President Joe Biden and Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R-FL) promised to remain in “continued close coordination” as the Republican’s state grapples with the aftermath of Hurricane Ian, now downgraded to a tropical storm.
The pair’s phone call, the second in as many days, coincided with Biden issuing a disaster declaration after the Category 4 hurricane made landfall on Florida‘s southwest coast on Wednesday.
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“The president told the governor he is sending his FEMA administrator to Florida tomorrow to check in on response efforts and see where additional support is needed,” the White House said. “The president and governor committed to continued close coordination.”
The White House did not provide a readout of Biden and DeSantis’s Wednesday call, but press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre disclosed, “There’s no politics in this.”
“This is about the people of Florida. This is about two people who wanted to have a conversation on how we can be partners to the governor and his constituents, and make sure that we are delivering for the people of Florida,” she said. “That is the focus, and that’s going to continue to be the focus these next couple of days.”
Jean-Pierre confirmed that the two leaders did not discuss DeSantis flying migrants from Texas to Martha’s Vineyard, Massachusetts.
The White House came under pressure this week after it released readouts of Biden’s calls with the mayors of Cape Coral, Clearwater, Fort Myers, Sarasota, St. Petersburg, and Tampa, as well as the chairman of Charlotte County, but FEMA Administrator Deanne Criswell told reporters Biden had directed her to contact DeSantis, a political foil and potential 2024 presidential candidate.
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“We do not bring politics into our ability to respond to these disasters. We’re going to support whatever Gov. DeSantis asks of us,” she said. “We have a strong team that’s in place supporting the governor right now, working side by side with him and his staff.”
