Large swaths of the Southeast are still reeling from the devastation wreaked by Hurricane Helene, and Florida’s staring down the barrel of a Category 5 storm in Milton, and for some reason, Vice President and Democrat presidential nominee Kamala Harris decided now was a good time to pick a fight with Florida Governor Ron DeSantis. Well, just as with her running mate selection, she chose unwisely.
Here’s the background:
On Monday, NBC ran an anonymously sourced report asserting that DeSantis had refused to take calls from Harris regarding Helene recovery efforts. DeSantis pushed back on the notion, stating he’d not received a call from Harris to his knowledge and, by the way, he’s been a little busy.
Then, Harris, apparently hungry, decided to dine on her own foot and accuse DeSantis of playing politics in a crisis situation.
WATCH: Ron DeSantis Responds Accordingly After Reporter Plays Politics
During Hurricane Milton Briefing
Kamala Harris Promptly Sticks Foot in Mouth When Asked About DeSantis
Allegedly Refusing to Take Her Call
DeSantis responded by blasting Harris for being a delusional blunderbuss when asked about it on Sean Hannity’s Fox News show Monday night, noting that he’d dealt with both President Donald Trump and President Joe Biden in relation to storms that have hit his state and worked well with both of them.
Then, as if to add an exclamation point to DeSantis’ response, Biden put out a tweet noting that he’d spoken with DeSantis and everything was peachy keen between the administration and the governor (as well as Tampa Mayor Jane Castor) in terms of preparedness for Milton.
WATCH: Ron DeSantis Blasts ‘Blundering’ Kamala, Says the Lying Veep Has No Role in Hurricane Milton
Biden Does It Again, Completely Nukes Kamala Harris’ Attack on Ron DeSantis
DeSantis was also interviewed by the hosts of “Fox & Friends” Tuesday morning regarding the hurricane and the preparations being made ahead of its anticipated late Wednesday/early Thursday landfall.
He was asked again about Harris’ comments characterizing his behavior as selfish and about political gamesmanship and didn’t hold back in response:
Governor DeSantis slams Kamala on her phone call bs! pic.twitter.com/TmDDqm3N5k
— Karli Bonne’ 🇺🇸 (@KarluskaP) October 8, 2024
“Well, I think she should look in the mirror. We’ve been on an emergency footing for two weeks straight — around the clock, 24/7. We’ve been working — my office, our Division of Emergency Management — helping people prepare for Hurricane Helene, helping effectuate rescues of people after Hurricane Helene, helping people pick up the pieces of their lives after Helene, and then have to also turn around and prepare for major impacts and maybe even more impacts from Hurricane Milton, be able to have rescue personnel ready to help people, and then, of course, help with the power restoration — all these things to do.
“So, that’s been my sole focus. My focus has not been on dealing with Kamala Harris. I saw the news report — I didn’t know she tried to contact me. But I’d also say: It’s not about you, Kamala. It’s about the people of Florida. My focus is exactly where it should be, and I can tell you this: I’ve worked on these hurricanes under both President Trump and President Biden — neither of them ever tried to politicize it. She has never called — on any of the storms we’ve had since she’s been vice president — until apparently now. Why, all of a sudden, is she trying to parachute in and inject herself when she’s never shown any interest in the past? We know it’s because of politics. We know it’s because of her campaign.
“I have zero time to entertain these political games. We’re going to continue to do what we need to do to prepare and respond to what may be one of the most damaging storms in the history of the United States. So she says focusing on protecting your people is selfish? I think she ought to look in the mirror.”
And in case that didn’t leave a sufficient mark, DeSantis was asked by Brian Kilmeade if he had everything he needed from the administration and resources in place ahead of the storm, to which DeSantis said:
“Every request we’ve made — and I’ve been in contact with the president, I’ve been in contact with the FEMA director. You know, it’s interesting — Harris is not even in the chain of command. She has no role in this. I mean, the idea that I should be, like, worrying about her when I’m focused on the task at hand is just, quite frankly, absurd.
“So, yes, all of our requests have been answered. We have marshaled all state resources that are available to us. It’s going to be a very robust response, but it’s going to be a lot of damage and we’re bracing for that. I’d ask everyone to keep us in your prayers. We know we’re going to get hit, but hopefully, we can pray that this storm will weaken and do the least amount of damage possible.”
Maybe while Kamala Harris is busy attempting to throw shade at “anyone who calls themselves a leader,” she should take some lessons from DeSantis on how to actually be one.
