Staff Reports
In a shocking display of priorities, White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre defended President Joe Biden’s beach getaway while the country grappled with the destruction wrought by Hurricane Helene. As states on the East Coast were left reeling from the storm, Biden enjoyed the serenity of his beach house, while Vice President Kamala Harris was raking it in at high-dollar fundraisers on the West Coast. It appears that the only thing crushed by the hurricane were the hopes of concerned Americans looking for leadership during a crisis.
During a press briefing that had the energy of a parent deflecting questions about their child’s poor grades, Jean-Pierre claimed that Biden was doing exactly what a president should do under the circumstances—directing his team from a distance. Apparently, issuing instructions from a seaside hammock is now the gold standard of presidential action. The FEMA administrator was brought into the briefing room, not to discuss on-the-ground response efforts, but to assure everyone that Biden was hard at work… on the phone. Who knew that two hours of phone calls equated to hands-on disaster management?
As the hurricane pummeled Eastern states, the Trump campaign wasted no time in highlighting Harris’s absence from the action, instead opting for fundraisers in sunny California. While the residents of disaster-stricken areas were seeking leadership, all the Vice President seemed to be interested in was fattening her campaign war chest—55 million dollars richer by the time her jet set returned was clearly a win in her book.
Biden himself took a defensive stance when questioned about his leadership during the crisis. His remarks while departing a press conference indicated he believed that phone calls equated to command. Perhaps he thinks that shouting “I’m on it!” down a telephone line is a sufficient substitute for physical presence or visible leadership during a national emergency. His insistence that he was “commanding” the situation while lounging at the beach raises serious questions about what it actually means to lead in times of crisis.
Washington Examiner: KJP insists Biden did ‘exactly what a president’ should do in hurricane response https://t.co/eTFQLGoxUo
— Ian Hansen News 🇺🇸🇺🇸 (@IanHansenNews) October 1, 2024
Meanwhile, Harris finally made her way back to the White House after her weekend of schmoozing with big donors. Her visit to FEMA headquarters sparked more questions than it answered. Perhaps a hurricane wasn’t the ideal backdrop for her unyielding campaign activities, but a well-padded bank account definitely was. While residents were digging out from under debris, Harris seemed more focused on gathering donations than confronting the real-life consequences of the disaster.
The pattern is clear: when the chips are down, the Biden administration favors the beach over the briefing room, and fundraisers over first responders. In their universe, emergencies can wait, but big donors and lavish events cannot. Such choices leave many wondering if anyone in this administration understands what it truly means to serve the American people.
