Harris and Biden survey the damage Hurricane Helene has wrought in 2 swing states

August, Ga – Vice President Harris took a break from the campaign trail Wednesday to visit a neighborhood ravaged by Hurricane Helene where more than half of the residents are without power and many without running water, consoling a woman who she he said he had lost his husband.

“There’s real pain and trauma that’s caused because of this storm,” Harris said.

Meanwhile, President Biden spent about an hour flying over Asheville, NC, by helicopter. “You can see the houses being moved, clearly, from one side of the river, down the river to the other side,” he said. “Communities like Chimney Rock were reduced to piles of wood and ash.”

Biden and Harris sought to reassure residents devastated by the storm that the federal government would help the region recover. Keeping that promise is a critical test for the administration in this election year, especially in the swing states of North Carolina and Georgia, where Biden and Harris are visiting.

But Biden said it’s not about politics. “At a time like this, we put politics aside – at least, we have to put everything aside, and we have, here,” Biden said at a briefing at the emergency operations center in Raleigh, NC.

“There are no Democrats, Republicans – only Americans – and our job is to help as many people as we can, as quickly as we can, and as best we can,” he said.

Biden announced that the federal government will cover 100% of the costs of dust removal and emergency protective measures for six months for North Carolina, as requested by Democratic Governor Roy Cooper.

He also directed up to 1,000 active duty soldiers to be deployed to help the North Carolina National Guard deliver food, water and medicine.

In Georgia, Harris said the federal government will cover 100% of the cost of dust removal and emergency protective measures for three months for the state, as requested by Republican Governor Brian Kemp. Kemp was not with him for the tour.

The White House also announced that Biden has authorized 100% of the cost of dust removal and emergency protective measures for three months for Florida – a state he plans to visit on Thursday.

Biden will also make a stop on Thursday in Georgia. That’s where former President Donald Trump was on Monday, where he also said that the disaster transcends politics.

“As you know, our country is in the final week of a hard-fought national election. But at a time like this, when there is a crisis, when our fellow citizens cry out in need, nothing else matters. We’re not talking about politics now. We all have to come together and solve this,” Trump said.

But during the stop, Trump falsely said that Governor Kemp could not reach Biden. “He’s called the president, can’t get him yet. But they’ll get through, I’m sure,” Trump said. Biden later that day angrily criticized Trump.

“He lied, and the governor said he lied,” Biden said, noting that he had spoken with Kemp. “I don’t know why he is [Trump] do this. And the reason I’m so angry – I don’t care what he says about me, but I care what he communicates to people in need. He points out that we are not doing everything possible. We are,” Biden said.