Hurricane Helene response takes center stage at Trump rally

(The Center Square) – On a rally stage hundreds of miles north of Hurricane Helene’s path of devastation, former President Donald Trump attacked the federal government’s ongoing response to the disaster.

“What’s happened there is very bad,” he said during a campaign event in Butler, Pa. “They’re offering $750 to people whose homes have been washed away, and yet we send tens of billions of dollars to foreign countries that most people have never heard of.”

The storm that came ashore Sept. 26 in the Big Bend of Florida as a Category 4 hurricane with 140 mph sustained winds stalled out over the Appalachian Mountains and Tennessee, causing catastrophic flooding.

Six states collectively have lost more than 220 lives to the fourth most deadly hurricane of the last three-quarters of a century, and rescue workers are yet to say they have accounted for all the missing.

Aid has poured in from multiple states, and in remarkable ways. Helicopters have found people by mirrors reflecting the sun; mules have carried medicine and supplies up muddied slopes and through flooded terrain. In some communities, communication is akin to a town crier on a picnic table amid where people can safely gather for updates.

The federal government’s support, however, has left many public officials unimpressed – Trump most of all. During his speech Saturday, he skewered Vice President Kamala Harris for being “wined and dined” in San Francisco while people in North Carolina awaited rescue.

“If you want a president who won't even try to save you when the flood waters are rising, vote for Kamala,” he said.

It’s the second time in as many days that Trump has criticized the Federal Emergency Management Agency for spending millions to settle undocumented migrants earlier in the year, leaving little money behind for disaster relief.

The agency announced $640 million for migrant resettlement in April. In comments to The Center Square , the White House said the two priorities receive funding from separate sources – and there’s no danger of running out of support for hurricane victims.

For critics, the initial $750 pledged as immediate assistance is unconscionable. Donald Trump Jr., while on stage at his father’s Butler rally Saturday, was one of them.

“You have people’s houses floating down rivers and what does Kamala do? She says yes, I’d like to give those families $750,” he said. “Guys, this isn’t America first. It’s America last.”

A White House spokesperson told The Center Square earlier this week that the figure is just immediate assistance for victims. More aid is forthcoming.

Alan Wooten and Casey Harper contributed to this report.