Trump said NC Gov. Cooper blocked aid. Pants on Fire!

Former President Donald Trump has fueled a persistent and unproven narrative since Hurricane Helene struck the southeast: Democratic leaders have failed residents who faced the wrath of the hurricane that left more than 200 people dead.

In the span of a week, Trump falsely said Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp could not reach President Joe Biden, falsely said the feds were offering only $750 to people whose homes were washed away and falsely said the Federal Emergency Management Administration had used up its money for relief on migrants. 

Add another one involving North Carolina’s Democratic Gov. Roy Cooper to the list. 

“It has just come out that Democrats in Washington and the Democrat Governor’s Office of North Carolina (Roy Cooper) were blocking people and money from coming into North Carolina to help people in desperate need,” Trump wrote Oct. 11 on Truth Social. “Biden knew about it, and so did Kamala! It’s all over the place – A HORRIBLE SITUATION. I will make it up to everyone when we take Office on January 20th. HOLD ON, I’M COMING!”

Trump’s accusation follows a significant number of false claims on social media that said federal agencies had blocked supplies, confiscated donations and banned drones.

Cooper rejected Trump’s claim that he blocked people from coming to help, writing on X: “This is a flat out lie. We’re working with all partners around the clock to get help to people. Trump’s lies and conspiracy theories have hurt the morale of first responders and people who lost everything, helped scam artists and put government and rescue workers in danger.”

We wondered what Trump meant about any alleged evidence that had “just come out,” but his campaign did not respond to our request for evidence. 

We found a similar headline published Oct. 10 a right-wing outlet: “LEAKED EMAILS: Blue Cross Blue Shield NC Coordinated Directly with NC Democrat Gov to Stifle Aid to Western NC.” 

The story and Trump’s statement distorted the facts. 

Falsehood stemmed from employee’s email

Victims collect supplies Oct. 3, 2024, at Watauga High School in Boone, North Carolina, following Hurricane Helene. (AP)

The National File is a right-wing website created by Alex Jones, the owner of the conspiracy website InfoWars, the Southern Poverty Law Center reported. 

The National File’s Oct. 10 article discussed companywide emails from two Blue Cross Blue Shield in North Carolina employees with updates about the hurricane disaster and guidance about how to safely assist.

A staff member’s Oct. 1 email said the flooding’s full impact was unfolding and that people urgently needed medical and hygiene supplies along with food, water and temporary shelter.

“We are coordinating all disaster response efforts through the Governor’s office, and they have asked us to spread the following message: Please do NOT travel to western NC to deliver donations, volunteer spontaneously, bring home cooked meals, or view the devastation. The roads are impassable, and rescue and recovery operations are ongoing.”

The email also encouraged employees to make donations or volunteer with agencies designated to coordinate relief efforts.

A different employee sent a Sept. 30 email that said “the urgent needs of these communities ignite a desire to help in all of us.” 

“We are following the governor’s office’s coordination in a statewide response. Blue Cross NC is working with state, federal, local officials and our community partners across western NC counties to assess the needs of our communities and determine how we can best support them.”

Also on Sept. 30, the state’s Transportation Department discouraged all nonemergency travel to western North Carolina because  hundreds of roads remained impassable there.

Using those emails, the National File concluded that Blue Cross “intentionally worked to slow down the Helene response in western North Carolina.” 

But the emails do not prove that. They show the company wanted to ensure that their employees didn’t drive on dangerous roads and offered them several ways to help victims. The article did not quote any government officials or nonprofits assisting with rescue or recovery. It is common for government officials to urge people to avoid damaged areas in the aftermath of a disaster amid rescue efforts.

A Blue Cross Blue Shield of North Carolina spokesperson provided a statement from the company that called the National File story “not only false, the entire premise is outrageous.” 

“We are a North Carolina based not-for-profit that exists to serve our fellow North Carolinians — and that is exactly what we have done for the past two weeks,” the statement said. “We are working with a wide range of relief organizations including the United Way, the Community Foundation of Western North Carolina, Samaritan’s Purse, the American Red Cross, and many others. It’s a shame that some choose to share this disinformation when so many North Carolinians are suffering.”

Blue Cross announced a $2.5 million donation to hurricane relief and said it has delivered more than 60,000 items — including water, diapers, wipes, and gloves — to western North Carolina since Oct. 4. Blue Cross is also supporting faith-based organizations who are providing direct aid. 

State and federal agencies responded to the hurricane

President Joe Biden listens to Gov. Roy Cooper, D-N.C., on Oct. 2, 2024, as he visits the emergency operations center in Raleigh, North Carolina, for a briefing on damage from Hurricane Helene. (AP)

Rescue and relief efforts were well underway by the time Blue Cross Blue Shield workers emailed guidance. In a Sept. 29 news release, Cooper announced:

• Five hundred fifty members of the North Carolina National Guard had deployed, along with more than 100 vehicles and 11 aircraft.

• Twenty-four shelters had opened to up to 942 victims

• State search and rescue teams have conducted hundreds of rescues.

• More than 1,600 North Carolina Department of Transportation employees and contract crews were working to clear and reopen roads.

• The federal government had granted Cooper’s request for a Federal Major Disaster Declaration, helping 25 counties and the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians.

That same day, Cooper’s office encouraged people to donate to the state’s disaster relief fund, which the United Way of North Carolina manages. 

By Oct. 1, more volunteers and rescue teams were on the ground and in the air in western North Carolina. Cooper was on the ground that day, too, surveying damage. That day, 35 National Guard helicopters were engaged in response missions, including Chinooks for delivering essential supplies and Blackhawks and Lakotas for rescue and recovery efforts, said Jody Donaldson, North Carolina Department of Public Safety communications officer.

“Moreover, we’re supported by a large fleet of FEMA air assets, providing comprehensive aerial coverage to aid in the ongoing response and recovery efforts,” Donaldson told PolitiFact on Oct. 1 in response to a different inquiry.

Cooper signed a $273 million Helene relief package Oct. 10, a day after the GOP-led state Legislature passed it unanimously. The package includes money for public schools, the state Board of Elections and regional governments in storm-affected counties and helps the state match federal government relief money. 

The federal response has been robust. The Federal Emergency Management Agency said as of Oct. 11, federal disaster assistance for survivors of Hurricane Helene In North Carolina included:

• More than $71.7 million in housing and other types of assistance for over 52,000 households.

• Search-and-rescue personnel had rescued or supported over 3,200 survivors.

• More than 1,600 families are in a transitional shelter program. 

Biden declared a federal disaster in North Carolina on Sept. 28, which then made federal funding available. Biden approved a 100% federal cost-share for North Carolina and other states to help those states’ response efforts. The U.S. Transportation Department said Oct. 5 that it was giving $100 million to North Carolina to repair roads.

The majority of western North Carolina counties voted for Trump in 2020. Rep. Chuck Edwards, R-N.C., said that while FEMA’s response “has had its shortfalls” the federal government has not prevented supplies or donations or rescue efforts from reaching western North Carolina.

Our ruling

Trump said, “It has just come out that Democrats in Washington and the Democrat Governor’s Office of North Carolina (Roy Cooper) were blocking people and money from coming into North Carolina.”

There is room for legitimate discussion about the pace and scope of the government response, and how it could be improved. However, it is entirely different to claim Democrats, including the state’s governor, were “blocking” assistance. 

In our search for anything that might support Trump’s statement, we found an article from a right-wing website that misconstrued internal emails from Blue Cross Blue Shield of North Carolina. The employees cited Cooper’s office and urged colleagues who wanted to help after the storm not to travel to the state’s western region, as roads were impassable there and rescue operations were underway. Those emails did not show Cooper blocking aid; they explained how workers could donate.

It is ridiculous to tell hurricane victims that their top state leader and politicians in the federal government were blocking aid.

We rate this statement Pants on Fire!

PolitiFact Staff Writer Sara Swann contributed to this fact-check.

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