ICYMI: President Obama Blasts Donald Trump For Spreading Lies About Hurricane Relief Efforts

Washington, D.C. — Yesterday, at a rally in Pittsburgh, President Obama reminded us of the consequences of Donald Trump’s dangerous disinformation campaign. While Kamala Harris has provided steady leadership throughout Hurricanes Helene and Milton, Donald Trump has spouted climate conspiracies and spread disinformation that sows chaos and prevents impacted communities from getting the aid they need.

President Obama:

We are heartbroken about the loss of life in Florida, North Carolina, and states across the Southeast. We’re thinking about the people and families whose lives have been upended by the storms over the last couple of weeks. I could not be more grateful for the first responders and FEMA professionals who have put themselves in harm’s way to try to help. It’s times like this when you realize that having honest, competent leadership in government really matters. It makes a difference, and today I’m asking you to vote for some of those leaders.

…

We have a broader idea of freedom. We believe in the freedom to provide for our families if we’re willing to work. The freedom to breathe clean air and drink clean water and send our kids to school without worrying if they come home.

…

I talked about this before — we had one of the deadliest hurricanes in American history. The beautiful town of Asheville, North Carolina – one of my favorite places in the country, I’ve spent time there, amazing people – devastated, hundreds of people were killed. President Biden and Vice President Harris were down there, meeting with local officials and comforting families, and asking how they could help. Donald Trump, at a rally, started making up stories about the Biden administration withholding aid from Republican areas and siphoning off aid to give to undocumented immigrants. He just made the stuff up. Everybody knew it wasn’t true, even local Republicans said it was not true.

Now, the people of Florida are dealing with another devastating storm, and I want you to watch what happens over the next few days. Just like the last time, you’re going to have leaders who try to help, and then you have a guy who just lies about it to score political points. This has consequences because people are afraid, they’ve lost everything, and they’re trying to figure out how to apply for help. Some of them may even be discouraged from getting the help they need. The idea of intentionally deceiving people during their most desperate and vulnerable moments — my question is, when did that become okay?

I’m not looking for applause right now. I want to ask Republicans out there, people who are conservative, who didn’t vote for me or didn’t agree with me — I had friends who disagreed with me on every issue — when did that become okay? Why would we go along with that?