CNN reporter Steve Contorno was blasted on Twitter for hitting Gov. Ron DeSantis, R-Fla., for relying on the same local and federal officials for Hurricane Ian that he condemned during the pandemic.
As Florida prepared for the hurricane to hit on Wednesday, Contorno remarked how DeSantis encouraging citizens to follow local and federal guidelines on evacuation and hurricane preparation was a stark contrast to the governor’s view during the coronavirus pandemic.
“As DeSantis prepares Floridians for Ian, he is urging residents to heed advice from the same local leaders he suggested they ignore during COVID and praising a federal agency he previously alleged withheld aid to the state bc Biden was playing politics,” Contorno tweeted.
Other reporters appeared to agree with Contorno’s sentiment.
“Hurricanes & politics tend to run into each other in Florida, but this time it’s with a governor who has put himself at odds with many local government officials and who has been looking for fights with a president he may end up running against… 6 weeks before Election Day,” CNN senior reporter Edward-Isaac Dovere said along with a retweet of Contorno.
CNN anchor Kasie Hunt wrote, “A major test for this 2024 likely presidential hopeful.”
“What have we learned? Apparently, it is harder to play politics with meteorological advice than public health advice,” MSNBC analyst David Corn tweeted.
DeSantis Rapid Response director Christina Pushaw responded to Contorno, tweeting, “Because Covid & hurricanes are not the same. If you are seriously equating mask mandates and lockdowns (liberal rain dances that weren’t demonstrated to be effective anywhere in the USA) to HURRICANE EVACUATIONS, which are proven necessary from past experience, reevaluate.”
Several social media users attacked Contorno’s tweet for likening COVID-19 with a major hurricane.
“Telling people how to get access to needed supplies or safe evacuation routes is not the same as directing their personal health care. I promise I’ve lived through more natural disasters than you, and I can assure you, no one appreciates this,” The Lafayette Co. president Ellen Carmichael tweeted.
RedState contributor Cameron Arcand wrote, “I mean, it’s possible that they disagreed then and agree now. Hurricanes are a known quantity to Florida.”
“Fellas, is a hurricane just like covid?” The Spectator contributing editor Stephen Miller tweeted.
“COVID is not like a hurricane. This is dumb and discrediting analysis,” radio host Erick Erickson tweeted.
Mediaite editor Caleb Howe wrote, “’praising a federal agency he previously alleged withheld aid.’ The ‘As If It’s a Contradiction’ style of reporting. ‘Bob allowed his life to be saved by a firefighter even though he previously alleged a firefighter took the last donut.’”
DeSantis’ past response to the coronavirus was also referenced in Contorno’s article claiming that the governor faces a “leadership test” regarding Hurricane Ian.
“After initially ceding coronavirus action to city mayors and county officials, DeSantis made a hard pivot and stripped municipalities of their ability to manage the pandemic while encouraging residents to ignore local precautions on masks and other mitigation measures,” Contorno wrote. “This week, though, DeSantis urged Tampa Bay residents to follow the advice of local leaders and lauded county emergency management teams as experienced professionals.”
While Contorno remarked that DeSantis was elected “just days after the arrival of Hurricane Michael,” he did not reference DeSantis overseeing Hurricane Sally striking the Florida panhandle in Sept. 2020. On Tuesday, Politico falsely claimed DeSantis hadn’t faced a hurricane while in office before correcting their mistake.
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The latest reports indicate that Hurricane Ian is just shy of Category 5 status as it moves over Florida.
