X/@ACTBrigitteConservative commentator Brigitte Gabriel has set the tinder for a heated online debate with allegations of Eric Swalwell and CNN politicizing flood warnings for Texas. Gabriel posted angrily, saying a false narrative was being pushed about budget cuts on flood alerts: “DOGE cuts had no impact on flood warnings, stop trying to make everything political!”
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This controversy started with flash flooding that hit a Texas campground, with some news outlets even hinting at possible government funding decisions. Gabriel puts it into perspective again in her video statement, reiterating that “Our primary job as lawmakers is the safety of the public” while issuing a warning against political exploitation of tragedies.
The picture accompanying Gabriel’s tweet showed Swalwell lined up with CNN looking stern as if articulating that the government should be held to account—the image added fuel to an already hot comment section.
Reactions that followed came with clearly crisp political views. Contrasting conservative views poured in with one user threatening: [“When politics becomes profitable, people’s safety will not be guaranteed.”] Another pointed to the practical reality of flash floods: [“An area prone to flash floods being used by human beings for 100s of years has no early warning system. And that’s President Trump’s fault how?”]
Trajectory of the discussion went quite bizarre, comparing Swalwell somehow to serial killer Jeffrey Dahmer as some commenters continued into his past controversies. [“This coming from the guy that banged Fang Fang,” rebuked one commenter alluding to the older allegations of Swalwell’s ties with a Chinese spy.]
Some users were against the political blaming. One Texan explained: [“There is Nothing That Any Man/Human Could Have Done To Avoid A Wall Of Water that Rose So Fast & So Furious.”] This pragmatic approach highlighted some of the problems faced in predicting and responding to these sudden natural calamities.
Go beyond the immediate flood events, distrust across political factions was magnified by one user saying, “Democrats would politicize their grandmother’s funeral if it was politically expedient,” while another warned of far-reaching consequences: “IF we FAIL to RESTORE America -> EXTREME JUSTICE REQUIRED!”
Interestingly, a few technical corrections began emerging in the comment sections, including one that said, “DOGE cuts haven’t even happened at the NWS yet. Not until October,” throwing into doubt the very premise of the original accusation against Swalwell.
The sheer magnitude of responses shows how natural disasters have been weaponized as yet another area in the grand culture wars of America. Gabriel’s intervention gave voice to conservative angst over what they see as bias from the media; the divergent responses highlighted exactly how fast the discussion can veer from policy to personal attacks.
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The ongoing debate, therefore, underscores how tricky it becomes to separate genuine queries about government’s preparedness from partisan point-scoring; with flood season still on in many parts of the country, these might have been only the first round of a very politically charged debate about disaster response and liability.
