The two major presidential candidates visited North Carolina to discuss the federal government’s response to Hurricane Helene following President Joe Biden’s Wednesday visit to observe the damage to the state.
Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump held a town hall in Fayetteville’s Crown Arena on Friday afternoon, while Democratic presidential nominee Kamala Harris landed in Charlotte on Saturday, marking her second visit in four days to regions affected by Helene.
During his town hall, Trump heavily criticized the Biden administration’s response to Hurricane Helene.
“They are doing the worst job on a hurricane that any administration has ever done,” Trump said, comparing the federal response to that of Hurricane Katrina.
In particular, he criticized the resource distribution efforts by the Federal Emergency Management Agency, claiming that “illegal immigrants” are being housed in hotels and “walk[ing] by veterans who are sleeping on the street.”
Florida Congresswoman Anna Paulina Luna, who moderated the event, also believed that the government has “intentionally … not helped out [North Carolina] residents because it’s red communities that are impacted.”
CNN deemed both claims to be false. On Thursday, FEMA released a statement that no funds were being used for efforts other than disaster response and recovery.
The rest of the town hall featured topics including immigration, the military and renaming Fort Liberty to Fort Bragg. Notably, Trump once again did not mention Lt. Gov. Mark Robinson.
Vice President Harris attended a FEMA briefing in which state officials discussed damage caused by the hurricane and relief operations.
“FEMA has been on the ground with us from the very beginning of this,” she said.
Additionally, Harris visited a resource distribution center, during which she spoke to volunteers and affected civilians.
“I think that these moments of crisis bring out some of the best of who we could be and who we are,” she said.
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Winston Qian is a Pratt sophomore and health/science editor for the news department.