On Friday, former President Donald Trump headed to Evans, Georgia, where he and Republican Governor Brian Kemp were briefed on the devastation from Hurricane Helene in the eastern part of the Peach state, and delivered remarks. You might want to read that sentence again.
For the first time since 2020, Gov. Brian Kemp and former President Donald Trump will appear together. It’s not a campaign event, it’s a briefing on Hurricane Helene’s aftermath in east Georgia. But it’s still a significant moment in the November race. #gapol pic.twitter.com/kT4aSTwiOP
— Greg Bluestein (@bluestein) October 3, 2024
They were invited by local officials, according to reports:
But the event is not being billed as a campaign appearance, and officials in Columbia County invited both men to attend the briefing, according to a person with knowledge of the appearance, granted anonymity to speak freely.
Of course, Kemp and Trump appearing in the same place is huge. They last did that in 2020, and it’s only been recently that the rancor between the two over the last presidential election has subsided. (It says something that the photo of the two men together at the top of this story is culled from 2018.)
But what the meet-up wasn’t is just as important. You probably have an idea what that is, as the Atlanta Journal-Constitution’s Greg Bluestein mentioned it in his X post: It wasn’t a campaign rally, just over a month before one of the most important presidential elections of our lifetimes. I’ll get to why that’s a net positive for Republicans in a minute.
Kemp spoke on the devastation to crops and livestock in Georgia, and what his administration is doing to ease the burden of the hurricane on all Georgians, including temporarily suspending the gas tax:
Governor @BrianKempGA details the destruction Hurricane Helene left in its path.
President Trump stands with the people of Georgia as they recover from this catastrophe. pic.twitter.com/iPQ4QNL1iN
— Trump War Room (@TrumpWarRoom) October 4, 2024
Trump took to the microphones next, and called Hurricane Helene “one of the deadliest storms in American history,” citing the current death toll of more than 200, but saying it will surely rise:
“Our hearts break for the more than 200 American families” who’ve lost loved ones.
– President Trump in Georgia pic.twitter.com/jsV0McgYUb
— Trump War Room (@TrumpWarRoom) October 4, 2024
Then he lit into the White House for its pathetic response:
PRESIDENT TRUMP: “It’s been a terrible response from the White House. They’re missing a billion dollars that was used for another purpose — From that standpoint, it’s been terrible.” pic.twitter.com/PX52bP7lq8
— Trump War Room (@TrumpWarRoom) October 4, 2024
Notice the former president’s pitch-perfect reply to a media question on how the storm damage might affect voter turnout (I’m guessing at the context, since the clip starts after the question is asked.):
Watch:
PRESIDENT TRUMP to REPORTER: I’m not thinking about voters right now. I’m thinking about lives. A lot of lives lost. A lot of people missing and that’s what I’d be focused on right now. pic.twitter.com/cPWKX85BKr
— Trump War Room (@TrumpWarRoom) October 4, 2024
What’s the takeaway from the Georgia briefing event? It’s a big deal, showing Republicans are unified, which is the Democrats’ worst nightmare. Their every word and action shows that discord and division are their goal. While Trump was with Kemp, Friday saw the Dems putting on a kabuki theater show in Michigan at Kamala Harris’ event with (I can’t even believe I’m writing this) displaced Wyoming GOP Rep. Liz Cheney.
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As I said, this is a smart strategy on Team Trump’s part; it is good for not only the GOP presidential ticket but the party as a whole. The fact that we can extend an olive branch this way while helping a segment of the American people in abject chaos, is a positive sign–and says so much to American voters about the contrast between the GOP and Democrats.
