Vice President Kamala Harris dodged a question for a statement saying aid to communities affected by devastating Hurricane Ian should be based on “justice.”
Harris was asked by a reporter at the 51st Annual Phoenix Awards, a dinner hosted by the Congressional Black Caucus Foundation in Washington Saturday night, “Vice President, can you clarify what you meant by justice for hurricane relief?”
The vice president, according to Fox News, did not respond to the question, despite looking directly at the reporter, and walked away with a security detail.
This comes after the vice president, a Democrat, was heavily criticized for saying people of color and low-income communities “are hit hardest by these extremes.” [weather] Conditions.’
Christina Pushaw, head of Rapid Response for Republican Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, called Vice President Harris’ statements false, adding, “Your rhetoric is causing undue panic and needs to be addressed. FEMA Individual Assistance is already available to all Floridians affected by Hurricane Ian, regardless of race or background.’
Vice President Kamala Harris dodged a question for a statement saying aid to communities affected by devastating Hurricane Ian should be based on “justice.”
Although the vice president looked directly at the reporter, he did not answer the question and walked away with security details
Pushaw continued to encourage her followers in need of assistance in the wake of the hurricane to call 1-800-621-3362 or log on to Disasterassistance.gov.
She followed up her original message by saying: “The @VP also needs to correct what she said. A true journalist would simply ask her to clarify what she meant by those comments and why she misrepresented the relief effort.”
Speaking at the Democratic National Committee’s Women’s Leadership Forum on Friday, Harris said it’s people of color and lower-income communities that are “hardest hit by these extremes [weather] Conditions.’
The devastation inflicted on Florida came into focus a day after Ian struck as a monstrous Category 4 hurricane, one of the most powerful storms to ever hit the United States
It flooded homes on both shores of the state, cut off the only road access to a offshore island, destroyed a historic waterfront pier and shut off power to 2.67 million Florida homes and businesses — nearly a quarter of utility customers.
Harris, 57, was discussing climate change with actress Priyanka Chopra in Washington, DC as she made her comments.
Vice President Kamala Harris speaks during the Democratic National Committee’s Women’s Leadership Forum in Washington, DC
Harris, 57, was discussing climate change with actress Priyanka Chopra as she made her controversial comments
Harris said of the relief, “We have to approach this in a way that is about allocating resources based on justice and understanding that we’re fighting for equality, but we also have to fight for justice.”
The Vice President continued, “I know we are all thinking of the families in Florida and Puerto Rico [Hurricane] Fiona and what we must do to help them in the form of an immediate response and assistance.’
She continued, “We have to approach this in a way that is about allocating resources based on justice and understanding that we are fighting for equality, but we also have to fight for justice.”
Harris added, “We understand that not everyone starts in the same place, and if we want people to be in an equal place, sometimes we have to accommodate those differences.”
World’s richest man Elon Musk joined the call for Harris.
World’s richest man Elon Musk chimed in on Harris’ comments
He commented on Students for Trump founder Ryan Fournier’s tweet about Harris. Musk said relief should be granted “on the basis of the greatest need, not by race or anything else.”
Fournier tweeted: “You can’t make that up. Kamala Harris said the administration will allocate hurricane resources “on an equity basis” by directing funds to “communities of color.” I guess everyone else is just screwed.”
Pushaw later announced on her Twitter feed that Florida’s First Lady, Casey DeSantis, had awarded $1 million from the Florida Disaster Fund to eligible organizations helping victims.
You can donate to the fund here.
Earlier this week, Harris was in South Korea visiting the DMZ border that separates south from north on the peninsula
Vice President Harris met South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol – the pair issued a joint statement condemning the missile launches from North Korea that took place during the visit
Earlier this week, Harris made headlines when she visited South Korea for the wrong reasons, when she falsely touted the “strong alliance” the US has with the “Republic of North Korea.”
North Korea fired missiles before and after Harris’ visit to the peninsula, extending a record pace of weapons tests this year as it increases the threat of a credible nuclear power hitting the United States and its allies.
Pyongyang also conducted the first ICBM test for the first time since 2017.
Nuclear testing and ballistic missile launches by North Korea have long been banned by the United Nations Security Council.
Despite those gaffes, President Joe Biden said at an event at the White House on Friday, “Kamala won’t be the last woman to become vice president — or president.”