Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp (R-GA) is blaming the Biden-Harris Administration for the ongoing devastation caused by Hurricane Helene, claiming the president and vice president have not done enough to help people from the damage.
With roads and power outages still affecting many areas, and as the death toll climbs above two dozen, Kemp slammed President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris for moving too slow in their response to the crisis. The governor said he had to call the White House himself and demand additional aid from Biden’s disaster declarations, which allows counties to receive funding from the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA).
However, it was revealed that there was not enough money to respond to the storm after FEMA spent over $600 million on illegal immigrants.
When the hurricane first hit Georgia, rural communities were hit hard, and under Biden’s disaster declaration, only 11 counties could receive aid. So, he called the Biden-Harris Administration and demanded more effort to help the American people.
“A lot of people were outraged, including me, because there was such devastation and, you know, up to 90 counties. So, we called the White House,” Kemp said. “We spoke to the president’s chief of staff, the FEMA administrator, and said, look, you’re sending the signal that you’re not paying attention to some of these rural communities.”
After his phone call with the White House, Kemp said 30 more counties were added to Biden’s declaration.
“I absolutely think we will have a lot more counties added. We’re at 41 right now, and I could see it going anywhere from 70 to 90,” the governor added.
As of Friday morning, officials said it could be at least 72 hours before there are visible signs of assistance. Kemp was in Augusta, Georgia, where residents lacked water service and electricity. In addition, the governor announced that he would be suspending the state’s gas tax and extending the state of emergency in response to the storm.
On the contrary, former President Donald Trump visited areas heavily impacted by the storm, bringing truckloads of supplies to residents in need.
“We’ve done this before, but we have a lot of truckloads of different items — from oil to water to all sorts of equipment that’s going to help them,” Trump said, adding that he “stand[s] in complete solidarity with the people of Georgia and with all of those suffering in the terrible aftermath of Hurricane Helene.”
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