Kamala’s Katrina: Where is the Would-Be Commander-In-Chief After Hurricane Helene?

Harris and Biden remain missing in action while millions suffer

Go in search of Vice President Kamala Harris in close proximity to where Hurricane Helene inflicted its worst damage, and that search will be in vain as she places a premium on public photo ops. Not to be outdone, Joe Biden, who is allegedly still president, planted himself at home in Rehoboth Beach, Delaware.

Donald Trump has initiated a GoFundMe page that has already raised more than $1 million benefitting hurricane victims fresh on the heels of his visit to storm-battered regions of Georgia in contrast to Vice President Kamala Harris who has posing for photos in the serene trappings of Washington D.C. 

With these facts in mind, it’s important to point out that in retrospect George W. Bush holds up pretty well in his response to Hurricane Katrina back in 2005 despite how viciously he was attacked by the Democrats and their allies in the media. 

Standing out from the pack is Donald Trump, the Republican presidential nominee, who has been visiting ravaged areas that Harris has thus far avoided. Trump has already visited Georgia, a critical battleground state, in contrast to Harris who has received briefings in the at the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) headquarters in Washington D.C.

Helene cut a path of destruction across the southeastern U.S. this past weekend after making landfall on Florida’s Gulf Coast. The hurricane is responsible for severe flooding, massive power outages, and damage to critical infrastructure that’s impacting the Carolinas, Tennessee, Georgia, and parts of Virginia.  Helene, a Category 4 hurricane, has caused more than 100 deaths, but that figure is likely to rise in the coming days. 

Recall that President Bush was sullied in the press for his Air Force One flyover of the damage Katrina caused in New Orleans. Bush himself later acknowledged that photo of him surveying the damage from the air made him appear detached from the tragedy on the ground. But for the record, Bush did marshal federal resources to address the aftermath of Katrina while the press overlooked the failures of local government officials. 

Trump is now working overtime to make Harris and Biden see the other end of the boot. As he makes his way through critical battleground states that are most directly affected by Helene, there’s an argument to be made the Trump is standing in as the de facto president while Harris and Biden go missing in action. The longer Harris remains locked away in Washington, D.C., the more she leaves the field open to Trump.

North Carolina are Georgia are both critical swing states with polls showing the presidential race to be in play in both states. Trump won both in 2016, and won North Carolina in 2020, but lost Georgia to Biden narrowly that year. 

Unlike Bush, Harris and Biden have a sympathetic press willing to give them cover even as they fumble the federal response to Helena. Many fear that Roy Cooper, North Carolina’s Democratic Governor, has deliberately slow-walked relief to Republican areas of his state, pointing out that relief is not coming as quickly as it should. The Associated Press is going out of its way to help Democrats deny the allegations. 

Either way, it’s Trump—not Harris—who’s delivering to the people suffering from Hurricane Helene. Kamala just doesn’t care.

(READ MORE: The Harris Port Shutdown Could Cost Americans $6.3 Billion Each Day)