It’s long been a cliché that Republicans are against the government until disaster strikes. At a 1986 press conference, Ronald Reagan uttered the words “I’m from the government, and I’m here to help” as an irony-laden expression of Republican distrust and suspicion of the federal government. An argument could be made that Trumpism has only amplified the anti-government ideology that has been the heart and soul of the GOP for decades. Yet those exact words are expressed by the actions of thousands of federal government employees fanned out over the states of Florida, Georgia, North Carolina, Tennessee, South Carolina, and Virginia to help with rescue and cleanup operations in the wake of Hurricane Helene last week.

Politics and disaster relief don’t mix.

Congressman Jeff Jackson, who represents the 14th District of North Carolina, located to the west of Charlotte, sent a message Monday outlining the needs of the mountainous region of the Tar Heel state, hardest hit by what he called a “once-in-500-year flood.” Governor Roy Cooper’s request for a declaration of disaster was swiftly approved by President Joe Biden, who did the same for Florida before the storm even touched down. The North Carolina National Guard has dispatched hundreds of troops, large trucks and other vehicles capable of driving through high water, helicopters, and tents to the region. They’re delivering badly needed food and water to areas of the state that are completely cut off because of flood damage to roads and are supplementing search and rescue teams that have surged into North Carolina, Georgia and the other hard-hit states........

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