President Joe Biden on Wednesday promised ample federal support and noted links to climate change as he gave a speech about Hurricane Idalia, which made landfall in the morning on Florida’s Gulf Coast and has been moving across Georgia.
“I don’t think anybody can deny the impact of the climate crisis anymore. Just look around — historic floods, I mean historic floods, more intense droughts, extreme heat,” Biden said in a speech at the White House.
“Significant wildfires have caused significant damage like we’ve never seen before, not only throughout the Hawaiian Islands in the United States, but in Canada and other parts of the world,” he added.
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Florida is suffering this latest hit even as the state is still still dealing with damage caused by Hurricane Ian last year.
Biden has been in touch with Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, with the president telling the Republican presidential candidate on Monday that the state would have the federal government’s “full support” as it responds to Idalia and its aftermath.
The president said he again offered help in a call on Wednesday with DeSantis, and that he also spoke with the governors of Georgia, North Carolina and South Carolina.
“I let each governor I spoke with know if there’s anything, anything the states need right now, I’m ready to mobilize that support,” Biden said.
The Democratic president said his discussions with DeSantis haven’t been about politics, adding that he knows that “sounds strange” given “the nature of politics today.”
“This is not about politics. This is about taking care of the people of the state,” Biden said in response to a reporter’s question.
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The White House said the federal government’s response to the hurricane has included putting more than 1,500 personnel on the ground, deploying three disaster survivor assistance teams, approving early issuance of September food-stamp benefits and prestaging supplies such as 1.3 million meals and 1.6 million liters of water.
Republican lawmakers on Capitol Hill have been pushing for more limits on federal spending, and Biden was asked whether his administration will have sufficient funding to get through the hurricane season.
“If I can’t do that, I’m going to point out why,” the president said.
“How can we not respond to these needs? And so I’m confident, even though there’s a lot of talk from some of our friends up on the Hill about the cost,” he said.
Biden’s remarks also touched on his administration’s response this month to Maui’s wildfires, with the president announcing that $95 million from the 2021 bipartisan infrastructure law will be used to “harden” Hawaii’s infrastructure grid. That work has to do with burying power lines and installing stronger utility poles, the president said.
“While we’re dealing with this latest extreme weather event, I remain laser focused on recovery and rebuilding efforts in Maui,” he said.
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