‘She Should Look in the mirror’: DeSantis hits back at Harris’s claims of selfishness during crisis

In a recent exchange, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis responded vigorously to Vice President Kamala Harris’s accusation of selfishness regarding his handling of hurricane relief efforts. During an interview on Fox & Friends, DeSantis was confronted with Harris’s claims that he was prioritizing political games over the urgent needs of Floridians in the wake of Hurricane Helene.

Co-host Ainsley Earhardt presented Harris’s remarks, which criticized DeSantis for not setting aside politics during a crisis. She quoted Harris: “A moment of crisis, if nothing else, should really be the moment that anyone calls himself a leader says they’re going to put politics aside and put the people first. People are in desperate need of support right now and playing political games at this moment in these crisis situations is just utterly irresponsible, and it’s selfish and it’s about political gamesmanship.”

DeSantis did not hold back in his rebuttal. “She should look in the mirror. We have been on an emergency footing for two weeks straight around the clock, 24/7. We have been working. My office, our division of emergency management, is helping people prepare for Hurricane Helene and helping effectuate rescues of people after Hurricane Helene,” he stated emphatically.

He continued, emphasizing the gravity of the situation: “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.”

DeSantis made it clear that his priorities lie with the people of Florida, not with political distractions. “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 would also say it’s not about you, Kamala it’s about the people of Florida. My focus is where it should be. I can tell you this I have worked on hurricanes under President Trump and President Biden. Neither of them ever tried to politicize it,” he asserted.

He further questioned Harris’s sudden interest in Florida’s crises, stating, “She has never called on any of the storms we have had since she has been vice president until apparently now. Why all of a sudden is she trying to parachute in and inject herself when she has never shown any interest in the past? We know it’s because of politics. We know it’s because of her campaign.”

DeSantis concluded with a firm stance against political maneuvering during emergencies: “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.”

In a separate interview with Kayleigh McEnany, DeSantis provided a sobering update on the aftermath of Hurricane Helene, noting, “Yeah, that’s right. I mean, we had 6-7 feet throughout the Tampa Bay area that exceeded records in a lot of those places. And of course, that creates a whole host of problems.” He acknowledged the challenges faced by residents, stating, “So you did have some people that stayed, that got some surge in those evacuation zones. But all the rescue attempts were successful.”

The governor described the ongoing difficulties in the region, saying, “Well, it’s a very difficult time. I mean, I think that when you deal with these storms, and they did do Idalia, which was a major hurricane. Then we had Debby, which was a Category One storm but basically was on almost the same route. So it didn’t do as much damage as Idalia in and of itself. But when you compound it from what had happened. Then you have Helene, which was stronger than Idalia, and has done more damage than both combined.” He added, “It’s demoralizing. And so, I think that there’s a — it’s going to be some trying times in that Big Bend part of the state of Florida.”

As the recovery efforts continue, DeSantis confirmed the tragic loss of life due to the storm, stating, “So, that was the first one yesterday. The other one we’ve confirmed is that there was an individual in Dixie County, tree fell on the home. And these are freak things that can happen. It’s very sad.” He assured that search and rescue operations would persist, saying, “We have not seen that yet, but there’s going to be more operations done today for search and rescue, and even in places that weren’t made phone calls in, there’s going to be sweeps of those very vulnerable areas just to ensure that people are OK.”

In closing, McEnany expressed solidarity with the affected communities, stating, “Well, our prayers are with Florida and the entire southeast region. Thank you, Governor.”