8 months ago
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CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) — Democratic statesmanlike nominee Kamala Harris visited North Carolina connected Saturday arsenic the authorities recovers from Hurricane Helene, arriving determination 1 time aft a halt successful the authorities by Republican Donald Trump, who is spreading mendacious claims astir the national effect to the disaster.
The vice president was greeted astatine the airdrome by Gov. Roy Cooper among others, and rapidly headed into a briefing with exigency effect officials astir the betterment effort.
Earlier successful the week, Harris was successful Georgia, wherever she helped administer meals, toured the harm and consoled families hard-hit by the storm. President Joe Biden, too, visited the catastrophe zone. During stops implicit 2 days successful the Carolinas, Florida and Georgia, Biden surveyed the harm and met with farmers whose crops person been destroyed.
The 2 person been vocal and disposable astir the government's willingness to help, and the administration's efforts truthful acold see covering costs for each of the rescue and betterment efforts crossed the Southeast for respective months arsenic states conflict nether the value of the wide damage.
In a missive precocious Friday to legislature leaders, Biden wrote that portion the Federal Emergency Management Agency's Disaster Relief Fund "has the resources it requires close present to conscionable contiguous needs, the money does look a shortfall astatine the extremity of the year.” He besides called connected lawmakers to enactment rapidly to reconstruct backing to the Small Business Administration’s catastrophe indebtedness program.
More than 200 radical person died. It's the worst tempest to deed the U.S. mainland since Katrina successful 2005, and scientists person warned specified storms volition lone worsen successful the look of clime change.
But successful this overheated predetermination year, adjacent earthy disasters person go profoundly politicized arsenic the candidates crisscross the catastrophe country and successful immoderate cases sojourn the aforesaid venues to triumph implicit voters successful battleground states.
Trump has falsely claimed the Biden medication isn't doing capable to assistance impacted radical successful Republican areas and has harshly criticized the response. He has, successful Helene's aftermath, espoused falsehoods astir clime change, calling it “one of the large scams of each time."
During a halt successful Fayetteville, North Carolina connected Thursday, Trump renewed his complaints astir the national effect and cited “lousy attraction to North Carolina successful particular." In fact, Cooper said this week that much than 50,000 radical person registered for FEMA assistance and astir $6 cardinal has been paid out.
Biden has suggested that House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., is withholding wealth for catastrophe alleviation needs.
Harris’ visits contiguous an further governmental trial successful the midst of a humanitarian crisis. She’s trying to measurement into a relation for which Biden is good known — showing the empathy that Americans expect successful times of calamity — successful the closing agelong of her White House campaign.
Until this week, she had not visited the country of a humanitarian situation arsenic vice president. That work was reserved for Biden, who has often been called connected to survey harm and console victims aft tornadoes, wildfires, tropical storms and more.
Harris said this week that she wanted to “personally instrumentality a look astatine the devastation, which is extraordinary.” She expressed admiration for however “people are coming together. People are helping cleanable strangers.”
She said that shows ”the immense bulk of america person truthful overmuch much successful communal than what separates us,” an echo of a enactment she often uses connected the run trail.
“We are present for the agelong haul,” she said.
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Associated Press writers Makiya Seminera successful Boone, North Carolina, and Meg Kinnard successful Fayetteville, North Carolina, contributed to this report.
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This communicative has been corrected to bespeak that North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper said astir $6 million, not $6 billion, has been paid retired successful catastrophe alleviation assistance for radical successful his state.
