Republicans slam hurricane conspiracists — together with MTG — for climate ‘management’ claims as ‘misinformation’ hampers NC reduction efforts

Republican members of Congress are slamming conspiracists — together with far-right Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene — for spreading claims that Hurricane Helene was “geoengineered by the federal government” or that federal support staff are obstructing native reduction efforts in North Carolina following the devastation.

Home Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.), Rep. Chuck Edwards (R-NC) and others are on the bottom within the western area of the Tar Heel State and can ship remarks in Asheville later Wednesday about small companies wrecked by the flooding and excessive winds.

Many Republican and Democratic lawmakers have already been battling falsehoods in regards to the restoration efforts in North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, Georgia and Florida — with Edwards placing out a reality sheet on Tuesday to debunk myths about the Helene response.

“Hurricane Helene was NOT geoengineered by the federal government to grab and entry lithium deposits in Chimney Rock,” he mentioned, whereas noting that the federal response had been missing in some areas.

“Native officers are NOT abandoning search and rescue efforts to bulldoze over Chimney Rock,” he additionally mentioned. “FEMA is NOT stopping vans or automobiles with donations, confiscating or seizing provides, or in any other case turning away donations.”

“NEW FLASH —> People can’t create or management hurricanes,” Rep. Carlos Gimenez (R-Fla.) also tweeted at Greene (R-Ga.) after the far-right congresswoman claimed on X, “Sure they’ll management the climate,” and had been fact-checked by netizens.

“Anybody who thinks they’ll, must have their head examined,” thundered Gimenez.

Greene fired again in a follow-up put up that the Nationwide Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) has listed more than 1,000 weather modifications on its web site.

Most contain types of cloud seeding to trigger precipitation, and none concerned hurricanes.

“On-line misinformation is making it tougher for emergency responders to help Hurricane Helene victims,” added Rep. Kathy Manning (D-NC), linking to a Federal Emergency Administration Company (FEMA) webpage combating the rumors.

At the very least 232 Individuals have been killed by Helene, which made landfall Sept. 26 earlier than ripping throughout the Southeast.

Different information on the bottom have been initially hazier, resembling when SpaceX founder Elon Musk claimed final week the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) was shutting down the airspace to “regulate” personal support flights.

Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg set him straight after the 2 had a cellphone name.

“There was a difficulty with pilots who have been serving to get Starlink gear to the place it wanted to be, having the proper data,” Buttigieg mentioned on MSNBC’s “Inside with Jen Psaki” Sunday. “We labored that with native authorities and have been in a position to handle it.”

FEMA and the White Home additionally look like at odds with Congress over whether or not there’s sufficient pure catastrophe funding to make it to the tip of hurricane season — or till federal spending dries up on Dec. 20.

“I have the funding and sufficient resources to support the ongoing responses to Hurricane Helene as well as Hurricane Milton,” FEMA Administrator Deanne Criswell told reporters Wednesday.

“But I’m going to have to evaluate how quickly we’re burning the remaining dollars within the Disaster Relief Fund to see if I’m going to have to go back in and ask for additional funding sooner than what Congress is planning on right now,” she added.

Congress has authorized more than $20 billion for disaster relief funding, of which Criswell said $9 billion has already been spent.

Just $210 million in support has gone to the affected areas.

The Division of Homeland Safety’s Workplace of the Inspector Normal audited FEMA and located one other $7 billion in August that might doubtlessly be redirected towards catastrophe reduction.

Edwards blamed Homeland Safety Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas for making an attempt “to politicize a tragedy for private acquire” when he claimed final week: “FEMA doesn’t have the funds to make it via the season.”

Criswell mentioned her company was nonetheless requesting extra reduction funding earlier than yr’s finish, which Edwards has mentioned he expects shall be handed in Congress after they return to work following the Nov. 5 election.

“We shall be again in session instantly after the election,” Johnson advised CNN in a weekend interview. “That’s 30 days from now. The factor about these hurricanes and disasters of this magnitude is it takes some time to calculate the precise damages, and the states are going to wish a while to do this.”

As Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis and different state and native officers batten down the hatches earlier than Hurricane Milton hits, President Biden has promised they may attain him “immediately” and his administration would offer them within the meantime “with everything else they may need.”