Why have neither Biden, Harris, or even Walz visited any of the areas that were destroyed by Hurricane Helene?

I heard Biden is going this week.

Cut and pasted from MSN:

Former President Donald Trump will visit Georgia after the southeast was battered by Hurricane Helene, while President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris stay in Washington, D.C. — for now.

Biden will deliver remarks providing an update on relief efforts from the White House on Monday, while Harris has canceled campaign events and is returning to Washington to receive a briefing from the Federal Emergency Management Agency. Trump announced his plans to visit Valdosta, Georgia, on Monday in the southern part of the state following a rally in Pennsylvania on Sunday.

The former president, who is running for another four-year term in the White House, is expected to receive a briefing from local officials on relief efforts, help distribute supplies, and speak to the press while in the Peach State.

When Trump visited Puerto Rico after Hurricane Maria in 2017, he was criticized for throwing paper towels at residents and withholding funding after the devastation.

Trump opened his Sunday rally in the Keystone State by sending his “love and prayers” to victims of the storm and then accused Biden of “sleeping” and Harris of holding fundraising while several parts of the country are battered from the hurricane.

Biden and Harris spoke with officials from the affected states over the weekend, and the president told FEMA Administrator Deanne Criswell that he intends to visit affected areas this week “as soon as it will not disrupt emergency response operations,” according to the White House pool report.

As far as Walz going there, one could make the argument that if we’re wondering why Walz hasn’t been there, then why hasn’t Vance been there, either?

Because the democrats are in Washington trying to put a package together to help the victims instead of going there and waving and promising false prayers.

In addition to what the others said, waiting a few days is prudent, as it allows the aid groups to get set up without the interference caused by having to secure and set up an area for visiting VIPs. First responders are still working, power workers are still in the thick of it, WCK and other food suppliers are still getting going.

But of course your boy throwing paper towels into the crowd would be infinitely more helpful.

They do not want to disrupting emergency operations. Humanitarian efforts come first.

Trump going there is despicable to me. Using people’s trauma as a backdrop to campaigning to get votes? He has no reason to even be in this conversation. This is the true nature of him.

@jca2 I did hear today (after I posted the question) that Biden is planning on doing a fly over of the affected areas. That’s it.

^Also, Vance did attend a fundraiser for the hurricane recovery efforts. Trump also started recovery aid for those affected in GA. He brought water, gasoline, and other supplies they might need. He also reached out to Elon Musk to see if he would get a Starlink satellite into the area to bring internet to those affected.

But Trump isn’t the POTUS and Vance isn’t the VPOTUS. I remember Bush II getting blasted for his delay in getting to New Orleans after Katrina hit, as he rightly deserved. Why aren’t Biden and Harris being held to the same level of accountability? I would think that Harris, in particular, would take this opportunity to be boots-on-the-ground to help these folks. Making herself available for the people to see and talk to might show she actually gives a shit about the people and not just pandering for their votes.

The two posts above yours, @seawulf575 explain why.

@Seawulf i read he’s going to do the flyover and visit the Emergency Operations Center in North Carolina.

During the initial clean up, it’s probably a good idea to stay out of the way.

https://www.cbsnews.com/news/joe-biden-north-carolina-visit-hurricane-helene-damage/

Trump and Vance should be nowhere near this. They offer zero help other than to themselves.

It floors me that you even asked this question in the first place.

@filmfann Biden is going there on the ground. Read the link I posted.

It can be disruptive and a distraction and the states, FEMA, and the National Guard are already sent, along with organizations like the Red Cross. Now that the initial efforts are underway, Biden is going.

The president visiting is more to let the people know he cares, and I guess if he witnesses something not being addressed he can get help going on that particular situation, but remember the people running the show down there probably plan out the itinerary.

He could have done flyover in the days immediately following, but most presidents get criticized when they do.

@seawulf575 Bush was blasted for doing a flyover and not sending in more help. Even Bush himself thinks he didn’t handle the situation well. FEMA did not rush in with sufficient staff to help. Katrina was botched at every level, city, state, and Federal after the storm moved through. A lot has been written about it.

Probably because anyone with any sense realizes they’d be more of a distraction than help. Valuable time and manpower is better used saving lives and helping those who’ve lost everything than catering to any politician.

@seawulf575 FEMA arranged Starlink days before DJT mentioned it.

@jca2 I hadn’t heard anything about a ground visit. If he is doing that, then I’d say he is at least making a step in the right direction.

@JLeslie Yep. I said Bush deserved to get panned for his response. But no one is holding Biden and Harris to the same level of accountability. That was the point I was making.

@Forever_Free We have a difference of opinion on that. I think ANYONE that can help should be doing so. I’ve seen other efforts being organized by private citizens to get help to those in need.

And it is interesting to me that I asked only about Biden, Harris, and possibly Walz. I didn’t mention Trump at all. Another jelly gave an article from the NYT that brought Trump and Vance into this conversation. Even the NYT didn’t have a great deal to say about B, H, W. But Trump seems to be all many on this page can focus on. The question was about why the existing administration isn’t making more of a presence known in the affected areas.

@seawulf575 Maybe this disaster is being handled better than Katrina. I’m sure there will be things that were missed and lessons learned, but FEMA is in the affected areas as far as I know. We will probably hear some horror stories. I read over 1,000 people unaccounted for a few days ago. I’m hoping that’s mostly telephones and internet down. If that winds up being people being stranded without help for days, and some people dying because of it, there will be criticisms don’t worry.

Katrina was beyond belief. Hospitals full of patients, shelters, they knew people were there. We aren’t talking about a resident who stayed in an evacuation zone. Residents who stay behind need to be addresses too, but they aren’t supposed to be there. People in designated hospitals and shelters left their homes to be safe.

And, just so you know, I’m not upset Trump threw a roll of paper towels to a person in the back of a crowd. That criticism I found ridiculous. Other criticisms about help not getting to PR fast enough were warranted. I also heard it wasn’t funded well, that I don’t know.

It is a disaster area, literally, and not a photo shoot opportunity, despite the forthcoming election.

I don’t think visiting a disaster site is a good thing. Providing all the support possible is the important part.

Biden is sending over 1000 active military from the Pentagon. Cut and pasted from the NY Times: “The active-duty troops Mr. Biden is deploying from Fort Liberty in Fayetteville, N.C., will join more than 6,000 National Guard members and 4,800 federal aid workers already spread out across devastated parts of the Southeast.

After briefly meeting with a group of officials in South Carolina, including Senator Lindsey Graham and Governor Henry McMaster, Mr. Biden surveyed some of the hardest-hit portions of North Carolina from the air while rescue teams worked below. He flew over Asheville and Lake Lure, N.C., alongside the state’s governor, Roy Cooper, and Ashville’s mayor, Esther Manheimer.

After briefly meeting with a group of officials in South Carolina, including Senator Lindsey Graham and Governor Henry McMaster, Mr. Biden surveyed some of the hardest-hit portions of North Carolina from the air while rescue teams worked below. He flew over Asheville and Lake Lure, N.C., alongside the state’s governor, Roy Cooper, and Ashville’s mayor, Esther Manheimer.

While the president took in the destruction in North Carolina, Vice President Kamala Harris visited the Augusta Emergency Operations Center in Georgia to thank a group of emergency medical workers assembled there.

“You do this work in these moments of crisis, around the clock, with an intention and with a level of care and love for community that is unmatched,” Ms. Harris told the group.

Mr. Biden will meet with officials in Florida and Georgia on Thursday.

On Wednesday, Speaker Mike Johnson, Republican of Louisiana, said lawmakers would not return to Washington before the November election to consider an emergency spending package.

“We wouldn’t even conceivably have the request ready before we get back in November,” Mr. Johnson said in an interview, noting that it would take time to assess the damage and calculate the costs of recovery and rebuilding. “There’s no necessity for Congress to come back.”

@jca2 I would think Congress has to wait for the information to come from the states or FEMA and why can’t Congress continue to work while they wait on that compilation? Except for congressmen from the affected states of course, they should be in their states. Maybe the House shouldn’t put anything forward for a vote, but I would think there is other work to be done.

Why did trump have the emergency workers build him a podium ? ? https://www.facebook.com/story.php/?story_fbid=856060496690070&id=100068583821318

@seawulf575 It’s flooring that you didn’t know or more so that you knew they shouldn’t be there but phrased it like it’s not obvious to do the humanitarian work first and foremost. By doing so, you implied that there was something wrong with it. Pure flame bait in my opinion.

@seawulf575 what have you done for your state and others around you, I have donated money and goods for my state ? ? ?

@Forever_Free and Tropical_Willie Great points on both of you!

@seawulf575 how much money or goods did your hero (trump) send to the areas destroyed by Hurricane Helene ? ? ? ? ? ? ??

Zip Zero

Why on earth would a sitting president or Vp need to do a fund raiser for hurricane victims. Fema is exactly to be used to help. And lets say the President does go down. What’s he going to do? Help carry water? No. He will just be in the way of people actually needing emergency help because police and protective services will have to keep watch and clear streets for him to move around. Trump only goes to grand stand. And Trump did a go fund me that anyone can do. Big whoop. Not seeing his own cash go into it. Its easy to beg for money. Hard to dish it out.

@Forever_Free Consider it flame bait if you like. But to me, the elected leaders of the nation should be a presence at least once when a multi-state disaster happens. It shows compassion and lets the people know they are involved.

@Tropical_Willie I’m not the POTUS or VPOTUS. If you would like to elect me I would be there in a heart beat. As for what I have done, my church has been collecting donations and are coordinating with the areas that need the help. I’ve donated canned goods and water to help. I’m not cold hearted…just the opposite in fact. I want these people to get the best help they can possibly get. And right now that seems to not be from the government. I just read an article about a guy that had a private helicopter. He was checking out the areas in NC near him. He saw an elderly woman, her husband and her son all trapped by the flooding. His helicopter could only carry one passenger so he landed and took the woman to safety. When he landed, he was met by the sheriff who told him he couldn’t go back to get the husband and son. If he tried, he’d be arrested. The guy had coordinated with other law enforcement and they were okay with him doing what he could. This sheriff was told that there were two more people that needed to get picked up. The response was too bad, they will have to wait. Is that the sort of support these people need?

I think there is a good chance if a Republican was president and hadn’t visited some of the affected areas at least some Democrats would be saying how he/she should be.

There are always people on both sides who are hypocrites and can’t be objective. They are blinded by their disgust for the other party or candidate.

I think a prompt response of supplies was appropriate, plus the $3 million raised by Trumps GoFundMe.
I saw on social media that a few of the locals said he showed up with semis of water, gas and, etc..and they were thankful.
I wont bash Democrat leadership for responding differently, but I do believe Trump did the right thing in this case. (Per thehill.com)

I wouldn’t really expect Trump to turn up until the golf courses have dried out.

@flutherother He already showed up and was trying to help. Days ago.

I would doubt if Trump has ever tried to help anyone in his entire life apart from himself. I had already pictured the scene in my mind and could hear his lies before he even opened his mouth.

And yet I posted a link to the story farther up the page. But hey, TDS is a pain, isn’t it?

Truckloads of food, water and supplies and the means to distribute it are all more helpful than any politician or candidates grandstanding for a photo op.

I was in Beaufort South Carolina when Hugo hit. For weeks we couldn’t move about because because roads to other cities that were hit hard were unpassable. If you would’ve asked me then how great it would be for the President to visit, I would’ve told you back then what I’m saying now. Why? Is he going to help rebuild homes personally or move the and treat the injured personally. I’m a practical person. If they aren’t there to physically help themselves than they are wasting time and resources that are badly needed. This foolishness about Pres, visiting has always been about PR. Nothing more and nothing less. People are at their lowest. Lost everything and then some idiot comes along to say a few words they can announce on TV. Fema reports everything that is going on and what is being done and not being done. True you can’t always trust and agency 100 percent but you can wait till people are at least half way to being repaired before visiting. Presidents don’t know half of what Fema knows in how to care for people. Presidents job is simply to make sure they have the resources and money they need to help repair. And for the record, I always thought and still believe Presidents visits to a devastated area was always unnecessary. It makes more sense for them to fly overhead by helicopter to get an actual personal view of the devastation and the work that is needed. Landing shaking hands. That’s PR crap.

Today I was listening to the radio and they were talking about private citizens with helicopters that are flying into the areas where the roads are impassable from the hurricane, and the people are rescuing people, delivering food, etc. They had a sound bite from a helicopter owner, who said they had a no fly zone when Biden went there (whatever day that was). The radio hosts were complaining about politicians (Biden) who need a photo op and are disrupting things with their presence. I said to myself, see, this is why I could never be a politician, because no matter what they do, people aren’t happy. When Biden wasn’t there, people said why doesn’t he go. When he goes, they say he’s disruptive and preventing help from taking place. The same people are saying it both ways, it’s not like two different sets of people are saying different things. It’s the same people who change their opinions, first saying he should go, then saying he shouldn’t be there.

@jca2 So Biden didn’t land as you had heard. He just flew over. I did hear about the one private citizen with a helicopter that was rescuing people in NC. He had a small helicopter and could only bring out one person at a time. He found a place that had an elderly man and woman that were trapped. His “co-pilot” got out to give up his seat to the elderly lady. The pilot took the lady to safety. When he landed, the Lure County fire chief jumped all over him, telling him he wasn’t allowed to rescue people. He told the chief he had two people trapped, one of which was his co-pilot, that he had to go get. The chief told him if he turned around and went back into the devastated area, he would be arrested. Sounds to me more like there is obstruction from the government, not the help.

@seawulf575 If the guy was the trained first responder he claimed to be he would have known not to self deploy but to coordinate through FEMA’s incident management system. Doing your own thing in a disaster area is a recipe for chaos. If he sincerely wanted to help could have made a positive contribution to the rescue efforts rather than complain to the media.

@flutherother He was not just self-deploying. He was coordinating with a group that was working to rescue people. And this statement: ” If he sincerely wanted to help could have made a positive contribution to the rescue efforts rather than complain to the media.” is about as stupid a comment as I have heard to date. He WAS contributing. He WAS rescuing people. He was FORCED to stop. Now, if that isn’t news worthy, I don’t know what is. It isn’t complaining, it is reporting.

I see both sides.
If the rescues aren’t noted by area, the other rescuers will be wasting time by going over areas that have been cleared.

@chyna I don’t see both sides. The Fire Chief had not started any rescue efforts at all. And if I was planning on doing rescue missions because I cared about people trapped in the wilds, I’d be using all resources I could muster. If I saw a guy with his own helicopter rescuing people, I’d ask him for intel so I don’t repeat his efforts. I’d ask where he’d been, what he’d seen, places he felt were likely to find survivors, etc. I’d let him continue with his efforts until I got my own efforts in place. And the only ask-for I’d have is that he coordinate with me or put me in touch with whomever he is interacting with to keep track of where he is going. Much more humanitarian and efficient than telling the guy he has to leave two people he knows are still out there (and where they are) and to stop everything he is doing or be arrested. And I’m not a fire chief. I am not in charge of the search and rescue. But even a mutt like me can see the logic of working with this guy instead of threatening him.

@seawulf575, Biden landed somewhere in one of the states for a press conference. Not sure which one as I’m not following it that closely. I remember that Harris went to Georgia.

@jca2 Here is a story that shows Biden somewhere in Florida. Not sure where. But he blew any attaboy points he may have gathered doing that when he talked to a reporter after getting back to Washington DC. He wasn’t sure what storm the reporter was talking about and then said that all the states are very happy and that they are getting everything they need. The report then gets some interviews of citizens in the affected zones that tell a different tale.

@seawul575 i never said he was competent. I’m one of the few on Fluther who said, immediately after the debate, that he had to go. Even before the debate, i was saying that he shouldn’t run again because he won’t win, and he can’t put two sentences together. Many on Fluther attacked me and said he was as strong as ever.

I was responding to your statement about him not going to one of the affected areas, and i was saying he did go.

Fair enough.

@seawulf575 Of course you don’t see both sides. You have tunnel vision.

@chyna Actually, I have a very analytical mind. I look at all the data. Did I say something that didn’t make sense to you? The actions of the fire chief are irrational. Illogical. That’s why I don’t see his side. It makes no sense.

Here is some more data for your “analytical mind”

FEMA course E0489

Management of Spontaneous Volunteers in Disasters
This course introduces the skills and planning considerations required to manage people who are not affiliated with an experienced relief organization, but who want to help in disasters. These helpers or “spontaneous volunteers” are generally well motivated and sincerely want to help, but their efforts and resources need to be coordinated and integrated effectively.

@flutherother Thank you for making my point. Look at what you just wrote. The volunteer helicopter pilot was the “spontaneous volunteer”. He started off before any FEMA (who wasn’t involved with the story, by the way) or other official response was organized. What was the response from the officials when they finally did start to organize? Did they coordinate and integrate his efforts? No. They threatened him with arrest if he didn’t cease and desist his efforts. And what did I say would be the better way to deal with it? Oh yeah, coordinate and integrate his efforts with the officials. Gee, I guess you don’t get both sides in this either, eh? Or are you now going to say something completely contrary to what you just posted to make a personal attack on me…again? I know you thought you had some sort of “gotcha”, but your rush to put down the people you don’t like just made you look fussy.

Is there a link about the fire chief who threatened the helicopter pilot? I didn’t see it in the Newsweek article linked.

https://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2024/oct/7/volunteer-pilot-threatened-with-arrest-for-rescuin/

https://www.yahoo.com/news/lake-lure-couple-reunited-volunteer-173538572.html

This last one gave a very detailed description of what the old couple went through, what happened with the helicopter pilot (Seidhom), what happened when he brought the woman back, how the assistant chief (Melton) reacted when he saved a life, how that same assistant chief dodged requests for interviews and finally they got an interview with the Lake Lure Town Manager to figure out what happened. At one point the assistant chief, who had purposely dodged requests for interviews showed up in the hotel room and was quickly waved away by someone else. The stance at the time was that somehow the helicopter pilot was supposed to know there was some unpublished set of rules that the assistant chief wanted him to follow. The stance by the city was that untrained, unverified civilians presented a huge threat to not only themselves but to other to other rescuers and that they should just stay home. They said there was a temporary flight restriction (TFR) from the FAA in place and he violated it. The FAA didn’t actually issue any TFR until after the altercation. And amazingly, that same helicopter pilot was contacted by Lake Lure the very next day begging him to come back and help with recovery efforts. Apparently he got better trained and certified over night.

@seawulf575 I just read it. It looks like you’re correct. I was looking for details like it was restricted because of Biden or something but apparently not.

@seawulf575 I think the helicopter thing is to prevent people from possibly ending up victims themselves. You hear all the time about people going in to rescue other people without proper coordination and knowledge of the area or situation they are going into and end up needing rescuing themselves or end up dead. This can sometimes end up costing more trouble or time that may be needed to save more victims

Good poing, @Pandora. I’m sure there was a logical reason for the threat. Maybe with the FEMA helicopters flying around, they didn’t want any crashes.

@Pandora I understand that as well. But let’s look at the facts for a moment: The Lure Country center was just starting up. They had some helicopters working, but they were big and not able to actually get into all the spots. They found out about this helicopter pilot because he got in and picked up a stranded person and flew them to safety. That says he knows how to fly, can do it safely, and was saving lives. It would seem to me that incorporating him into your efforts would be a far better option than threatening to arrest him if he dared to go back for his own son. And the proof of this? They called him up the very next day begging him to come back with his helicopter. If he was incompetent and a threat to himself and others, they never would have done that. What is really needed is for that assistant fire chief to testify under oath as to why he was threatening this guy. It makes no sense. The only thing way it makes sense is if the chief was on a power trip, or if he was told to threaten any civilians that were helping. Either way, it is hurting recovery efforts and not helping them. In the end, the pilot did fly back up to get his son. The elderly man was rescued, but what that entailed was rescuers on the ground swimming a swollen river that was running faster than normal to get a rope across the river so they could haul him back across. That seems so much more efficient and safe than letting the pilot that already rescued one person to just go back and do some more, doesn’t it?

@jca2 The FAA controls all the flights in that area. When rescue operations are going on, Temporary Flight Restrictions are put into place. All pilots in that area know to check for this before starting. Seidhom did check and there were no restrictions. The FAA did eventually institute a TFR, but not until after the events where he was threatened. So he did everything he was supposed to do so he was not in the way of other rescuers.