Vice President Kamala Harris, kicking off a daylong blitz of news media interviews, assailed former President Donald J. Trump for what she called his “callousness” in responding to the deadly storms that have ravaged southeastern states, and said she was still hoping to work with Gov. Ron DeSantis, Republican of Florida, as his state faces the latest monster hurricane.
During a wide-ranging interview on the ABC daytime talk show “The View,” Ms. Harris spoke at more length about the storm politicking that has begun to dominate the campaign. Mr. Trump has used the hurricane that hit the Carolinas and Georgia last week to blast the Biden administration’s leadership and make false claims that the government is misdirecting federal relief funds.
“It’s profound, and it is the height of irresponsibility and, frankly, callousness,” she said of Mr. Trump’s claims. “I fear that he really lacks empathy on a very basic level, to care about the suffering of other people and then understand the role of a leader is not to beat people down — it’s to lift people up.”
Ms. Harris also addressed reports that Mr. DeSantis had declined to take her calls this week as another storm barrels toward his state. She said it was important that federal, state and local agencies work together on disasters, and called it a “shame” that it had not happened.
“When I’m president, I will continue to call him to see what he needs for help,” Ms. Harris said of Mr. DeSantis, who has attacked the vice president’s outreach as politically motivated and said, “She has no role in this.”
Ms. Harris offered a warning to Floridians in the path of the approaching Hurricane Milton to follow the guidance of authorities on the ground and leave their homes if advised.
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