US: Ron DeSantis made this accusation on Vice President Kamala Harris
US: Ron DeSantis, the governor of Florida, has charged Vice President Kamala Harris of having “no role” in assisting the state in either recovering from Hurricane Helene or getting ready for Hurricane Milton.
Following revelations by NBC News and ABC News that the Republican governor declined to answer calls from the vice president to address a reaction to Hurricane Helene, which recently struck Florida and other Southeast states, DeSantis and Harris have traded insults.
DeSantis attacked Harris for implying he is engaging in “political gamesmanship” instead of looking out for the people of Florida while speaking Monday night to Fox News’s Sean Hannity. Newsweek emailed DeSantis’ office and Harris’ campaign team to get comments.
“For Kamala Harris to say that my sole attention on the people of Florida is somehow selfish, is delusional,” he remarked.
“She doesn’t fit in this. She has really been vice president for three and a half years. She has never made any contribution to any of the initiatives; I have coped with several storms under this government.
He said: “She’s looking for some kind of edge. She is playing political games because she understands she is failing. Political games are not worth my attention.
A DeSantis official told NBC News that his impressions of the Democratic presidential nominee’s outreach “seemed political.” DeSantis has refuted claims that he has been reviewing Harris’s phone records.
When questioned about his reportedly declining calls, Harris charged the Florida governor of being “utterly irresponsible” and not “doing the job that you took an oath to do”.
The back-and-forth between the duo arises as Florida gets ready for the approach of Category 4 hurricane Hurricane Milton, which is slated to make landfall on Wednesday.
Denying allegations that he ignored calls from Harris while meeting with reporters on Monday, the Florida governor
“I didn’t know she had called,” he said. “I’m not sure to whom they addressed. They did not call me. Their portrayal of it was something they did. In terms as stating it was political, nothing anybody in my office did.
Regarding the claims, Harris said: “Moments of crisis, if nothing else, should really be the moment anyone who calls themselves a leader says they’re going to put politics aside and put the people first.
“These are the height of emergency circumstances; people are in great need of help right now and are engaged in political games in these crisis conditions.
She said, “It’s absolutely reckless, and it is selfish and it is about political gamesmanship instead of doing the job that you took an oath to do.”
GOP leaders have been accused of attempting to politicize the Biden government’s and the Federal Emergency Management Agency [FEMA] response to Hurricane Helene.
For implying that the federal government cannot pay for a reaction to Hurricane Helene as the money is being spent on immigration, President Joe Biden dubbed Donald Trump a “liar”.
Before Hurricane Milton made landfall, DeSantis told Hannity he had talked with Biden and FEMA chief Kim Kadesch.
Monday, the White House verified that Biden accepted DeSantis’ emergency declaration request for Florida.
In its most recent public warning, the National Hurricane Center dropped Hurricane Milton from a Category 5 storm to a Category 4 one.
The organization warned, “while fluctuations in intensity are expected, Milton is forecast to remain an extremely dangerous hurricane through landfall in Florida.”
