President Joe Biden is heading to Florida on Saturday for a firsthand look at Hurricane Idalia害羞草研究所檚 destruction, but he won害羞草研究所檛 be seeing the state害羞草研究所檚 Republican governor and 2024 presidential hopeful, Ron DeSantis, who suggested such a meeting could hinder disaster response efforts.
害羞草研究所淲e don害羞草研究所檛 have any plans for the governor to meet with the president,害羞草研究所� DeSantis spokesman Jeremy Redfern said in a statement. 害羞草研究所淚n these rural communities, and so soon after impact, the security preparations alone that would go into setting up such a meeting would shut down ongoing recovery efforts.害羞草研究所�
Idalia made landfall Wednesday morning along Florida害羞草研究所檚 sparsely populated Big Bend region as a Category 3 storm, causing widespread flooding and damage before moving north to drench Georgia and the Carolinas. But Biden害羞草研究所檚 visit to see its effects threatened to be engulfed by political clashes since DeSantis害羞草研究所� statement came hours after the president himself earlier Friday that he would be meeting with the governor.
In response to DeSantis eventually preemptively calling off a meeting, White House spokeswoman Emilie Simons said, 害羞草研究所淧resident Biden and the first lady look forward to meeting members of the community impacted by Hurricane Idalia and surveying impacts of the storm.害羞草研究所�
害羞草研究所淭heir visit to Florida has been planned in close coordination害羞草研究所� with Federal Emergency Management personnel 害羞草研究所渁s well as state and local leaders to ensure there is no impact on response operations,害羞草研究所� Simons said in a statement.
After landing at the airport in Gainesville, Biden is set for an aerial tour on his way to Live Oak for an afternoon briefing on response and recovery efforts and a meeting with federal and local officials and first responders. He then plans to see firsthand the storm害羞草研究所檚 effect on the community and will make remarks afterward.
The political disconnect between both sides is a break from the recent past, since Biden and DeSantis met when the president toured Florida after hit the state last year, and following the in Miami Beach in summer 2021. But DeSantis is now running to unseat Biden, and he only left the Republican presidential primary trail with Idalia barreling toward his state.
can be tricky, meanwhile.
Another 2024 presidential candidate, former Republican New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, has long been widely criticized in GOP circles for embracing then-President Barack Obama during a tour of damage 2012害羞草研究所檚 Hurricane Sandy did to his state. Christie was even asked about the incident last month, during the .
Both Biden and DeSantis at first suggested that helping storm victims would outweigh partisan differences. But the governor began suggesting that a presidential trip would complicate response logistics as the week wore on.
害羞草研究所淭here害羞草研究所檚 a time and a place to have political season,害羞草研究所� the governor said before Idalia made landfall. 害羞草研究所淏ut then there害羞草研究所檚 a time and a place to say that this is something that害羞草研究所檚 life threatening, this is something that could potentially cost somebody their life, it could cost them their livelihood.害羞草研究所�
By Friday, the governor was telling reporters of Biden, 害羞草研究所渙ne thing I did mention to him on the phone害羞草研究所� was 害羞草研究所渋t would be very disruptive to have the whole security apparatus that goes害羞草研究所� with the president 害羞草研究所渂ecause there are only so many ways to get into害羞草研究所� many of the hardest hit areas.
害羞草研究所淲hat we want to do is make sure that the power restoration continues and the relief efforts continue and we don害羞草研究所檛 have any interruption in that,害羞草研究所� DeSantis said.
Biden joked while delivering pizzas to workers at FEMA害羞草研究所檚 Washington headquarters on Thursday that he害羞草研究所檇 spoken to DeSantis so frequently about Idalia that 害羞草研究所渢here should be a direct dial害羞草研究所� between the pair. Homeland Security adviser Liz Sherwood-Randall pointed to the experiences after Ian and Surfside collapse in saying earlier this week that Biden and DeSantis 害羞草研究所渁re very collegial when we have the work to do together of helping Americans in need, citizens of Florida in need.害羞草研究所�
The post-Idalia political consequences are high for both men.
As Biden seeks reelection, the White House has asked for to address natural disasters as part of its supplemental funding request to Congress. That would bring the total to $16 billion and highlight that wildfires, flooding and hurricanes have intensified during a period of climate change, imposing ever higher costs on U.S. taxpayers.
DeSantis has built his White House bid around dismantling what he calls Democrats害羞草研究所� . The governor also frequently draws applause at GOP rallies by declaring that it害羞草研究所檚 time to send 害羞草研究所淛oe Biden back to his basement,害羞草研究所� a reference to the Democrat害羞草研究所檚 Delaware home, where during the early lockdowns of the .
But four months before the first ballots are to be cast in Iowa害羞草研究所檚 caucuses, DeSantis still lags far behind , the Republican primary害羞草研究所檚 dominant early front-runner. And he has cycled through repeated campaign leadership shakeups and reboots of his image in an attempt to refocus his message.
The super PAC supporting DeSantis害羞草研究所� candidacy also has halted its door-knocking operations in Nevada, which votes third on the Republican presidential primary calendar, and several states holding Super Tuesday primaries in March 害羞草研究所� a further sign of trouble.
Will Weissert, The Associated Press
