VALDOSTA, Ga. – Hurricane Helene’s deadly devastation has scrambled the presidential candidates’ campaign plans, with Kamala Harris returning early from a campaign visit to Las Vegas to attend briefings and Donald Trump heading to Georgia to see the storm’s impact.
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Trump was in Valdosta, one of the areas hardest hit by the storm in the state, on Monday to be briefed and spoke about the tragedy in the city and state.
“We’re here today to stand in complete solidarity with the people of Georgia,” Trump said. “And with all of those suffering in the terrible aftermath of Hurricane Helene. Hurricane Helene turned out to be a big one. Like just about the biggest that anyone has seen. I spoke with all of the relief people, all of the people that do this for a living and...they said they’ve never seen one this bad.”
“Valdosta has been ravaged. The town is very, very badly hurting and many thousands are without power.”
The death toll is over 100 people and rising, with some of the worst damage caused by inland flooding in North Carolina.
In addition to being humanitarian crises, natural disasters can create political tests for elected officials, particularly in the closing weeks of a presidential campaign.
Trump, speaking in Erie, Pa., on Sunday, described the storm as “a big monster hurricane” that had “hit a lot harder than anyone even thought possible.”
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Trump campaign officials have long pointed to his visit to East Palestine, Ohio, the site of a toxic trail derailment, as a turning point in the early days of the presidential race when he was struggling to establish his footing as a candidate. They believed his warm welcome by residents frustrated by the federal government’s response helped remind voters why they had been drawn to him years earlier.
During Trump’s term as president, he visited numerous disaster zones, including the aftermaths of hurricanes, tornados and shootings. But the trips sometimes elicited controversy such as when he tossed paper towels to cheering residents in Puerto Rico in 2017 in the wake of Hurricane Maria.