While lying about the Biden administration’s swift and efficient relief efforts after Hurricane Helene, Trump has gone out of his way to undermine the relief effort, even deflecting resources by his showboat appearance in a stricken community, and sowing anxiety and distress among traumatized, desperate people.
Claiming to have had a sterling record on hurricane relief when he was president? Recall the disgusting scene of him tossing paper towels in Puerto Rico to victims of Hurricane Maria, and saying Puerto Rico was too far out into the ocean to get relief, then hiring a crony from Montana to fix the electric grid (it didn’t).
Trump, who in yet another instance of projection, accuses Biden of steering aid away from Republican communities (not true), but was the one who withheld disaster aid to California enduring historic wildfires, actually blamed the state for not trimming trees enough, and withheld coronavirus tests and masks to Democratic areas, telling Governors to fend for themselves.
Here’s a reminder from the Harris-Walz campaign: – Karen Rubin, news-photo-features.com, [email protected]
Damning News Report Revives Questions About Trump and Flood Protections Trump to Victims of Hurricane Helene: “You’ll be ok” As Donald Trump campaigns in states impacted by Hurricane Helene, headlines are calling attention to a “damning” news report that raises questions about Trump’s record of rolling back flood protections and storm standards intended to prevent the kind of devastation we are seeing today. The news comes on the heels of shocking reporting that Trump refused to provide disaster relief as President until he was briefed with political maps of how many people there voted for him. This week’s news reflects Trump’s consistent record as President: gutting FEMA, blocking critical disaster relief, and making crisis after crisis about himself while leaving hard working Americans on their own. Trump rolled back flooding standards intended to prevent the very kind of devastation we’re currently seeing in Western North Carolina and other parts of the South in order to benefit his wealthy donors Trump diverted over $150 million in FEMA disaster funds ahead of Hurricane Dorian hitting the Southeast He threatened to veto legislation providing nearly $5 billion in disaster relief funding after extreme earthquakes He dangled federal aid for Michigan over his opposition t0 the state’s mail-in ballot program Trump called for cuts to numerous programs that help prepare, manage, and mitigate wildfiresHe proposed budget cuts to NOAA that would have left the US unprepared for extreme weather He refused to give California wildfire aid until told how many people there voted for him |
Trump’s “Sharpiegate” (Hurricane Dorian) |
Trump tossing paper towels (Hurricane Florence) |
Trump’s running mate is no better: JD Vance voted against $16 billion in disaster relief and lifting restrictions for FEMA funding. Trump and Vance’s Project 2025 agenda would go even further. Project 2025 proposes eliminating disaster loans for families and small businesses rebuilding after storms and to cut assistance for hurricane victims Project 2025 calls to increase FEMA’s threshold for state and local government disaster assistance Project 2025 recommends privatizing the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s (FEMA) National Flood Insurance Program and rolling back FEMA emergency response spending, saddling states and localities with the majority of preparedness and response costs at a time when climate change is raising the likelihood and cost of natural disasters And it would officially dismantle NOAA and eliminate the National Weather Service’s federal weather forecasting DNC Rapid Response Director Alex Floyd added, “JD Vance took time in Georgia today to shout out his ‘great friend’ right after she finished spreading fresh conspiracy theories about how ‘they’ can control the weather while Georgia is still recovering from Hurricane Helene. Let’s be clear: Marjorie Taylor Greene is a wildly out-of-touch conspiracy theorist and election-denying extremist who is as toxic to voters as the Trump-Vance Project 2025 agenda itself — and that’s just another reason why we’re sure that Vance will have plenty more free time to spend with his ‘great friend’ after this November.” Harris-Walz 2024 Spokesperson Sarafina Chitika stated, “As president, Donald Trump gutted FEMA, blocked disaster relief, rolled back flooding standards to benefit his wealthy donors, and made crisis after crisis about himself instead of keeping Americans safe,. ” A Trump victory this November is a disaster waiting to happen: His Project 2025 agenda would slash FEMA funding, privatize weather forecasting, and leave us unprepared for the coming storms. “Americans deserve a president who works to prevent these extreme weather crises, not an unserious man who tosses paper towels at a photo op when people are suffering. Vice President Harris will always fight to ensure families and communities have the resources they need to make it through extreme weather events like we’re seeing now.” |