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U.S. President Joe Biden pledged that 1,000 active-duty troops will be sent to North Carolina to support disaster relief in the aftermath of deadly Hurricane Helene. The president and Vice President Kamala Harris will travel separately to the hardest-hit areas on Wednesday.
The storm has killed at least 160 people, with hundreds still missing in the southeastern US. More than a million households are without power and the cost of damage is estimated at $30 billion.
The storm – and the response to it – are a “political flashpoint,” CNN noted, with just weeks to go until November’s presidential election.
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Among the most affected states are Georgia and North Carolina, which could be crucial for the outcome of November’s presidential election. Biden and Harris have said they timed and limited their visits to the disaster area to allow relief efforts to continue unhindered, while Trump falsely suggested during a visit to Georgia on Monday that Biden had ignored calls from state governors asking for help ignored.
For Trump in particular, his criticism could backfire: As president, Trump notably delayed aid to Puerto Rico after Hurricane Maria hit in 2017 and diverted federal disaster funding toward the deportation of undocumented migrants, The Associated Press noted, which could lead to unwanted comparisons of Democrats in the United States. final run-up to the elections.
