Biden blasts Trump’s ‘lying’ claims amid backlash over ‘sleeping’ through Hurricane Helene damage; FEMA also responds

President Joe Biden announced on Monday, September 30, that he will make his rounds in North Carolina on Wednesday in light of catastrophic Hurricane Helene turning the southeastern US state upside down.

US President Joe Biden delivers remarks on his administration’s continued response efforts to Hurricane Helene in the Roosevelt Room of the White House in Washington, DC, on September 30, 2024. (AFP)

The announcement came after critics, including former President Donald Trump, bashed him for “sleeping” through the disaster and turning his back on the ruthless ravages caused by the post-tropical cyclone in late September. Meanwhile, the Republican presidential hopeful has roped in the aftermath of the furious tempest into his campaign arguments despite emphasising that he is not politicising the disaster.

Donald Trump accuses Joe Biden of ‘sleeping’ and not taking charge of disaster relief

After landing in Valdosta, the Republican nominee falsely declared that Biden was “sleeping” and unresponsive amid Georgia Governor Brian Kemp’s calls for help. Trump’s comments particularly made headlines because the White House had already announced, “President Biden has spoken with North Carolina Governor Roy Cooper, Georgia Governor Brian Kemp, South Carolina Governor Henry McMaster, and Asheville Mayor Esther Manheimer, along with other state and local officials in the impacted areas to offer further assistance as needed.”

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The official briefing room statement release also underlined on Sunday, “This afternoon, the President was briefed by Governor Cooper and FEMA Administrator Deanne Criswell from the field following surveys of Helene’s impacts across the State. Vice President Harris also received an in-person briefing at FEMA today and has been in touch with Governor Cooper, Governor Kemp, Greenville Mayor Knox White, and Savannah Mayor Van Johnson.”

Trump wasn’t the only one to question Biden. Towards the end of the press conference on Monday, the president took the defensive route as he faced backlash for spending the weekend at his beach home in Delaware. “I was commanding it,” Biden retorted. “I was on the phone for at least two hours yesterday and the day before as well. I command it. It’s called a telephone and all my security people.”

The Republican nominee also took aim at Vice President Kamala Harris on X, formerly Twitter.

Trump’s claims proved false

Moreover, Trump’s remarks targetted Biden after Gov Kemp, a Trump-endorsing Republican, had said earlier in the day that he had been in touch with the president on the phone and the commander-in-chief was ready to provide Georgia with the necessary aid.

“The president just called me yesterday afternoon and I missed him and called him right back and he just said ‘Hey, what do you need?’ And I told him, you know, we’ve got what we need, we’ll work through the federal process,” Kemp said, per the Associated Press report. “He offered if there are other things we need just to call him directly, which I appreciate that,” he added.

“He’s lying, and the governor told him he was lying,” Biden responded to Trump’s criticism of him on Monday.

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Without sound evidence in hand, Trump said on Monday that the Biden administration and North Carolina Governor Roy Cooper (a Democratic) were “going out of their way to not help people in Republican areas.” Similarly, Trump advisor Stephen Miller launched his diatribe against Biden as well and said the president had “failed to evacuate or rescue” the country’s citizens, “just like you failed in Afghanistan.”

Rescue projects ongoing

On the contrary, the official White House press release disproved these claims. “More than 3,500 personnel from across the federal workforce are deployed and supporting Hurricane Helene response efforts across the impacted states.”

The statement continued, “Search and rescue efforts by state, local and Federal partners are ongoing, and hundreds of additional personnel are arriving in the region in the coming days. Over 1,250 Urban Search and Rescue personnel are deployed across Florida, North Carolina, South Carolina and Tennessee. Together with local and state responders, teams have rescued or supported more than 1,900 people, including nearly 900 in North Carolina.”

The briefing also revealed that Biden had already approved major disaster declarations for South Carolina, Florida and North Carolina.

On the other hand, a Trump-authorised GoFundMe campaign is also underway. (Read more here)

FEMA faces backlash for ‘equity’ plan

Meanwhile, the Biden-Harris administration’s disaster relief agency is also under fire since the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) listed its three goals in emergency management. The number one agenda is “instill equity as a foundation of emergency management.” The second one is to “Lead Whole of Community in Climate Resilience. And the third goal is to “Promote & Sustain a Ready FEMA & Prepared Nation.”

Above all, the plan layout determines that “Diversity, equity, and inclusion cannot be optional.”

“This requires that FEMA’s leadership and workforce demonstrate an increased commitment to integrating diversity, equity, and inclusion in delivering the agency’s mission. FEMA must draw upon its staff’s diversity and range of experiences to consistently inform programming, policy, and decision-making,” the plan continued. “Through investment in diversity and inclusion efforts – including Employee Resource Groups and multicultural training – FEMA can increase its employees’ involvement and participation in cultivating a culture of inclusion.”

The ‘equity’ plan ruffled the Internet’s feathers. Robert Starbuck, introduced as “the activist pushing US companies to ditch their DEI vows,” unloaded on social media about FEMA prioritising being “woke.” The conservative and “anti-woke” activist said in a post on X/Twitter, “I’m sure people who’ve lost loved ones, lost their homes and now see their town underwater feel really great knowing that FEMA’s #1 goal is to be woke. Everything about their terrible response makes sense now. What an embarrassment.”

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Author and scientist Robert Malone, MD, also ripped the plan, “Our government is broken… I heartily disagree – the first priority of FEMA should be emergency response management.”

Far-left content influencer page, Libs of TikTok, also said in a post, “In case you’re wondering why the response to Hurricane Helene has been a disaster… Fema’s goal 1 is to instill equity as a foundation of emergency management. This is real.”

FEMA denies its strategic diversity plan has interfered with hurricane disaster relief

In response to the growing opposition, FEMA’s director of public affairs, Jaclyn Rothenberg, refuted accusations of the agency prioritising equity over disaster relief. 

“That is a lie. We help all people regardless of background as fast as possible before, during and after disasters. That is our mission and that is our focus,” Rothenberg told Fox News Digital. “We care about people, all people. We take our responsibility very seriously to help all communities regardless of background, so that we understand where people are coming from and what their need is so we can provide life-saving and life-sustaining support.”