Gov. Ron DeSantis does not plan to meet with President Biden during his visit to regions affected by Hurricane Idalia.
Biden will be touring the areas of Florida most damaged by Idalia’s wind and water on Saturday, but the DeSantis camp says meeting up would be too logistically tedious to set up during the recovery.
“In 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,” said DeSantis Spokesman Jeremy Redfern.
TROPICAL STORM IDALIA IMPACTS NORTH CAROLINA AFTER BARRELING THROUGH SOUTHEASTERN STATES
This statement contradicts Biden, who told reporters he would meet with the Florida governor during his trip.
The president announced his intention to visit during a press conference from the Washington, D.C., headquarters of the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA).
Biden has also demanded Congress pass more disaster relief funding as soon as possible — upping his original request of $12 billion to $16 billion.
“We need this disaster relief request met, and we need it in September,” Biden said.
Biden said he had spoken earlier with DeSantis to approve a major disaster declaration. The president was also in contact with the governors of Georgia and the Carolinas, areas also impacted by Idalia.
DeSantis, who is running for president as a Republican candidate in the 2024 election, said the loss of life from Idalia and damage was not on par with Hurricane Ian, which hit the heavily populated Fort Myers area, leaving 149 dead in the state.
Idalia made landfall early Wednesday as a Category 3 hurricane in the Big Bend region, with winds up to 125 mph, shredding homes, ripping off roofs, snapping tall trees and turning streets into rivers.
It later downgraded to a tropical storm as it moved north, hitting Georgia — resulting in one confirmed death — and the Carolinas.
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