Biden Surveys Hurricane Damage, DeSantis Stays Away

President Joe Biden visited the state of Florida to assess the damage caused by Hurricane Idalia. However, during his visit, he did not have a meeting with Governor Ron DeSantis, who is considered a potential rival in presidential politics and had chosen not to attend.

On Saturday, Biden expressed his support and condolences to the individuals affected by Hurricane Idalia. He conducted an aerial tour of the affected areas and received a briefing from local officials and first responders in Live Oak, a town severely impacted by the storm.

During his visit, he witnessed houses with trees fallen on them and emphasized that it should be evident to anyone with reasonable understanding that climate change is a real phenomenon.

“I’m here today to deliver a clear message to the people of Florida and throughout the southeast,” Biden said as he spoke outdoors, near a church that had parts of its sheet metal roof peeled back by Idalia’s powerful winds and a home half crushed by a fallen tree.

“As I’ve told your governor, if there’s anything your state needs, I’m ready to mobilise that support,” he continued. “Anything they need related to these storms. Your nation has your back and we’ll be with you until the job is done.”

But politics hung over Biden’s trip.

The President, who belongs to the Democratic Party and has had several conversations with Governor Ron DeSantis this week, had stated on Friday that he and the Republican governor were scheduled for an in-person meeting.

However, on the same day, DeSantis’s spokesperson declared that the governor had no intentions of meeting with Biden. The spokesperson also noted that the extensive security preparations required for such a meeting would disrupt ongoing recovery efforts.

The governor’s decision took the White House by surprise. When asked if he was disappointed by DeSantis’s absence, Biden responded, “No, I’m not disappointed.”

“He may have had other reasons. … But he did help us plan this,” Biden told reporters. “He sat with FEMA and decided where we should go where would be the least disruption,” he added, referring to the Federal Emergency Management Agency.

Biden expressed satisfaction that Senator Rick Scott, a former Republican governor of Florida, had attended the event despite their numerous policy disagreements.

Meanwhile, Governor Ron DeSantis, aged 44, spent the day touring small communities along Florida’s Gulf Coast, approximately 80km (50 miles) south of where Biden was visiting, according to his official schedule.

DeSantis is actively running for the 2024 Republican presidential nomination with the goal of defeating Biden and assuming the presidency. However, he currently trails former President Donald Trump in opinion polls.

Throughout the week, Biden and DeSantis had frequent discussions regarding the hurricane, which severely impacted Florida’s Big Bend region with Category 3 winds reaching nearly 200km/h (125 mph). On Wednesday, President Biden emphasized that politics had not entered their conversations.

For DeSantis, being photographed with Biden while assessing storm damage at this point in time could have carried political risks, given the intensifying race for the presidential nomination. Although he lags significantly behind Trump in popularity, DeSantis leads the other Republican contenders in the race.

Notably, when Biden visited Florida after Hurricane Ian last year, a viral photo captured DeSantis standing somewhat awkwardly to the side as the president engaged with a local couple, underscoring the contrasting styles of the two politicians in public interactions.

Chris Christie, the former Governor of New Jersey, and a fellow contender for the 2024 Republican presidential nomination, faced backlash for applauding then-President Barack Obama in 2012 when the Democratic leader visited New Jersey in the aftermath of superstorm Sandy.

While on his visit to Live Oak, President Biden garnered accolades from Republican Senator Scott for swiftly declaring an official disaster.

In return, President Biden also commended both Senator Scott and Governor DeSantis for their efforts.

“The governor was on top of it,” Biden said.

FEMA said Biden and DeSantis’s failure to meet will not have any effect on recovery efforts.

Deanne Criswell, who leads FEMA, informed the press that search and rescue operations had concluded, and the primary focus was now on restoring power to the affected areas. She noted that as of Saturday, less than 1 percent of Floridians were without power. However, in regions directly impacted by the hurricane, this percentage was considerably higher.

The aftermath of Hurricane Idalia carries significant political implications for both President Biden and Governor DeSantis.

As President Biden pursues re-election, the White House has submitted an additional request for $4 billion in funding to address natural disasters, as part of a supplementary funding proposal to Congress. This would increase the total allocation to $16 billion, highlighting the growing financial burden on U.S. taxpayers due to escalating extreme weather events.

Governor DeSantis, a vocal critic of President Biden, has centered his White House campaign around dismantling what he refers to as the “woke” policies of the Democrats. At Republican rallies, he often garners applause by advocating for the idea of sending “Joe Biden back to his basement,” a reference to the President’s Delaware residence where he spent a significant portion of his time during the early COVID-19 pandemic lockdowns.

Despite these efforts, DeSantis still trails significantly behind former President Trump, who is the leading contender in the early stages of the Republican primary. He has also experienced repeated changes in campaign leadership and image rebranding attempts in an effort to refocus his campaign message.

A major political group supporting DeSantis’s 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 – a further sign of trouble.

Biden Surveys Hurricane Damage, DeSantis Stays Away

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