The ex-president said Brian Kemp, the state governor, was trying to reach the president who was ‘sleeping’, in vain

Donald Trump spoke in front of a furniture store gutted by Hurricane Helene in Valdosta, Georgia, on Monday, claiming falsely that Georgia’s governor had not been able to reach Joe Biden.

Upon landing in Valdosta, Trump claimed to reporters the president had been “sleeping” and that Brian Kemp, the governor, had been “calling the president and hasn’t been able to get him”. He repeated the false claim when speaking in front of the store.

Kemp refuted the allegation earlier in the day. He said he had been playing phone tag with vice-president Kamala Harris, but also said: “The president just called me yesterday afternoon and he just said: ‘Hey, what do you need?’ … He offered that if there’s other things we need, just to call him directly, which, I appreciate that.”

During the White House press briefing on Monday, the homeland security adviser Elizabeth Sherwood-Randall said Biden had offered Kemp “anything” Georgia needed in terms of storm response.

  • @[email protected]
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    657 days ago

    Tipping hat to the article author (editor and publisher too I think) for actually calling the claims a falsehood in the title.

    • Jo Miran
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      177 days ago

      Tipping hat to the article author…

      You can actually tip The Guardian. Unlike other larger publications, The Guardian accepts tips. Whenever I read a good article (often long form) from them, I tend to give them a dollar. More often than not , I end up paying more than if I had paid for a year, but it feels like I am properly rewarding good performance.

      • @[email protected]
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        57 days ago

        Thanks for the reminder. It was really easy to tip with Apple Pay. Just did it for this article.

  • @breadsmasher
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    387 days ago

    why didnt biden just draw a new line on a map to redirect it? Or fire nukes at it?

    /s

    • @Today
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      207 days ago

      And throw some paper towels

    • The Pantser
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      127 days ago

      He just needed to turn the giant tap and turn off the water

  • @[email protected]
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    357 days ago

    Where are all the posters who, when people were pointing out that this is the result of climate change, screamed about not making this political? This guy is straight up lying for his own political benefit and they seem silent.

    • @EmpathicVagrant
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      97 days ago

      Oh because only their opposition doing it offends them so I guess this is fine huh

  • Destide
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    137 days ago

    Dressed to get stuck in and help rather than using it as a photo op I see.

    • FuglyDuck
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      87 days ago

      Do be fair. He’s old and fat and feeble. He wouldn’t be very much good with helping anyway.

      The best thing he could have done, probably, was stay away.

  • @Raiderkev
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    117 days ago

    Inb4 Trump accuses Kemp of being a RINO for not going with his lie.

  • Optional
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    67 days ago

    Ooh! It’s his “serius, thinky” face! He doesn’t pull that one very often.

  • @danc4498
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    67 days ago

    “We brought many, many wagons of resources,” he said, without really describing what those resources were beyond a tanker of gasoline and some water.

    I wonder who paid for that.

  • @ganksy
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    57 days ago

    Who’s boat is this boat? Is this your boat? It’s not their boat.

      • @ganksy
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        27 days ago

        That was one of the most brilliant burns of his political career.