(Bloomberg) -- President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris separately toured parts of the US southeast devastated by Hurricane Helene to see the damage firsthand and assure voters of the federal response to a disaster Donald Trump has sought to make a 2024 election issue.
“The president and I have been paying close attention since the beginning,” Harris said during a visit to swing-state Georgia where she surveyed the storm fallout and met families impacted by the hurricane along with first responders.
“We are here for the long haul,” she continued. “There’s a lot of work that’s going to need to happen over the coming days, weeks and months.”
Helene tore a path of destruction across the US southeast and even as the floodwaters recede, the region faces a humanitarian and economic crisis. There are at least 166 confirmed dead across six states and countless others displaced.
The parallel trips offered a public demonstration aimed at countering criticism from Trump – Harris’ 2024 rival – that the administration is not doing enough to help battered communities, including in the pivotal swing states of Georgia and North Carolina, five weeks ahead of Election Day.
Biden separately traveled to South Carolina and North Carolina on Wednesday and plans to travel to Florida and Georgia on Thursday. Harris intends to visit North Carolina in the coming days.
Both Biden and Harris on Wednesday announced steps to bolster recovery efforts.
Harris said Biden approved Georgia Governor Brian Kemp’s request for a 100% federal cost share for debris removal and emergency protective measures for three months, a step aimed at speeding up urgent recovery work. And she said the Federal Emergency Management Agency would provide tens of thousands of dollars to help those affected with home repair and hotel costs.
Earlier Wednesday, Biden said he directed the Pentagon to send up to 1,000 active duty troops to help with recovery operations in North Carolina, speeding up “the delivery of life-saving supplies of food, water, and medicine to isolated communities.”
In North Carolina, Biden said he had also approved Governor Roy Cooper’s request to cover 100% of local costs.
Trump Criticism
The visits by Harris and Biden come two days after Trump visited Georgia. The former president has criticized Harris for being on a campaign swing while the storm hit and Biden for handling the initial response from his home in Delaware. The hurricane has morphed into a political test for Harris and Trump as they seek to cast themselves to voters as able to handle major crises.
Despite Trump’s criticism, Republican governors whose states were affected by the storm have praised the administration’s response.
South Carolina Governor Henry McMaster on Tuesday said the assistance had been “superb” and Biden told him to let the president know what the state needed. Kemp in Georgia has also said Biden contacted him to ask about the state’s needs.
Biden was greeted by McMaster and Republican US Senator Lindsey Graham of South Carolina when he arrived in their state Wednesday.
Still, with the election near and early voting already underway in some states, the president — and Harris who supplanted him atop their party’s ticket — have shuffled their schedules and sought to demonstrate to voters that they are marshaling the government’s resources to deal with the storm’s aftermath.
Harris walked through an Augusta, Georgia neighborhood where homes were ravaged by the storm. She also visited a food distribution center, helping hand out meal kits alongside American Red Cross workers and taking selfies with those receiving aid.
Economic Impact
The storm, coupled by a major strike by dockworkers that has shuttered ports along the East and Gulf coasts, threatens to disrupt the economy ahead of an election in which voter frustration about how the Biden administration has handled high prices for goods and services is a defining concern for the electorate.
Biden warned about the impact of a prolonged strike earlier Wednesday, ratcheting up pressure on US port employers and shipping lines to restart talks with dock workers.
“The last thing we need on top of that is a man-made disaster: what’s going on at the ports,” Biden said.
Earlier: Biden Says Prolonged Port Strike Would Be ‘Man-Made Disaster’
Parts of the storm-hit region are still struggling to reopen roads and reconnect power from the hurricane that at its peak knocked out electricity to more than 4 million homes and businesses.
Cotton crops that were on the verge of harvest were flattened and parts of the power grid have been destroyed. Crop losses alone could trigger $7 billion in insurance payouts, according to an estimate from a US Department of Agriculture official on Tuesday.
Helene also halted mining operations in North Carolina that produce high-purity quartz used to make silicon wafers, dealing a jolt to the global semiconductor industry.
An early projection from AccuWeather Inc. predicted total economic damage from Helene could hit $160 billion. That would make it one of the five costliest storms in US history.
--With assistance from Josh Wingrove.
©2024 Bloomberg L.P.