When a major hurricane collides with other news, the storm prevails

Hurricane Ian is blowing away all other news.

Yesterday’s Jan. 6 committee hearing? Canceled.

Other political news? There is not much on the radar.

Harsh partisanship?

Harsh partisanship?

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This GOES-East GeoCcolor satellite image taken at 12: 41 a.m. EDT on Wednesday, Sept. 28, 2022, and provided by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), shows Hurricane Ian over the Gulf of Mexico.
(NOAA via AP)

Some life-threatening events are so grave that the usual maneuvering and game playing has to be put on hold.

Hurricane Ian is just that kind of threat.

The Category 4 storm made landfall at 3: 05 p.m. eastern yesterday at the town of Punta Gorda, about 100 miles south of Tampa. The 150 mph winds mounted a furious assault on the palm trees, and as it approached the state’s western coast you could already see some cars in Naples almost totally submerged.

Earlier the Democratic-controlled committee played it cute by leaking the Roger Stone video, first to CNN and then to other networks, on Tuesday to build interest for yesterday’s scheduled hearing. Although I don’t understand why the panel leaks its scoops ahead of time, the Stone video that has been everywhere on the airwaves will soon seem old news.

This is the video right before the 2020 election where the longtime Donald Trump pal and GOP operative says “fthe voting, let’s get right to the violence… Shoot to kill, see an antifa, shoot to kill” and says the president should use armed guards to turn away any Electoral College electors. Stone had been a collaborator with two Danish filmmakers on the project, but he ridiculesly calls the video a fake.

As for the hurricane, the greatest danger comes not from the impact itself but from flooding and storm surges afterward.

Eight months after Katrina, my trip to New Orleans was awe-inspiring. There were miles of abandoned houses stretching out into the suburbs. I was amazed at the amount of household goods and toys still scattered across the lawns. Although the media had mostly moved on, the devastation changed the landscape forever.

Neighborhoods are flooded with oil and water two weeks after Hurricane Katrina went through New Orleans, Sept. 12, 2005.
(REUTERS/Carlos Barria)

George W. Bush took a major political hit when Katrina struck the Gulf Coast in 2005, remaining on vacation and then flying over the devastated city in Air Force One, with some people still stranded on rooftops. In his memoir, he said that he realized he had made a mistake. “The photo of myself hovering above the damage suggested that I was detached from the suffering. “

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His reputation was further tarnished by his “heckuva job, Brownie” remarks when FEMA was botching its handling of the storm.

It’s inevitable that both Biden and DeSantis will be judged by their response to Hurricane Ian. This is a moment for political leaders to be tested, just like mayors who fail to clear roads after a blizzard.

FILE – Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis listens to a question during a press conference Sept. 7, 2022, in Miami, Fla.
(AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell)

At the same time, DeSantis will undoubtedly avoid Chris Christie’s political blunder in embracing Barack Obama when he came to New Jersey to look at the damage from Superstorm Sandy.

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That reminds us of how these once-in-a-hundred-years hurricanes are becoming increasingly common, and the role of climate change in the rise of more extreme weather. Television loves the drama of extreme weather. Some storms are hyped up before they end, but this is not the case here.

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There are times when the awesome power of Mother Nature just overwhelms all human endeavors, and every political battle we had been obsessing on suddenly seems small. What’s happening now in Florida is one of those times.