Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump charged that President Joe Biden has been unresponsive to Republican Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp following the devastation caused by Hurricane Helene.
Trump also faulted Vice President Kamala Harris for attending fundraisers on the West Coast while Americans out east are suffering from the storm’s impact.
“What do you think of Gov. Kemp’s response to the storm here in Georgia?” a reporter asked Trump after he landed in Valdosta, Georgia, on Monday to deliver supplies to Franklin Graham’s Samaritan’s Purse relief organization.
“The governor’s doing a very good job. He’s having a hard time getting the president on the phone. I guess they’re not being responsive enough. The federal government is not being responsive,” the former president said.
“He won’t get on [the phone] and of course the vice president, she’s out someplace campaigning, looking for money,” he added.
Former President Trump arrives in Georgia: “The Governor’s doing a very good job. He’s having a hard time getting the President on the phone…The federal government is not being responsive…the Vice President, she’s out someplace campaigning looking for money.” pic.twitter.com/2evEuyW6VF
— CSPAN (@cspan) September 30, 2024
The Los Angeles Times reported that Harris raised roughly $55 million at star-studded fundraisers in Los Angeles and San Francisco over the weekend and then attended a campaign event in battleground Nevada on Sunday.
Biden and Harris “have to be focused over here. This is a really bad one,” Trump said. “They’re being very non-responsive.”
Trump also pointed out that “North Carolina has really been hit hard. Really, really been hit hard. The hardest. You can’t even get in there right now.”
The 45th president stated that he is partnering with Samaritan’s Purse.
We are now heading to Valdosta, Georgia, in order to pay my respects and bring lots of relief material, including fuel, equipment, water, and other things, to the State. Many politicians and Law Enforcement will be there. We’ll be saying hello to Franklin Graham, Burt Jones,…
— Donald J. Trump Posts From His Truth Social (@TrumpDailyPosts) September 30, 2024
“We brought a lot of supplies. We’re with Franklin Graham who’s always fantastic in these cases. Nobody better. Samaritan’s Purse has done an unbelievable job,” Trump said.
Graham told reporters his organization will need more volunteers to respond to the disaster, which he described as “the worst we’ve seen in years.”
#HurricaneHelene @SamaritansPurse pic.twitter.com/1YTRvK4TRz
— Franklin Graham (@Franklin_Graham) September 30, 2024
Over 100 have died from the storm, which hit hardest on the Gulf coast of Florida and into Georgia, South Carolina, and North Carolina with winds and flooding. CNN reported Helene is among the deadliest hurricanes to strike the U.S. in the last 50 years.
The High Country of North Carolina has been devastated by flooding from Hurricane Helene. @SamaritansPurse is responding to help in our own community in addition to other locations. To get involved, visit https://t.co/JXGf1lWeAu pic.twitter.com/0ZMJrhkeSN
— Franklin Graham (@Franklin_Graham) September 29, 2024
Later Trump exhorted people to trust that “God is strongly with us.”
PRESIDENT TRUMP: In our hearts, God is strongly with us and the American people are stronger than any challenge that stands in our way.
Working together, we will overcome these hardships, we will endure, and we will rebuild Valdosta. We will emerge stronger, more united, and… pic.twitter.com/HTzFaoNBsb
— Trump War Room (@TrumpWarRoom) September 30, 2024
“Working together, we’ll overcome these hardships, we’ll endure, and we will rebuild Valdosta and every other town that has been so badly hit. And we’ll emerge stronger, more united, and more prosperous than ever before,” he said.
Biden told reporters Monday in Dover, Delaware regarding his administration’s response, “We’ve given everything that we have. We’re on the ground ahead of time. We’re working hard.”
A reporter asked, “Are there any more resources the federal government could be giving them?”
“Do you have any words to the victims of the hurricane?”
BIDEN: “We’ve given everything that we have.”
“Are there any more resources the federal government could be giving them?”
BIDEN: “No.” pic.twitter.com/jDMNGhpjOz
— RNC Research (@RNCResearch) September 30, 2024
“No. We’ve given them — we have preplanned a significant amount of it, even though they didn’t ask for it yet — had — hadn’t asked for it yet.”
In a Sunday post on X, Harris wrote, “Our Administration will continue to stay in constant contact with state and local officials to ensure communities have the support and resources they need.”
I was just briefed by @FEMA_Deanne Criswell on the latest developments about the ongoing impacts of Hurricane Helene. We also discussed our Administration’s continued actions to support emergency response and recovery.
I also spoke with @NC_Governor Cooper about the ongoing… pic.twitter.com/nlZPB0h3mO
— Vice President Kamala Harris (@VP) September 30, 2024
Learn more about Samaritan’s Purse’s response, volunteer and donate here.
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