President Joe Biden said he spoke to Florida Governor Ron DeSantis to offer any resources needed after Hurricane Idalia made landfall, seeking to assure the public that their political feud would not impede the federal response to the storm.
(Bloomberg) — President Joe Biden said he spoke to Florida Governor Ron DeSantis to offer any resources needed after Hurricane Idalia made landfall, seeking to assure the public that their political feud would not impede the federal response to the storm.
“Long before the storm made landfall, I spoke to Governor DeSantis and approved an emergency declaration to enable him to have the full support ahead of time to protect the people’s lives in the state of Florida,” Biden said at the White House on Wednesday.
Biden dismissed suggestions that political tensions with the governor, who is seeking the 2024 Republican presidential nomination and has sparred with the president over a number of issues, were impacting their ability to work together.
“I think he trusts my judgment and my desire to help,” he said.
“I know this sounds strange, especially given the nature of politics today,” Biden said, noting the two had communicated during the last major hurricane to strike Florida, when the two put aside their political differences to tour affected areas.
Read more: Hurricane Idalia Strikes Florida With Powerful Category 3 Winds
Biden’s outreach comes as some Republican presidential candidates have criticized his handling of recent wildfires on Maui. Biden on Wednesday said he had met with his Cabinet to further coordinate the federal response to the deadly fires.
Biden announced $95 million through the bipartisan infrastructure law to strengthen Hawaii’s power grid and limit damage in future natural disasters.
“The work we’re doing is going to take time. In some cases, a long time,” Biden said, but added, “We’re not leaving until the job’s done.”
Idalia came ashore on Florida’s west coast Wednesday, battering the area with Category 3 winds and disrupting power and travel throughout the region. Tampa International Airport closed and more than 100 flights were canceled to and from Atlanta, a major US hub. As of 3:05 p.m. local time, some 451,358 customers were without power in Florida and Georgia, according to website Poweroutage.us.
Idalia, which dropped to a Category 1 storm as it crossed into Georgia, is the first hurricane to strike Florida since last September, when Hurricane Ian, a Category 4 storm, caused more than $112 billion in damage. Idalia could bring $10 billion in damages and losses, according to Chuck Watson, at Enki Research. While it will be hitting sparsely populated areas, keeping damages down, that threatens to complicate recovery efforts.
Biden said he also spoke to the governors of Georgia, North Carolina and South Carolina, and ahead of landfall directed the federal government to position personnel and resources to quickly support the response in Florida and those states
That effort includes more than 1,500 federal personnel on the ground, the White House said. The US Coast Guard has teams to assist in search and rescue efforts, and three Disaster Survivor Assistance teams have been deployed to Florida. The Red Cross has also positioned resources to support sheltering at least 20,000 survivors.
Read more: Tracking Hurricane Idalia’s Latest Path
Biden said he asked Deanne Criswell, administrator of the Federal Emergency Management Agency, to travel and meet with DeSantis tomorrow to see the impacts of the storm.
Biden and DeSantis in a show of unity in October 2022 toured parts of Florida devastated by Hurricane Ian. DeSantis at the time thanked Biden for cutting through red tape to quickly bring aid to hard-hit communities.
DeSantis formally entered the presidential race in May but is a distant second place to former President Donald Trump in the primary race.
–With assistance from Maria Luiza Rabello and Michelle Jamrisko.
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