'The View' hosts blast Trump for falsely claiming Hurricane Helene response funds are going to immigrants
NEW YORK CITY, NEW YORK: Donald Trump faced the wrath of ‘The View’ hosts after he falsely claimed that the funds for the victims of Hurricane Helene have been diverted to border-related issues.
During his recent rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, the former president claimed, "They’re offering them $750 to people whose homes have been washed away. And yet we send tens of billions of dollars to foreign countries that most people have never heard of," as per NPR.
At a Michigan event, he said, "Kamala spent all her FEMA money—billions of dollars—on housing for illegal migrants," despite the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) saying on its website that "no money is being diverted from disaster response needs."
The agency stresses, "FEMA’s disaster response efforts and individual assistance are funded through the Disaster Relief Fund, which is a dedicated fund for disaster efforts."
Whoopi Goldberg calls Donald Trump's remarks about FEMA a 'bald-faced lie'
On the Monday, October 7 episode, Whoopi Goldberg decided to hit back at Donald Trump for pushing falsities about FEMA funds.
She said, "Okay, here are the facts: not a dime of disaster relief has gone to resettling migrants or anybody else. It’s a bald-faced lie," as per Entertainment Weekly.
Goldberg informed, "FEMA has also set up a website so people can go and see, and it will debunk this insanity," before asking, "Why people would want to put that out there to people who are suffering — people who have lost their homes, towns are gone — why would you get out there and tell them there’s no help for them?"
Sunny Hostin points out the hypocrisy in Donald Trump's statements
Sunny Hostin also joined Whoopi Goldberg in thrashing Trump, saying, "While he is falsely accusing the Biden administration of redirecting these funds, that’s exactly what he did."
"In 2019, the Trump administration — in the middle of hurricane season — told Congress that it was taking $271 million dollars from FEMA and from DHS programs, including $155 million from the disaster fund, to pay for immigration detention and temporary hearing locations for asylum seekers," highlighted the attorney.
Hostin also slammed the Republican’s claim that those affected have only been given $750.
She pointed out, "That is not true. That is the immediate, upfront payment the people are getting. What the Biden administration is offering, for example, the maximum for home repair assistance is $42,500. We’re talking about real change and real effort and he should be ashamed of himself."
Alyssa Farah Griffin thinks Donald Trump wants to scare North Carolina voters into supporting him
Alyssa Farah Griffin then went on to share the possible reason behind Donald Trump pushing the false claims.
The former White House aide remarked, "Donald Trump’s doing this because of politics. North Carolina is a battleground state, so right now he wants to scare North Carolina voters into supporting him thinking the Biden/Harris administration isn’t helping them."
Griffin further mentioned that the disaster should not be treated as a political opportunity because "this crisis is gonna last long beyond Election Day. This is a years-long rebuilding and we need leaders who are going to work across the aisle."
Ana Navarro could not hold back and stated, "I just don’t know what else they can possibly blame on immigrants. I mean, are they going to blame immigrants for Donald Trump having five pieces of hair left on his head?"
Calling Trump's lies a shameful act, she added, referring to a 2017 episode of him throwing paper towels at a crowd in San Juan, Puerto Rico, after Hurricane Maria, "How rich is this, coming from the man who showed up at Puerto Rico with rolls of … well, not toilet paper, it was paper towels. It’s just I always think of toilet paper when I think of him."