Downplaying federal response to Texas crisis, Fox hosts attack Joe Biden for not “throwing out paper towels"

Written by Brendan Karet

Research contributions from Media Matters Staff

Published

Texas faced a week of blackouts after climate-linked extreme winter weather hit the state, leading to major outages in gas plants due to deregulation, especially regarding failures to winterize equipment. After spending days lying about renewable energy’s role in the ongoing Texas blackouts, Fox pundits and hosts have now decided to attack President Joe Biden for not “throwing out paper towels or whatever presidents do” and for taking “a day off in the middle of this natural disaster.” In reality, he Biden administration has been involved in the disaster response since February 14, and is following a similar pattern to other natural disasters like Hurricane Sandy.

Fox contributor Jason Chaffetz: “As Texas continued to suffer under a massive and deadly winter storm, the commander in chief, Joe Biden, took a snow day.” [Fox News, Hannity, 2/19/21]

From the February 19, 2021, edition of Fox News' Hannity

JASON CHAFFETZ (HOST): Yesterday, as Texas continued to suffer under a massive and deadly winter storm, the commander in chief, Joe Biden, took a snow day.

Fox host Jesse Watters: Unlike Donald Trump, Biden isn’t “throwing out paper towels or whatever presidents do to make it look like, for the cameras, that they care.” [Fox News, The Five, 2/19/21]

From the February 19, 2021, edition of Fox News' The Five

JESSE WATTERS (CO-HOST): Biden’s never going to be the one to throw on the bomber jacket and the khakis and go off to Air Force One and show that his heart is with Texas. Like any other president, Bush, Clinton, Obama, Trump, they would have already been there, throwing out paper towels or whatever presidents do to make it look like, for the cameras, that they care. 

I mean, politicians have to do that. It is effective because you want to make sure the country can rally around the recovery. Biden’s tightly scripted, Juan. I mean, what did he do when he campaigned? He went from Delaware, to Philly, and back to Delaware, maybe to D.C. and then back to Delaware. He barely campaigned, I think he's barely going to govern.

Fox contributor Karl Rove: Biden should “pick up the phone and do what they finally did yesterday, which is the president of the United States talked to the governor of Texas last night.” [Fox News, America Reports with John Roberts and Sandra Smith, 2/19/21]

From the February 19, 2021, edition of Fox News' America Reports with John Roberts and Sandra Smith

KARL ROVE (FOX NEWS CONTRIBUTOR): Under the law, the Stafford Act of 1968, the federal government provides resources through the state. What I’m picking up is, is that the Biden administration was very eager to be talking to people like the Democrat county executive, we call them county judges in Texas, Clay Jenkins in Dallas County, and really not working through the state emergency management people.

You know, the state emergency management people, we’re hearing of, you know, White House contacts with Democratic local elected officials.

This should be outside of politics. They should pick up the phone and do what they finally did yesterday, which is the president of the United States talked with the governor of Texas last night. Let's hope that they work through the state of management, emergency management people who are trained to handle these kind of crises, have been putting together what's needed and where it's needed.

The president was great to issue a major disaster declaration, that allows people who’ve got uninsured losses because of water or cold to get assistance, and good to happen, but -- but they need to be -- they need to be working through, as the law specifies, through the state emergency management person, not turning this into some White House intergovernmental affairs people picking up the phone and calling Clay Jenkins and saying, “What can we do for you?”

 

Fox contributor Guy Benson: “It does feel like a little bit of a slow federal response. A hands-off situation for days on end.” [Fox News, America Reports with John Roberts and Sandra Smith, 2/19/21]

From the February 19, 2021, edition of Fox News' America Reports with John Roberts and Sandra Smith

GUY BENSON (FOX PODCAST HOST): This needs to be an all-hands-on-deck effort, obviously, Americans are suffering. Americans have died. It's very scary what's happening in Texas and elsewhere, it does feel like a little bit of a slow federal response — bit of a hands-off situation for days on end.

…

Of course, the media, like catnip, they're delighted to talk about the Ted Cruz, huge mistake that he made, they’re eager to talk about Greg Abbott, the governor and the Republican officials in this red state, what went wrong, the blame game that’s underway. And there seems to be a lot less scrutiny about why the hell the federal government, starting with the president himself, seems to have been relatively MIA days into this thing. Have we heard Joe Biden, the president talk about this issue at all, aside from some tweets? I haven't heard that, unless I'm missing something. I feel like that’s --

SANDRA SMITH (HOST): To be clear, to be fair, he did, days ago, declare a national emergency -- sorry, a state emergency in Texas because of this, Richard, but shouldn’t that have meant that there were preparations to provide government relief to these people who so badly need it, that are now in long lines just to get a can of food or a drink of water?

Fox host Harris Faulkner: Biden “says he wants to accelerate a major disaster declaration for Texas, but critics say that he waited too long to act.” [Fox News, Outnumbered, 2/19/21]

From the February 19, 2021, edition of Fox News' Outnumbered

HARRIS FAULKNER (CO-HOST): Some are taking issue with President Joe Biden's response. He now says he wants to accelerate a major disaster declaration for Texas, but critics say that he waited too long to act. Only yesterday did he authorize FEMA to start sending supplies; they could take days to arrive. Sean Hannity went after the president over the lack of response.

Fox host Sean Hannity: Biden “took a day off in the middle of this natural disaster.” [Fox News, Hannity, 2/18/21]

From the February 18, 2021, edition of Fox News' Hannity

SEAN HANNITY (HOST): Where’s our commander-in-chief? You know, that new guy. Oh, that's right, this morning he decided to take a snow day. The guy ultimately in charge of FEMA and all of the country's emergency resources and federal agencies, yeah, he took a day off in the middle of this natural disaster. Where’s the feigned, phony, selective liberal outrage on this? I guess, you know, to be fair, it's not even really totally clear that Joe even fully understands what's going on in Texas.

Fact check: The Biden administration has been involved in disaster response for over a week

Biden approved an emergency declaration for the entire state of Texas on February 14, allowing federal resources to supplement the state government’s response to the winter storms -- aid that included 60 generators, 729,000 liters of water, over 60,000 blankets, and 225,000 meals, according to PolitiFact, which also reported that Biden released several statements and asked Texas Gov. Greg Abbott (R) if he needed more federal assistance. 

After the call with Abbott, Biden authorized a major disaster declaration for 77 of Texas’ 254 counties on February 19, meaning that the storms caused “damage of such severity that it is beyond the combined capabilities of state and local governments to respond,” according to the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s website. 

According to The Dallas Morning News, White House press secretary Jen Psaki said the partial declaration was intended to focus on “the counties that are hardest hit, so that [FEMA] can make sure they get the people in most need.” Texas is currently collecting information to try to add the rest of its counties to the disaster declaration, in a similar pattern to the federal response to Superstorm Sandy in 2012. 

In New York, one of the states hardest hit by Sandy, on October 30, 2012, then-President Barack Obama initially issued a major disaster declaration for the seven counties which comprise New York City and Long Island. However, in the ensuing weeks, Obama added seven more New York counties to the original declaration. In New Jersey, the disaster declaration (also made on October 30) initially focused on eight counties directly on the Atlantic coast, but by November 5 it included the entire state.