Politicizing natural disasters is unAmerican
This is a time to come together as Americans, help those who have been impacted and find those who are still missing.
In the early morning hours of July 4th, 2025, Kerr County TX, located 60 miles northwest of San Antonio, experienced a storm like no other. According to The Weather Channel, In a few short hours, Kerr County was pummeled with up to 20 inches of rain. As a result, water runoff poured into the Guadalupe River, causing the river to rise 26 feet in 45 minutes. The results were catastrophic.
As I write this column, 120 people are confirmed dead and 170 people are still missing, according to Texas Governor Greg Abbott. Camp Mystic, a girl’s summer camp, lost at least 27 campers and counselors in the flood. The numbers are hard to fathom and there are countless families who have had their lives turned upside down.
Tragedies like this are a stark reminder that life is fragile. As people were fast asleep, a 26-foot wall of water swept them away. They had no chance. It’s one of the most horrific stories I’ve heard in a while.
As news of the flooding broke and stories of mass casualties emerged, people immediately started pointing the fingers at local and federal officials and casting blame. One of the first pieces of nonsense that began to circulate was that because of Trump’s cuts to the National Weather Service (NWS), there were not enough people working to effectively monitor the storm and issue lifesaving alerts.
Not surprisingly, that turned out to be a total lie, as the NWS had more people working than normal in that region, to cover the storm. NWS also issued alerts exactly as they should have. In fact, a flood watch was issued at 1:18pm on July 3rd. In addition, a special weather discussion was issued at 6:10pm on Thursday, a flash flood warning was issued at 1:14am on Friday and subsequent alerts were issued at 2:28am and 3:02am, followed by a flash flood emergency being declared at 4:03am. By that time, there wasn’t much that could be done.
The political attacks and blame game continues to this day. Along with people blaming President Trump for cuts to the NWS, people are also attacking local officials. They cited the lack of warning system infrastructure and said people were not given enough time to escape the dangerous conditions. Not surprisingly, climate change has also been blamed as the cause of this disaster.
Let’s not point fingers. There are still 170 people missing and hundreds of families are dealing with the gut-wrenching reality of burying their loved ones. Young, innocent and helpless children were lost. This is not the time to blame people for what happened. This is a time to come together as Americans, help those who have been impacted and find those who are still missing.
Once all of the victims have been found or identified, you can guarantee there will be plenty of time to review the situation and determine how to avoid a disaster like this in the future. Let’s focus on what matters most, finding survivors and recovering victims.
How our communities respond to natural disasters is one of the many things that defines America. We conquer adversity. We support our communities. We help each other. We don’t give up. We donate money. We assess and make improvements for future generations. And that’s exactly what will happen.
Attacking politicians and casting blame on political parties after a natural disaster goes against everything America stands for. It solves nothing and distracts people from the critical work that needs to be done now. There is no place for politics during a situation like this.
If you are interested in donating to support victims of the Texas floods, visit www.communityfoundation.net
