A CNN panel erupted in shouting Friday as Republican tried to defend former President Donald Trump's baseless claims about the Biden Administration's disaster response and liberals reminded them of Trump's record.
Host Abby Phillip opened the conversation with a blunt assessment that Trump had been lying about Biden withholding aid from states less friendly to his party — as two of the Republican's former staffers say Trump did to California in 2018.
"Why does Donald Trump continue to insist on politicizing the storm," Phillip asked. "And lying about it so consistently?"
Former Lt. Gov. Abel Maldonado (R-CA) argued Trump was not politicizing Hurricane Helene but showing the nation what appropriate leadership looked like.
"I think President Trump is down there making a very big point and raising the flag of this state needs a lot of help," Maldonado said. "But one thing that you can't accuse him of not being is a leader."
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It was at this point Phillip felt compelled to point out, "he is lying."
Phillip then pointed to Trump claims that Federal Emergency Management Agency funds were going to migrants and pointed out what she called "the great irony."
"In 2019, the Trump Administration, in the middle of a hurricane, told Congress that it was taking $271 million from the DHS programs, including $155 million dollars from disaster relief to pay for immigration detention space," she said. "He did that."
Before Maldonado could respond, Democratic strategist Maria Cardona cut in to share memories of the Trump administration in Puerto Rico.
"This boils my blood," Cardona said. "I remember when Donald Trump came down to Puerto Rico and threw paper towels at us."
Cardona said she was infuriated by Trump's mischaracterization of the federal response to Hurricane Helene considering his record in the White House.
"When Trump was president, he gutted FEMA," said Cardona. "He did not want to give California the aid that they needed from wildfires...It is absolutely insanity what this man is doing. He's not just politicizing the storm, but he's putting people's lives in danger."
Phillip quipped "it takes a lot of nerve" then turned to Erin Perrine, Trump's 2020 press communications director, to explain what the former president might be thinking.
"We will give Donald Trump credit here," said Perrine. "This has been such a missed opportunity for this country to come together...but nobody on either side of the political spectrum decided to say, you know what, this is a moment for true leadership."
This is when the panel erupted. Once the screams died down, Phillip had the final word.
"I don't know why you're bringing Kamala Harris into this," Phillip said. "The open person who is politicizing this is Donald Trump — he's the one guy doing it."
