Labeling It Misinformation: Republican Senator Accuses Harris of Silencing Criticism Over Hurricane Response

A Republican senator criticized Vice President Kamala Harris on Fox News Wednesday for pushing back against former President Donald Trump’s false claims about hurricane relief efforts, suggesting that attempts by the Harris campaign or media outlets to correct the record amount to suppressing speech.

Fox News host Laura Ingraham asked, “Your reaction to what seems to be this pre-emptive attempt by Biden and Harris and the media to silence critics of any aspect of the government’s response by calling it all disinformation?”

Sen. Eric Schmitt (R-MO) responded, “Yeah, this is kind of a standard playbook now, Laura, for anything they don’t like to hear. They label it misinformation or disinformation. They’ve tried to censor this stuff before during COVID because … it wasn’t the regime’s narrative, and here we go again. There are real stories, there are people hurting who are not getting help.

In fact, you know, relief efforts by private citizens were being blocked … the federal government’s response here, led by Joe Biden and Kamala Harris, has completely failed the people of North Carolina.” Claims that FEMA blocked private relief efforts have been debunked. FEMA advised private volunteers to go through proper channels, cautioning against delivering supplies themselves due to dangerous conditions on damaged roads in affected areas.

The agency clarified that it is not blocking roads or confiscating supplies from volunteers. Sen. Schmitt also criticized Harris for the optics of announcing U.S. aid to foreign countries while hurricane relief is needed at home. “There’s all the money in the world for Ukraine and Lebanon. The tone-deafness of announcing $180 million for Lebanon a week ago when people in North Carolina are suffering is emblematic of how ‘out of touch’ Kamala Harris really is with the situation on the ground,” he said.

Schmitt further called it “really awkward” for Harris to involve herself in phone calls about relief efforts, suggesting her involvement was misplaced. The discussion then shifted to mock Harris’s unconventional interviews and lighter moments on the campaign trail. Ingraham remarked, “It’s fine to do a little kitschy thing, you know, that’s fine, I guess, but not if you want to be taken seriously when a lot of voters don’t take her seriously.”

Schmitt agreed, adding, “Well, it’s painful to watch, it’s excruciating. It’s like some sort of AI-generated robot with an algorithm of gibberish … she can’t list one thing that she’d do different than Joe Biden and that’s, that’s an indictment.” The segment highlighted ongoing criticism from Republican figures who argue that Harris’s actions and campaign-style are out of sync with the pressing needs of Americans impacted by natural disasters.