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Joe Biden muttered in a Hurricane Milton public update in response, awkwardly ending the briefing with an attack on his predecessor and a joke about the Israeli-Hamas war.
The president told Donald Trump to “take his life away,” sharply criticizing the former president and his allies during a brief briefing for spreading disinformation about the federal government's response to the storms.
“It's weird,” Biden said of online claims that FEMA is providing only $750 in aid and will try to seize Americans' land if they turn to the government for help.
At the end of the briefing, the president was asked if he had spoken to Trump.
– Are you kidding me? The 81-year-old laughed awkwardly.
President Joe Biden concluded his brief news conference by updating the nation on the federal response to the hurricane, telling Donald Trump to “take a life” and calling on a reporter to hold the former president accountable
He then delivered a message to the former president: “Mr. President Trump, former President Trump – save lives, help these people.”
As Biden began to leave the room, he stopped and abruptly turned around when asked if he planned to hold the 2024 GOP nominee accountable for spreading lies.
“The public will hold him accountable. The press better, he said, pointing a finger at reporters, “hold him accountable because you know the truth.”
Asked if he planned to talk to Trump, Biden replied without turning around and already halfway across the room: “No.”
Earlier, Biden made a very off-topic joke when a reporter tried to ask an off-topic question about the ongoing war between Israel and Hamas terrorists operating in Gaza.
“What did Prime Minister Netanyahu tell you about his plans for retaliation?” the reporter posed.
“He's coming to help with the storm,” Biden shot back.
Initial estimates suggest at least 10 people died as a result of Hurricane Milton, after about 200 people died in Hurricane Helene last week. Pictured: Search and rescue operations underway after Clearwater, Florida, flooded after Hurricane Milton made landfall on Wednesday
The Biden administration says Donald Trump and his allies are spreading “disinformation” about the federal government's response to the storm, which they say puts Americans at increased risk because they won't seek help because of the claims
The White House revealed that Biden spoke with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu about the conflict for 30 minutes, but gave no details of the conversation.
As reporters continue to demand answers about the ongoing conflict, Biden and his team focused on continuing their discussion Thursday on rescue, recovery and relief plans for hurricanes Milton and Helene.
The president wanted to make sure Americans weren't listening to what Trump was saying about the federal response.
“Our fellow Americans put their lives on the line to do this dangerous job, and they were left with some receiving death sentences (sic) yesterday as a result of the reckless, irresponsible and ruthless disinformation and outright lies that continue to circulate,” Biden said in a speech to confuse the words “threats ” and “punishments”.
“These lies also harm those who need help most,” Biden added during Thursday’s briefing. “Lives are at stake. People are in a desperate situation.
“Have the decency to tell them the truth,” he demanded of the former president.
Biden sarcastically said during Thursday's briefing that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu “will come to help during the storm,” after reporters tried to ask the president about his talks about the ongoing war with Hamas
