CNN panel rips 'partisans' for hijacking Texas flood tragedy for political gain
Democratic strategist Chuck Rocha, NOTUS reporter Evan McMorris-Santoro, and former Bush administration official Ashley Davis agreed that there are many people trying to make political hay out of the recent tragedy rather than come together or find out how to prevent future tragedies.
"There is a huge movement of people who jump onto everything and try to make it some kind of political lens immediately," McMorris Santoro told CNN anchor Audie Cornish. "It's very different than talking about doing actual journalism of what things didn't happen, you know, who weren't where they were supposed to be, who didn't have the money that they needed to have."
More than 100 people, including children and counselors at a girls' camp, were killed in central Texas in flash flooding that began last week.
The National Weather Service (NWS) sent several flash flood warnings early Friday morning, followed by several flash flood emergency notices. However, critics of President Donald Trump alleged that his federal staffing and budget cuts prevented the NWS from being adequately prepared for the disaster.
The finger-pointing prompted debate on social media and among some lawmakers about which political side was to blame for the disaster. The CNN panel, however, dismissed this as petty squabbling that distracted from the tragedy.
Rocha gave his opinion on the partisan back-and-forth, suggesting it gets in the way of people trying to recognize and solve the actual problems that added to the death and destruction.
"And everybody looks back and like, 'What can we do?' And partisans like me and others, we like to throw mud at each other, and say, 'It's your fault. It's your fault.' But there's real things at risk here. And things that I think could have been done. And I think there will be a reckoning when it's over because of the mass loss of children."
Rocha added a suggestion that authorities come up with a system like AMBER Alert – which rapidly alerts a local community via text when a child goes missing – for natural disasters like this one.
Davis contrasted the different reactions to the tragedy shown by Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., and House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y.
Schumer demanded an investigation into various vacancies within NWS in Texas related to warning coordination, suggesting Trump staff and budget cuts were to blame.
"These are the experts responsible for modeling storm impacts, monitoring rising water levels, issuing flood warnings, and coordinating directly with local emergency managers about when to warn the public and issue evacuation orders," Schumer said, speaking of the vacant roles.
During "The View" on Monday, Jeffries reflected on the "dozens" who will have to bury their children following the flooding and declared, "We should never play politics ever. Not play politics with the wildfires, not play politics with these floods, and get the American people the relief they need and deserve."
Davis praised Jeffries' response.
"The thing about what Schumer said – which I just was surprised – it was a little early," the former Bush official said. "There's going to be investigations into this just because of the horrible loss, and I just can't imagine what they are dealing with… Jeffries came out and just said, let's just have a pause and let's grieve right now, and let's not make this political. And it's just too devastating."
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