Staff Reports
A little drama unfolded over the weekend as Vice President Kamala Harris decided to share her so-called “briefing” on Hurricane Helene with the world. The image she posted was supposed to scream competence and concern. Still, instead, it elicited laughter, mockery, and a whole heap of criticism from social media users, including none other than former President Donald Trump.
With an earbud that wasn’t plugged in and a blank piece of paper, the photo seemed to tell a different story: one of someone playing make-believe rather than a politician stepping up in a time of crisis. The internet had a field day, pointing out that Harris looked less like a vice president in charge and more like a child playing dress-up with a toy phone. One particularly astute observer noted that if you’re faking a phone call to seem vital during a disaster, at least make it look convincing.
Your Democratic presidential candidate ladies and gentlemen…
Kamala slammed over staged hurricane recovery photo with unplugged headphones, blank paperhttps://t.co/xMstTARkve
— Savanah Hernandez (@sav_says_) September 30, 2024
Responses rolled in quicker than a politician can dodge a real question. Critics insisted that if Harris was going to try to appear engaged in a serious briefing, the least she could do was make sure the earbuds were connected—unless, of course, she was conversing with the invisible man down the street. Social media users had a field day, questioning the effectiveness of a pen hovering over a blank page, wondering if it was a “magic” pen with invisible ink. Others chimed in about the embarrassingly staged nature of the entire scenario, further feeding the narrative of an administration that excels in photo ops but falls flat in actual crisis management.
Harris didn’t stop with the cringe-worthy photo; the backdrop of her weekend also involved a fundraising spree where she raked in a cool $55 million. This caused many to raise eyebrows, given the severe weather wreaking havoc on states like Florida, Georgia, and North Carolina. Meanwhile, she was caught juggling glamorous parties while hurricane victims were left high and dry. It’s as if the hurricane was a mere inconvenience, something to be referenced between sips of expensive wine rather than an urgent national disaster demanding real leadership.
Despite the backlash, the White House defended the vice president and her boss, President Joe Biden, who spent the weekend at his beach house rather than focusing on the natural disaster unraveling on the East Coast. Harris made a grand entrance at the FEMA headquarters later on Monday. Still, video footage showed her dodging reporters’ questions faster than she dodged any accountability for her earlier social media escapade.
Critics continued to hammer away at this administration, branding it as a bad episode of “The Office,” where the characters are all clueless but convinced they are doing the right thing. It’s a head-scratcher how Harris and Biden continue to stand by their actions—or lack thereof—while the country cries out for real leadership, especially in times of genuine crisis. With so much happening on the ground, perhaps it’s time the administration unplugged, got off social media, and focused on tangible solutions instead.
