Biden, Harris tour Helene damage in storm-ravaged South at critical 2024 campaign moment

Biden, Harris tour Helene damage in storm-ravaged South at critical 2024 campaign moment Show Caption Hide Caption Community strength shines through after destructive Hurricane Helene Residents of Red Hill, North Carolina show resilience as they unite to rebuild and recover after Hurricane Helene. With the 2024 campaign heading into its final stretch, President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris on Wednesday surveyed communities battered by flooding from Hurricane Helene during separate trips spanning three southeastern states as both vowed the federal government won’t leave until the recovery is complete. Biden stopped in Greenville, South Carolina, and took an aerial tour of the devastation in nearby Asheville, North Carolina, before receiving an emergency operational briefing in the state capital of Raleigh. Harris traveled separately to Augusta, Georgia, where she provided an update on federal support for emergency response and recovery efforts. “I’m here to thank you and to listen,” Harris, the 2024 Democratic presidential nominee, said at the head of a long table at the Augusta Emergency Operations Center, with local officials and emergency personnel seated on both sides. More: Hurricane Helene collides with 2024 election as Trump goes to Georgia, Harris plans visit The nation’s top two executives did not cross paths as Biden visited the battleground state of North Carolina and Harris traveled to another swing state, Georgia, just 34 days before Election Day. The aftermath of Hurricane Helene has collided with the politics of the 2024 election – with the speed, quality and disputes over federal aid posing potential election ramifications in both Georgia and North Carolina. Republican nominee Donald Trump, who visited Valdosta, Georgia, on Monday, has tried to make the Biden administration’s hurricane response a campaign issue. Brian Kemp, a Republican, was unable to reach Biden to discuss emergency aid. More: Heartbreak across 6 states: Here are some who lost lives in Hurricane Helene During her visit on Wednesday, Harris hugged and consoled residents in an Augusta neighborhood where toppled trees were visible in front yards and wooden debris covered parts of roads. “It is particularly devastating in terms of the loss of life that this community has experienced, the loss of normalcy and the loss of critical resources,” Harris said. Harris vowed “long-lasting” coordination from the federal government to get families, residents and neighborhoods “back up and running.” Biden takes aerial tour of hard-hit Asheville Biden took his aerial tour of Asheville on Marine One, dipping low to view the widespread storm damage. Near the city’s historic downtown, Biden and his team could see flattened buildings, gutted structures and knocked down trees. We’re not leaving until you’re back on your feet completely,” Biden said at an emergency command center in Raleigh, where he was joined by North Carolina Gov. A similar request from Georgia was approved for the full federal reimbursement to cover costs of emergency food, water and shelter. The president also announced the deployment of up to 1,000 active-duty soldiers to reinforce the North Carolina National Guard’s efforts to deliver food, water and medicine to isolated communities in the state. “In a moment like this, we put politics aside – at least we should put it all aside,” Biden said. More: Biden sends 1,000 Army troops to North Carolina for Helene response Biden heads Thursday to Georgia and Florida Asked why Biden and Harris did not travel together, White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said, “It was a way to make sure that we cover all fronts.” Since securing the Democratic nomination, Harris has held just one joint campaign appearance with Biden, who has battled low approval ratings for much of his presidency. The two have not appeared together in any of the four closely contested Sun Belt swing states: North Carolina, Georgia, Arizona and Nevada. Harris plans to travel to North Carolina to tour flood-damaged communities in the coming days, while Biden is scheduled to go to Georgia and Florida on Thursday without the vice president. Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas, who joined the president’s trip on Wednesday, said more than 4,800 federal workers have been deployed for the government’s response, including more than 1,000 FEMA workers. A ‘multi-billion-dollar’ recovery effort FEMA Administrator Deanne Criswell remains on the ground in western North Carolina, which was hit particularly hard by flooding, including Asheville. In North Carolina, FEMA has received more than 30,000 applications from individuals seeking disaster relief and so far distributed more than $2.6 million to survivors. Sixty-two percent of power outages reported after the flooding have been restored, with 8,000 crews continuing to assist with additional power restoration, the White House said. – This Summarize was created by Neural News AI (V1). Source: https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/elections/2024/10/02/biden-harris-tour-helene-damage/75475090007/