Too much misinformation and not enough money as hurricanes hit an election year
Analysis by Zachary B. Wolf, CNN
(CNN) — As recovery for Hurricane Helene continues, preparations for Hurricane Milton are testing the country’s storm preparedness and sparking a political fight over misinformation.
Vice President Kamala Harris, the Democratic nominee, hit back against Republican former President Donald Trump’s “mis- and dis-information” when she took questions from reporters on the tarmac at Joint Base Andrews. “It’s extraordinarily irresponsible,” she said, adding a message to people who need relief from the government should be able to get it.
It’s been less than two weeks since quickly developing Helene ripped into the American Southeast, bringing destruction to parts of Appalachia unused to storm surges and killing more than 200 people.
Milton, which reached Category 5 intensity with shocking speed, is on a collision course with the Florida coastline. FEMA Administrator Deanne Criswell predicted Monday on CNN that Milton will be a “historic” storm.
Officials on the Gulf Coast are warning residents to evacuate before the storm hits later this week.
Related: Get the latest CNN updates on both storms
Storms are frequently in the backdrop of the American political conversation in election years like this one, frequently when lawmakers set aside their political differences to speed federal money to disaster sites.
Misinformation complicates disaster relief
This year, however, former President Donald Trump has unleashed a stream of misinformation to find some political advantage in the disasters.
CNN’s Daniel Dale looked at multiple false Trump claims about the aftermath of Helene.
Trump’s false claims include:
►Falsely claiming $1 billion was ‘stolen’ from FEMA for migrants and has gone ‘missing’
►Falsely claims the federal government is only giving $750 to people who lost their homes
►Falsely claims there are ‘no helicopters, no rescue’ in North Carolina
Read Dale’s full report, which has the facts behind these Trump claims and more.
‘Frankly ridiculous and just plain false…’
In an attempt to correct the record and make clear that the $750 payments are just a first step and one kind of assistance, FEMA has launched a special website to combat such rumors.
Criswell said on ABC News’ This Week Sunday that the idea FEMA money has gone to immigrants ore that Republican states are being ignored is “frankly ridiculous and just plain false.”
She noted that FEMA works with local and state officials and that the rhetoric is demoralizing to first responders. “It’s really a shame that we’re putting politics ahead of helping people and that’s what we’re here to do.”
Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas also lamented the state of misinformation around relief efforts to date, telling MSNBC that he had “not seen it ever before at this level” and warning that it would hurt those impacted by natural disasters.
“It sows distrust in their government, and therefore they don’t seek the help that they truly need,” he said. “We have funds to put in their pockets to be able to help them address immediate needs – these individuals are not seeking that relief because of the disinformation, the intentionally false information they are receiving.”
But some of Trump’s supporters refuse to acknowledge that Trump’s claim is false.
On Sunday, there was a contentious exchange between CNN’s Dana Bash and RNC co-chair Lara Trump, also the former president’s daughter-in-law, when Bash pointed out the claim that FEMA is only offering $750 to people whose homes have been destroyed is completely false. Lara Trump would not agree that the former president’s claim is false.
Bash played the comments of Sen. Thom Tillis, a North Carolina Republican, who said the government is currently doing the best it can.
“For anybody who thinks that any level of government, anybody here could have been prepared precisely for what we’re dealing with here, clearly are clueless,” Tillis said. “But, right now, I’m out here to say that we’re doing a good job.”
Tillis was also asked Sunday about former President Donald Trump’s false claims and his answer was very carefully worded.
“We could have a discussion about the failure of this administration’s border policies and the billions of dollars it’s costing,” he said on CBS News’ Face the Nation Sunday. “But right now, not yet is it effecting the flow of resources to western North Carolina.”
Hurricanes have a history of looming in election years. New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie angered some Republicans just before the 2012 election when he appeared with then-President Barack Obama after Superstorm Sandy.
Politics can affect disaster funding
There was an acrimonious debate after the election, which Obama won, about how much money should be earmarked for Sandy relief. Some Republicans at the time insisted on cuts elsewhere in the budget.
When Trump was president, he actually did divert funding from FEMA for immigration-related programs, the very thing he now falsely accuses Biden of doing, although Trump’s action did not affect funding for Puerto Rico, which was dealing with the aftermath of Hurricane Maria, according to a CNN Fact Check at the time.
Politico’s E&E News also published a report this week quoting a former Trump aide who said Trump had to be convinced to support California with disaster relief for wildfires in 2018 by being shown that there were Republican voters in Orange County.
More money will be needed
Tillis said there’s no doubt FEMA will need more funding this year and he thinks lawmakers should return sooner so that “there’s never a second” when FEMA exhausts funding.
On This Week, Criswell said FEMA currently has the resources it needs. But last week, Mayorkas said the funds are dwindling and FEMA may not have enough in its disaster recovery fund to “make it through the season.”
Hurricane season generally lasts through November.
When lawmakers passed a short-term funding bill to keep the government funded past Election Day, they decided not to add $10 billion to FEMA’s disaster relief fund, which has dwindled this year after multiple natural disasters.
House Speaker Mike Johnson, also appearing on This Week, has a different view of FEMA’s response than Tillis and he pushed back against the idea that lawmakers must return before Election Day.
Johnson was critical of FEMA’s performance in responding to Helene – “at the federal level, this has been a massive failure,” he said. But he does not see the need to return to Washington to pass more aid.
“We’ll be back in session immediately after the election. That’s 30 days from now,” Johnson said Sunday, adding it will take time to know how much additional aid is needed.
The former FEMA administrator Craig Fugate, appearing on CNN Monday said he also thinks FEMA has enough money for the initial response, but they will need more soon. He said he’s not worried about Congress ultimately stepping in.
“I’ve lived this in previous disasters,” Fugate said. “The one thing I’m tell you is congress has yet to let FEMA run out of money in response.”
This story has been updated with additional details.
CNN’s Donald Judd contributed to this report.
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