Trump slams US response to Helene, even as supporters urge cutbacks to federal disaster agencies

WASHINGTON (AP) — Former President Donald Trump criticized the Biden administration’s response to the widespread devastation caused by Hurricane Helene, even as his supporters call for cuts to federal agencies that warn of weather disasters and deliver relief to hard-hit communities.

As president, Trump delayed disaster aid for hurricane-devastated Puerto Rico and diverted money from the Federal Emergency Management Agency in order to finance an effort to return undocumented migrants to Mexico. And Project 2025, backed by Trump supporters, would restructure FEMA to limit aid to states and says that the National Weather Service, which provides crucial data on hurricanes and other storms, “should be broken up and downsized.”

Trump claimed without evidence Monday that the Biden administration and North Carolina’s Democratic governor were “going out of their way to not help people in Republican areas.”

Biden has approved major disaster declarations for Florida, North Carolina and South Carolina, allowing survivors to access funds and resources to jumpstart their recovery immediately. FEMA and other federal agencies, along with private businesses and nonprofit and faith-based organizations, are responding to the disaster in at least seven states: Florida, Georgia, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, Alabama and Virginia.

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“Each of these states are at different stages of their response and recovery efforts. However, all states are addressing the impacts including impassable roads, communications and water systems disruptions and power outages,’' FEMA said in a statement.

Trump also suggested Monday that Georgia’s Republican Gov. Brian Kemp had been unable to get in touch with Biden regarding relief. But Kemp told reporters that he spoke with Biden the day before and that the president said to “call him directly” if the state has additional needs. “I appreciate that,” said Kemp.

The death toll from the storm surpassed 100 people, with some of the worst damage caused by inland flooding in western North Carolina. Buncombe County, where the city of Asheville is located, reported 35 deaths from the storm as of Monday.

In addition to being humanitarian crises, natural disasters can create political tests for elected officials. North Carolina and Georgia, two of the states hit by the storm, are key battlegrounds in November’s presidential election between Trump and Vice President Kamala Harris.

Harris said in a statement that she and Biden are working with local leaders in the Southeast to provide support as they face the impacts of Hurricane Helene and begin to recover. More than 1,500 federal personnel have been deployed, including power restoration and search and rescue teams, she said.

“Listen to local officials and stay safe,’' Harris said. ”We are with you every step of the way.’'

FEMA Administrator Deanne Criswell called flooding in North Carolina “historic” and said the storm caused significant infrastructure damage to water systems, communication, roads, and critical transportation routes in multiple states, complicating recovery efforts.

“I don’t know that anybody could be fully prepared for the amount of flooding and landslides they are having right now,” Criswell said Sunday on CBS’s “Face the Nation.’' She visited several areas in Georgia on Sunday and was in North Carolina on Monday.

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Officials have sent in bottled water to the affected states, and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers is assessing ways to get water systems back online quickly, Criswell said. Officials also are setting up satellite communications to help cope with downed cell towers and lack of phone service.

During Trump’s term as president, he visited numerous disaster zones, including the aftermaths of hurricanes, tornados and shootings. But the trips sometimes elicited controversy such as when he tossed paper towels to cheering residents in Puerto Rico in 2017 in the wake of Hurricane Maria.

It also wasn’t until years later, just weeks before the 2020 presidential election, that Trump’s administration released $13 billion in assistance for the territory. A federal government watchdog found that officials hampered an investigation into delays in aid delivery.

Democrats in Congress also criticized Trump for transferring $155 million from FEMA’s operating budget to fund operations to return migrants to Mexico. FEMA officials said at the time that the transfer would not impact disaster relief, but organizations representing emergency planners criticized the move.

Trump also insisted that Alabama, along with the Carolinas and Georgia, would be hit “harder than anticipated” by Hurricane Dorian in 2019. Trump displayed a National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration map that was altered with a black Sharpie marker to extend the hurricane’s projected path to include Alabama.

FEMA uses its disaster relief fund to coordinate the federal response to major disasters. It pays for debris removal, repair of public infrastructure and financial assistance for survivors, among other things. The temporary spending bill passed and signed into law last week pumped about $20 billion into the fund and gave FEMA the ability to spend that money more quickly.

That should help the agency respond to the most immediate needs, but lawmakers from both parties recognize that additional money will be needed in the coming months. Lawmakers are expected to return to Washington shortly after the November election and negotiate a full-year spending bill when many lawmakers will seek billions of dollars more for the disaster relief fund.

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Associated Press writers Stephen Groves and Kevin Freking in Washington and Jill Colvin in New York contributed to this story.