Another view:

And why would he waste time speaking with her when all she is wanting is an opportunity to make it political.

No other governor has made this assertion Gracie because it simply doesn't happen in any overt way. There has been ZERO public transcripts of any conversations that either Biden nor Harris have had with in state officials regarding disaster relief. Phone calls are the general protocol, they happen every single time, and usually governors welcome them and relay to their constituents that the White House is looking out for their well being, seeing as how there Americans as well as state citizens.

We'll have to agree to disagree. Phone calls are a normal part of White House outreach post disaster. They're a personal touch, and while it is weeks before an election, the calls don't become political when they're the usual protocol under identical circumstances.

As it regards my family, they made it to a home south of Orlando but obviously they're unlikely to avoid the storm there either. But her current home is only 1 mile inland from the Gulf. She's in a far better location than her home.

I will not hesitate to call him. ... But everything we've asked for, from President Biden, he has approved," DeSantis said.

Would it have killed Ron to simply speak briefly and tell them "Thanks for all you're doing(?)"

Let's say it's true, which sources say it's not, why would he waste his time talking to Harris when is managing his state very well and getting what he needs from the president?

A source familiar with the situation said he was dodging the Democratic presidential nominee's calls because they "seemed political," according to a DeSantis aide.

"Kamala was trying to reach out, and we didn't answer," the DeSantis aide told NBC News.

And it's never "wasting one's time" to speak to the President or Vice President when they're calling about a natural disaster that's befallen your state, as federal workers coordinate with state personnel to serve the American citizens affected by the storms. Perhaps the Governor had an issue with the federal personnel in his state he could have personally addressed with either Executive.

I don't think I've ever heard a leader say that his nation's President and Vice President are only trying to reach him due to "politics." Everything is about politics ultimately whenever elected politicians are involved, including DeSantis' refusal. He wants to avoid the criticism from Trump other Republican governors are getting for countering Trump's false allegations that FEMA's response is lacking or underfunded due to the other job Congress gave them to fund immigrant programs in the states which are paid for from a separate budget established by Congress, not by the whims of the White House.

And just on this point of the phone calls alone, didn't Trump make it a political issue himself when he wrongly stated that Biden had not spoken to Governor Kemp along these very same lines?

So, I'm right and you still take a swipe?

The truth is never a swipe, ... it's the truth.

Update:

Actually, for the first time in a very, very, very, very, (x 1000) long time, Strawlighter is actually correct. (Don't faint)

Biden and Harris and Democrats should pay dearly for their open border treason and gross ineptness. Candidate Harris never ever ran for any office or primary for President as part of the 2024 Presidential election.

Moron says what?

5pm EDT update: Milton's winds are up to 180 mph.

Is this monstrosity headed over 200 mph?

West Coast Floridians get the hell out of Dodge as quickly as possible.

Taken together, the tax cuts and tariffs would cost households in the middle 20% of the income distribution an average of $1,530 in 2026, the analysis found, while the richest 1% would save $36,320. Only 5% of the wealthiest households would come out ahead under Trump's plans.

Trump has proposed a 20% tariff on all imported goods and tariffs of 60% or higher on imports from China. A wide range of economists say American consumers would wind up bearing the burden of the tariffs, because even though the government would impose the levy on the companies importing the goods, those companies would in turn jack up their prices in order to offset the cost of the tariffs. That's why economists sometimes describe the tariff proposal as a national sales tax.

The conservative Tax Foundation has said Trump's tariffs would essentially be an excise tax and that his proposals would set tariffs at levels not seen since the Great Depression.

All one needs to do is listen to he contradict himself over and over again, showing a complete lack of understanding in basic economic principles, especially regarding the certainty importers will pass along the costs of any tariffs to consumers by increasing the purchase price of the goods they're selling here domestically.

Scarborough played snippets of Trump's and Vance's addresses, led by Trump's assertions that political opponents have sought to stop him from a second term by any means necessary. "Maybe even" by assassination attempts. He boasted that Russia and China are outside enemies that can be handled by a "smart" president like him, but that the left is "much more dangerous" as the enemy within.

Scarborough sounded the alarm.

"The level of un-American activity that you just saw is stunning," the MSNBC personality said. "That is un-American. They know they're lying. Donald Trump knows that's a lie. He will tell you that the Secret Service, he thought, did the best job they could do. The fact that JD Vance and Trump's family would out and out say what they said takes the threat of violence, takes the threat beyond where it was even leading up to January the 6th. This is an increasingly desperate person, an increasingly desperate family, who is preparing for civil war. They just are."

Vote accordingly.

Fundamental human rights can never be a state's issue.

We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed, by their Creator, with certain unalienable rights, that among these are life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.*

#1

"April 7, 2015" - Really?

I'm surprised Congress hasn't addressed issues with the AMT .... Oh, they have addressed these issues?

But Tony be careful the words "global climate change" have been banned by our governor.

Yeah, the fact that Gulf hurricanes now go from tropical storm wind velocities to 175 mph in 24 hours is simply Mother Nature becoming more efficient in her development abilities, right?

Doesn't have anything to do with the bathtub water temperatures in the Gulf, elevated due to man-caused factors?

Naw, it's simply gawd's will. He's just building bigger and better storms, that's all. Get used to it.

As of 1pm Eastern, Milton is now packing winds of 175 mph.

Simply friggin' wow. We humans are such tiny players when it comes to Mother Nature.

Is this our new normal, and if so, how are the Florida coasts going to remain habitable for human-built structures and life?

There are plenty of important issues in the 2024 elections, but by most measures, the state of the economy is the dominant electoral concern, and voters' attitudes about the economy will very likely dictate the outcome.

With this in mind, Republicans desperately want Americans to believe that the nation is on the brink of economic collapse. Reality is telling a very different story. The New York Times reported:

Fresh employment data for September showed that hiring picked up strongly, the unemployment rate dipped and wage growth came in strong - adding to a string of recent data pointing to economic resilience. And the incoming evidence points to a clear conclusion: The economy is robust. Data revisions released last week showed that growth has been stronger and incomes have been more solid than previously understood. Retail sales data are holding up. And now, employers appear to be meeting resilient consumer demand by continuing to expand their work forces.

It was against this backdrop that a reporter asked Donald Trump on Friday, "Jobs are up, the stock market hit an all time high. Do you acknowledge that the economy is improving?"

"No," the former president said. "It's not."

One of the most frustrating things about the 2024 election cycle is the Republicans' willingness to simply create an alternate reality that voters are supposed to embrace. And when the evidence leaves little doubt that the U.S. economy is on strong footing, Republicans tell voters not to believe their lying eyes.

If reality were a stronger force in this year's elections, Trump and his party would be in real trouble.

This is the story of Trump's complete takeover of the GOP, turning it into a lie-fueled, conspiracy-driven, post truth entity untethered to anything resembling demonstrable facts and observed reality. And far too many Americans are making decisions and choices based upon false or discredited information spewed from the highest rungs of what's supposed to be a responsible political party.

All Trump and his Republican lemmings do daily is continuously yell "Fire" in the theater of public news and information, causing undue stress and strain upon those dealing with and addressing numerous issues as they exist in reality.

When Milton achieved hurricane status, it marked the first time there have been three hurricanes swirling simultaneously in the Atlantic, said Colorado State University hurricane scientist Phil Klotzbach. Hurricanes Leslie and Kirk were far out at sea and not immediately threatening land.

And why are there 3 active hurricanes in the Atlantic - for the first time in recorded history? What's causing all of this to happen now?

Helene response hurt by gross incompetence at the federal level.

Posted by BellRinger at 2024-10-07 12:10 AM

Why is this factually FALSE amplification of disinformation allowed here when it's an intentional effort to foment and stoke violence against America's government and those now in charge of the Executive branch?

And that wasn't meant to be snarky.

I didn't see it that way at all, and thanks for the kindness.

But I am worried about all the rain the same areas of Florida targeted by Milton are getting in advance. If I read the meteorological information from Helene correctly, when a hurricane moves over already saturated land it weakens more slowly and recycles the existent water vapor into more intense downpours leading to catastrophic flooding.

It would be a shame if the storm is still packing a wallop by the time it reaches Orlando. Things simply are looking bleak right now for Tampa Bay and central Florida in the likely path of Milton.

Logistics, the means of strategy and tactics, determines what is practically possible in war.

Weather isn't war. Warfare is far more predictable than our current history-making supercharged hurricanes.

First and foremost, supply depots can be hit just as readily as any other place. And do you see the spaghetti modeling of hurricane tracking? Even with the best planning, a storm can change on a dime and move in another direction which completely alters response plans. There isn't certainty until there is.

Helene was a once in 1000-year storm. No one can adequately prepare for something so vast and catastrophic in a matter of days, maybe a week, when there is no absolute certainty of just when and where it will do its damage.

The storm changed since they left this morning to what they thought might be safer area.

I've got peeps heading there tomorrow from Tampa Bay. If the storm follows the track out now, Orlando will still be far safer than anywhere on the west coast. It's scheduled to move very quickly across the state. I guess it depends how large it is when it hits and how drenching the rains are.

Thank God it isn't forecast to stall over the state.

Again the only State I see as organized is Florida.

And you along with DeSantis will be here Friday, complaining about the federal government's response should Milton hit as a major hurricane.

Trust me, I hope that I'm wrong. I've got family evacuating Pinellas County tomorrow heading inland to Orlando.

Florida has had the most practice in hurricane response so they should be better than states hit more rarely.

#52

How do you reach towns where the single road in and out was washed out? How do plan for entire towns being washed away and no useable infrastructure left? No water, no electricity, no cell service, no commercial radio, no way to communicate to survivors stuck where they are?

The preparations were there, the ability to activate them was disabled by Mother Nature to the point man literally must first remove debris and impediments just to reach people where they're stranded.

How many hurricanes in the past have required airdrops in order to supply areas because they're completely inaccessible by land?

I'll take the words of professionals who've been doing relief for decades over your opinions.