In the aftermath of Hurricane Helene, fury over mismanagement of federal funding and FEMA’s response has made unlikely allies.
The hurricane caused widespread destruction across the Southeastern United States, with North Carolina bearing the brunt of the damage.
Rep. Anna Paulina Luna, R-Fla., a House Freedom Caucus leader whose district was slammed by Hurricane Milton after Helene, said she was talking directly communication with President Biden regarding the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) response and the paltry $750 check given to each citizen affected.
“He said it was a ‘bunch of malarkey,’ which is 100% true, and that $750 was not enough,” Luna said.
“I have obviously been very critical of President Biden in the past, but I will say that him stepping in and taking control of the situation to assist for the right reasons was very honestly kind of shocking for me,” she told Fox News.
However, Biden’s response to Hurricane Helene in North Carolina has faced serious criticism. Thousands of Americans have been stranded for weeks without water or basic infrastructure.
When asked by a reporter if he had “any words to the victims of the hurricane,” Biden responded, “We’ve given them all — everything we have.”
No. We’ve given them… uh, we had pre-planned a significant amount of it even though they didn’t ask for it yet. Hadn’t asked for it yet,” Biden claimed.
As of Monday, neither President Biden nor Vice President Kamala Harris had announced plans to visit the affected areas in North Carolina.
The White House has not released a statement regarding potential visits to the disaster-stricken region.