By John A. Tures, Professor of Political Science, LaGrange College
There’s an October Surprise myth that claims Barack Obama won the 2012 election with his response to Hurricane Sandy, which hit the New York and New Jersey area, and getting a hug from GOP Governor Chris Christie. It’s not true, of course, as Harry J. Enten points out in The Guardianbut a few MAGA extremists have decided to try and ruin the response to Hurricane Helene, with wild weather conspiracies.
Their plan is to disrupt aid to make the Biden Administration look bad, and they don’t care who gets hurt. Here’s what’s happening in North Carolina, and some evidence you can use to rebut these conspiracy theories.
Attacking FEMA In The Traditional And Social Media Leads To Threats On The Ground
Hurricane Helene slammed into the West Florida Panhandle, moved across Georgia, and into the Carolinas, hitting East Georgia and West North Carolina the hardest.
As FEMA and communities all across the Southeast prepared to come to the aid of victims, others prepared a different kind of operation, one which was designed to disrupt the rescue and aid efforts, for political gain. A certain member of Congress, best known for “Jewish Space Laser” conspiracies, offered a new one, claiming that the government had weaponized the weather for political gain. Others claimed that FEMA was “withholding supplies” from victims, without a shred of evidence to back up that story.
Of course, most Americans were smart enough to brush off some outlandish claims. But for those in their own bubble, such assertions were Gospel truth. In North Carolina, some Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) operations had to be suspended due to threats against responders, according to CNN. And in Tennessee, witnesses reported to law enforcement that an armed group was harassing aid workers. In the Tarheel State, a man was arrested and appeared in court over threats to FEMA operations in the region. Both stories were reported by the Associated Press (AP) and posted on Yahoo.
Attacks on relief efforts not only complicate getting aid to those who need it, but are also hampering the search for the missing, of which there may be more than 90 people unaccounted for. Such cruelty is hard to comprehend, but hey, it’s election season! For some, anything goes. I’ve even had friends online repost some of these conspiracies about relief efforts.
Finding Flaws In These Weather-Related Conspiracies, From Science And From Politics
Unwilling to admit an error, or apologize, supporters of the conspiracy theories have doubled down on their claims, ransacking any corner of the Internet for anything that might support their claims. The Poynter Institute as well as The Advocate have investigated these assertions, and found strong scientific evidence against any human ability to harness and wield storms.
But what about the political angle? According to The Hill “[That representative] first posted about the hurricanes on Oct. 3, when she shared an image of Helene superimposed on a map of the 2020 election results. The map was made by [an influencer]who claimed the storm “seemed to almost methodically miss the bluest parts” of “crucial swing states, while simultaneously ravaging the red parts.”
To test this hypothesis, I looked at three particularly hard-hit areas: Asheville, Augusta and Atlanta (which experienced flooding). Buncombe County in North Carolina, where Asheville is located, voted 59.9% for Biden. Richmond County Georgia, where Augusta is located, voted 67.9% for Biden. And Fulton County in Georgia, where Atlanta is located, voted 72.6% for Biden.
If this land of make-believe were actually true, wouldn’t it be more logical for a weather-wielding regime to strike the red states of Texas, Louisiana and Alabama?
Earlier this week, at a local Baptist church, local residents who were black and white joined our firefighters and police in packing supplies for victims of Hurricane Helene. The police even gave them an escort to the interstate. I didn’t see why they needed to, but now I know why. Liberal and conservative, blue and red state, we could all pitch in and help Americans hurt by the storm, and find ways to oppose these online conspiracies that hope to upend the response to hurricanes.
John A. Tures is a professor of political science at LaGrange College in LaGrange, Georgia. His views are his own. He can be reached at [email protected]. His “X” account is JohnTures2.
