Donald Trump makes multiple stops in NC on Monday, including one in Asheville to see Helene damage
ASHEVILLE, N.C. (WTVD) -- Former President Donald Trump scheduled three stops across North Carolina on Monday.
His first stop was in the Asheville area in the western part of the state.
Trump toured the devastation caused by Hurricane Helene just outside Asheville and later delivered remarks to the press where he began by slamming the job from the White House for its hurricane response, continuing to push claims about a lack of FEMA assistance in the wake of threatened violence against FEMA workers.
"The power of nature. Nothing you can do about it, but you got to get a little bit better crew in to do a better job than has been done by the White House. It's been not good. Not good. I'm here today in western North Carolina to express a simple message to the incredible people of the state, I'm with you, and the American people are with you all the way," Trump said.
Later, he pushed claims about the allocation of FEMA assistance, once again saying that money dedicated to hurricane relief was going to offer assistance to migrants unaffected by the storm.
"FEMA has done a very poor job ... They had spent hundreds of millions of dollars doing other things, things that I don't think bear any relationship to this money, there was, they were not supposed to be spending the money on taking in illegal migrants, maybe so they could vote in the election. Because that's what a lot of people are saying. That's why they're doing it," Trump said.
FEMA came under fire in the wake of Helene when reports surfaced that $700 million -- a small percentage of its total budget -- had been diverted from the agency and U.S. Customs and Border Protection toward housing and other payments for immigrants who were not legally in the country. The criticism grew after Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas told reporters earlier this month that FEMA did not have enough funding to last through hurricane season.
The agency said it did have enough for Helene recovery and then for Hurricane Milton, which battered Florida, but said another major storm would stretch its budget.
Gov. Roy Cooper, at a different event Monday, stressed that the "deliberate disinformation and misinformation ... needs to stop."
"It hurts the very people we are all trying to help," Cooper said. "It discourages and makes people fearful of signing up for help. It enables scam artists and it hurts the morale of government officials, first responders and soldiers who are on the ground trying to help."
Cooper said the White House "responded quickly and positively to our request from FEMA, which has had 1,400 staff on the ground and has registered 206,000 people for individual assistance, and distributed $124 million directly to people who need it."
"As for long-term recovery, state and local government will be all in, along with the federal government," Cooper said. "This will take billions of dollars and years of bipartisan focus from everyone working together to make it happen -- from new roads and bridges to public building to water supplies to people's homes."
Remarks in Greenville
After he visited Asheville, Trump traveled to Greenville to hold a rally at 3 p.m. He then traveled to Concord for another rally Monday evening.
In Greenville, the former president spoke to a raucous crowd. He ended by encouraging people to vote early saying "If you want to end this disaster, go vote."
In between, he focused on the economy and the border.
"When I win on Nov. 5, the migrant invasion ends and the restoration of our country begins," Trump said.
Trump reminded the crowd about his strong economy four years ago, saying that the country was "energy-independent."
He talked again about using tariffs as a tool to spur the US economy and bring manufacturing back to the United States.
"I will never apologize for putting America first," Trump said. "I will protect our workers, I will protect our jobs, I will protect our borders."
Faith-based event in Concord
In Concord, Trump spoke before a room full of ardent supporters.
"I'm here tonight to deliver a simple message to Christians across the country: Time to stand up and save your country," Trump said.
The event was part of a movement to energize evangelical Christians in swing states.
"You don't have a choice of sitting out this election because if Kamala Harris gets four more years, they're not going to leave Christians alone," Trump said.
The former president partnered in Concord with conservative faith leaders including Franklin Graham on how to mobilize congregations for Trump.
Two attendees didn't need to be convinced.
"I'm definitely a Trump supporter," said a woman named Linda, who did not give her last name. "I believe in all of his policies. I think his policies make America the great country we need to be and most importantly his values of faith."
Gale Pharr added, "I know one thing -- I am voting for biblical reasons and like, he's got my vote."
Two sisters, who identified themselves as Deana and Wanda, drove 14 hours through the night from Missouri to see the man they were planning to vote for.
"This is amazing to see our President Trump talk about what our nation could be again, and we've got to be putting God first in order for that," Deana said.
Trump spoke for an hour in Concord, wrapping up a long day of campaigning across the state.
Tuesday, he'll be back at it with a rally in Greensboro at the coliseum.
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