Vice President and Democratic presidential candidate Kamala Harris spoke about the kind of leader she would be in an emergency.
That’s not great.
Florida is about to be hit by its second major hurricane in two weeks, but instead of offering any help she can, Harris has harsh words for Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis.
DeSantis on Monday called approaching Hurricane Milton a “monster” and urged residents in its path to evacuate as soon as possible. Meanwhile, he remains busy overseeing cleanup efforts for Hurricane Helen, which claimed the lives of an estimated 20 Florida residents.
In other words, DeSantis is so busy that he really doesn’t have time for politics.
But that’s exactly what Harris wants to do.
Harris instinctively wanted to call DeSantis by name and had no intention of offering assistance.
NBC News reported this week that DeSantis allegedly chose not to answer calls from Harris after Hurricane Helen.
That was Harris’ answer when asked about this on Monday. “A moment of crisis should be a moment when whoever calls themselves a leader declares that they are going to put politics aside and put the people first.The people are in dire need of help right now. Taking advantage of this moment of crisis to engage in political maneuvering is the height of the emergency and is completely irresponsible and selfish.
By the looks of them, Harris’ words are fine. Actually, she’s right.
But given the circumstances, she’s doing the opposite, putting politics ahead of the people of Florida. All she wanted to say was that she was ready to help in any way she could.
And Harris couldn’t do that.
DeSantis denied knowing he had made the call. Rather, he also met with President Joe Biden and the head of FEMA, the federal agency tasked with dealing with such emergencies.
In response to Harris’ attack, the governor appeared on Fox News and said the vice president had “no role in this” and had not bothered to contact her during previous hurricanes.
“In fact, she’s been vice president for three and a half years,” DeSantis said. “I have dealt with numerous storms under this administration, and she has contributed nothing to these efforts.”
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DeSantis: “We don’t have time for political games”
He also said he has handled storms under both former President Donald Trump and Biden, and that both have worked well together.
“She’s the first person to try to politicize this storm, and she’s doing it just for her own campaign,” DeSantis said. “We don’t have time for political games.”
If anything, Harris owes DeSantis “thank you” for his effective management.
Following Herren, Florida’s governor said the situation was “manageable” and said additional federal aid should be focused on North Carolina, which has been hit even harder.
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Two years ago, after Hurricane Ian had a devastating impact on Florida, DeSantis welcomed the president to see the aftermath. The two men, who had exchanged sharp attacks many times in the run-up to the midterm elections, were able to put aside their differences and work for the interests of those affected by the hurricanes.
“I think he’s done a good job,” Biden said at the time. “We have very different political philosophies, but we have worked together. … We have been completely aligned in dealing with this crisis.”
That’s what leadership looks like during a crisis.
And Mr. Harris is not rising to the challenge.
Ingrid Jack is a columnist for USA TODAY. Contact ijacques@usatoday.com or X (formerly Twitter: @Ingrid_Jacques).
