Biden slams Trump for 'onslaught of lies' about federal hurricane response
President Joe Biden on Wednesday slammed former President Donald Trump for what he called an "onslaught of lies" about the federal response to Hurricane Helene and preparation for Hurricane Milton.
"Over the last few weeks, there has been a reckless, irresponsible, and relentless promotion of disinformation and outright lies that are disturbing people," Biden said as he gathered officials at the White House to discuss the back-to-back storms.
"It's undermining confidence in the incredible rescue and recovery work that has already been taken and will continue to be taken, and it's harmful to those who need help the most," Biden continued. "There is simply no place for this to happen."
Biden, Vice President Kamala Harris, FEMA Administrator Deanne Criswell, Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas and other officials discussed ongoing efforts to help the Southeast recover from Helene's destruction. The storm killed more than 230 people and left hundreds displaced.
Biden took aim at some of the specific falsehoods spread by Trump or his Republican allies, including misinformation about the FEMA aid available for people to receive and where its being spent.
"Former President Trump has led the onslaught of lies. Assertions have been made that property is being confiscated. That's simply not true," Biden said. "They're saying people impacted by these storms will receive $750 in cash and no more. That's simply not true. They're saying the money needed for this crisis is being diverted to migrants. What a ridiculous thing to say, it's not true."
Trump, later at a rally in battleground Pennsylvania, continued to blast the administration's handling of the storm as the "worst hurricane response since Katrina."
Biden also pushed back on Republican Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, a staunch ally of Trump, who amplified a conspiracy theory on social media that the federal government has technology to control weather patterns.
"Now the claims are getting even more bizarre. Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene, the congresswoman of Georgia, is now saying the federal government is literally controlling the weather. We're controlling the weather. It's beyond ridiculous."
In late afternoon remarks at the White House, Biden added, "It's so stupid. It's got to stop!"
Asked by a reporter why he thought Trump was spreading misinformation, Biden responded, "I don't know. I simply don't know. You can speculate, but it – I - I just find it -- and I know I use the phrase more than I've used it ever my whole career -- un-American. It's un-American. It's not who the hell we are. What are they talking about?"
When then asked whether he had considered calling Trump and asking him to stop spreading it, Biden answered, "Oh, come on."
Earlier, FEMA’s Criswell was asked by reporters at the White House daily press briefing what piece of misinformation she believed to be negatively impacting people the most.
"Honestly, I think all of it is damaging to our ability to be able to reach people," Criswell said. "It's intentional to create distrust and that level of distrust is, as the president said earlier today, un-American."
The administration is seeking to combat misinformation about Helene as it prepares for fast-approaching Hurricane Milton, which Biden said could be the "storm of the century."
Millions in Florida are under evacuation orders as Milton is set to make landfall Wednesday night as a Category 3 storm.
Vice President Harris asked Criswell during Wednesday's briefing if FEMA is seeing any misinformation regarding evacuation calls.
"There's been a lot of misinformation out there madam vice president, that's for sure," Criswell said. "But I have not heard anything specific to the evacuations. I think that the local officials, the state officials have been very strong in getting that message out there and getting people to move out of harm's way."
Biden ended his later afternoon statement by saying, "So, my final message tonight is to the people of Florida and all the impacted states, we've got your back. We've got your back. And Kamala and I will be there for as long as it takes to rescue, recover, and rebuild."
