Vice President Kamala Harris is under fire for skipping the hurricane preparedness briefings that were a fixture on predecessor Mike Pence's annual calendar, with the Democrat presidential nominee's critics pointing to her decision to forgo the meetings as a preview of her potential governing style.
As the death toll from Hurricane Helene in the Southeast climbed past 143, Harris hastened back to Washington, D.C., from Las Vegas on Monday afternoon to attend a FEMA briefing, while also booking a trip to tour the damage in Augusta, Georgia, on Wednesday.
"Harris hasn't demonstrated the ability — or desire — to do the apolitical parts of the job that have a huge impact on our lives," a former Pence aide told the New York Post. "Why should Americans trust her to start in the Oval Office?"
During their time in office, former President Donald Trump and Pence reportedly held hurricane preparedness meetings each year before the start of the season.
The Post reported that President Joe Biden held similar meetings in 2021, 2022, and 2023, but it does not appear that Harris joined him or held similar events of her own.
Former acting Homeland Security Secretary Chad Wolf told the outlet that annual visits from the president and vice president are important, adding that Harris' opting out recalls her role as Biden's border czar and "just fits a larger pattern."
"It doesn't seem like she wants to roll up her sleeves and actually get into the governing of the country, which is hard to do," Wolf said. "It's not glamorous. It's a lot of briefings."
"My guess is she would act the very same way [as president], which is hands off — 'I'm not going to run the country. I'm going to put a team together, and they'll run it, and I'll kind of talk about it,' which is obviously a very different model than what President Trump did," he said.
Wolf said the briefings had the effect of keeping FEMA employees vigilant and of forcing the agency's management to analyze foreseen issues, while also paving the way to access necessary resources.
"It's like any other job where your boss is asking you specific questions — you get more motivated to do a better job," Wolf said.
"It's not that they do a lesser job," he said. "It's just they know that the importance isn't being placed on their work."
Rep. Chuck Edwards, R-N.C., whose district includes some of the hardest-hit areas, told NewsNation on Monday that "the people in western North Carolina feel let down," and "deservedly so."
"The response has been disappointing," Edwards said. "We've begun to see some resources brought in today, but the storm was over about 80 hours ago. The storm was over about 10 a.m. Friday. We knew that the storm was coming and only today are we beginning to see the first FEMA employees and trailers and helicopters come in."
Harris spokesperson Ernesto Apreza told the Post that the vice president "regularly receives briefings from relevant federal agencies and officials on emerging storms, other natural disasters, and the federal government's response efforts."
"She's also gone to FEMA headquarters and NOAA's National Hurricane Center to see preparations first hand, and visited Houston's emergency operation center in the wake of Hurricane Beryl," Apreza said. "It is a top priority for the Vice President to ensure communities impacted by natural disasters have the resources they need to respond."
Nicole Weatherholtz ✉
Nicole Weatherholtz, a Newsmax general assignment reporter covers news, politics, and culture. She is a National Newspaper Association award-winning journalist.
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