A Native Floridian’s Response to Harris’s Hurricane Mismanagement
Grace Gilmore
“We’ll be fine, we promise. Don’t worry about us.”
This is the text I received from my parents, who are hunkered down in central Florida, just west of Tampa, with the rest of my family. There’s nothing left for them to do but wait for the fury of Hurricane Milton to pass. From my home in Nashville, I watch the radar, gripped by fear and a sense of helplessness. My mom assures me they’ve prepared for the worst, now they need to hope for the best. But after witnessing the devastation caused by Hurricane Helene just days ago, my confidence in government response has evaporated.
In my boss’s district, towns like Cosby and Newport, Tennessee were hit hard by the storm. Hundreds are still unaccounted for, and some families have lost everything, including their loved ones. As Floridians brace for another catastrophic storm, they’re haunted by the incompetence we’ve seen from our federal government. While communities across the southeast grapple with unimaginable loss, Kamala Harris is busy drinking alcohol on late-night television and catching up on Call Her Daddy. This is what she think passes for “leadership” when disaster strikes in the states.
It’s an outrageous spectacle that should dominate every headline from now until November.
While families mourn their destroyed properties and livelihoods and search for their loved ones among the ruins, the Biden-Harris administration remains disturbingly detached. Their actions— or lack thereof— show a heartbreaking truth: they are more interested in political theater than in the lives they are mandated to protect. When President Biden was asked, “What do the states in the storm zone need?” his bewildered response, “I didn’t know which storm you’re talking about,” speaks volumes about his disconnection from reality. After yet another beach vacation while our nation suffered, it took him six agonizing days to deploy a mere 1,000 military personnel to North Carolina— less than half even arrived.
The last time a hurricane of this magnitude wreaked havoc on the country, Republican President George W. Bush deployed the necessary personnel significantly faster. And yet he was ridiculed by legacy media for the “delayed” deployment of troops, and his perceived mismanagement of the crisis cost the GOP politically in the midterms. If a Republican were in office today, the media would be in a frenzy over any delay. Yet here we are, witnessing an alarming complacency from a Democratic administration. Meanwhile, Kamala Harris shamelessly poses for photographs with distressed victims, using their suffering for political gain, only to quickly pivot to late-night shows for a laugh and a drink.
Her recent appearances scream of desperation to appear relatable, but they instead reveal a profound disconnect from the reality facing countless Americans. The failure of FEMA adds insult to injury. Secretary Mayorkas’ claims that the agency is “running out of funds” is a clear indictment of this administration's priorities.
At a recent FEMA meeting, staffers said, “We should focus our efforts on LGBTQIA people… they struggled before the storm […] FEMA relief is no longer about getting the greatest good for the greatest amount of people…. It’s about disaster equity.”
As if a hurricane chooses which homes to devastate based on race, gender, or status. This is a blatant misallocation of resources that underscores the administration’s misguided priorities. The mere thought of Harris stepping into the role of commander-in-chief should terrify every sensible American.
As families across the region salvage what remains of their homes and my own family huddles in anticipation of the storm, it’s abundantly clear: the Biden-Harris administration has demonstrated that they do not care about the American people. It’s time for Republicans to reclaim the narrative and provide the leadership our country desperately needs. Two hours east of me, my fellow Tennesseans are salvaging what’s left of their homes. Ten hours south, my own family is huddled together, bracing for a storm that could change everything. And the Biden-Harris Administration has proved once again that it could not care less about any of them.
Grace Gilmore is the Executive Assistant for Policy and Research for the Republican Caucus at the TN House of Representatives. She is a graduate of the University of Florida, and lives in Nashville. Find her on Instagram @gracebgilmore.
