hurricane response since Katrina.”
U.S. President Joe Biden delivers remarks throughout a digital briefing on preparations for Hurricane Milton on the White Home, Oct. 9, 2024, in Washington.
Nathan Howard/Reuters
Biden additionally pushed again on Republican Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, a staunch ally of Trump, who amplified a conspiracy idea on social media that the federal authorities has know-how to regulate climate patterns.
“Now the claims are getting much more weird. Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene, the congresswoman of Georgia, is now saying the federal authorities is actually controlling the climate. We’re controlling the climate. It is past ridiculous.”
FEMA’s Criswell was later requested by reporters on the White Home each day press briefing what piece of misinformation she believed to be negatively impacting individuals probably the most.
“Actually, I believe all of it’s damaging to our capability to have the ability to attain individuals,” Criswell stated. “It is intentional to create mistrust and that stage of mistrust is, because the president stated earlier right now, un-American.”
The administration is looking for to fight misinformation about Helene because it prepares for fast-approaching Hurricane Milton, which Biden stated may very well be the “storm of the century.”
Hundreds of thousands in Florida are beneath evacuation orders as Milton is ready to make landfall Wednesday night time as a Class 3 storm.
Vice President Harris requested Criswell throughout Wednesday’s briefing if FEMA is seeing any misinformation relating to evacuation calls.
“There’s been a variety of misinformation on the market madam vp, that is for certain,” Criswell stated. “However I’ve not heard something particular to the evacuations. I believe that the native officers, the state officers have been very sturdy in getting that message on the market and getting individuals to maneuver out of hurt’s means.”
