Biden to MEET Ron DeSantis after clashing over transgender rights, abortion and immigration as he visits Florida and Puerto Rico to survey Hurricane Ian destruction
- President Biden together with the first lady will travel to Puerto Rico on Monday to survey the damage from Hurricane Fiona
- On Wednesday, the couple will visit Florida, where Hurricane Ian has left parts of the state in ruins and led to the deaths of 77 people
- He will meet with Florida Governor Ron DeSantis in what will be the first encounter between the pair since clashing over various key issues
- Pair disagree on transgender rights, abortion and immigration – all likely to be big issues for next month’s Midterms
- Most victims drowned, but one elderly couple died after losing power to their oxygen machines
- Fiona hit Puerto Rico on September 18 about five years after Hurricane Maria knocked out all power on the island
- That pace of restoration was much faster than after Maria – when almost all 1.5 million customers had no power for a week
Joe Biden will meet with Florida Governor Ron DeSantis in what will be the first encounter between the pair since clashing over transgender rights, abortion and immigration – all likely to be big issues for next month’s Midterms.
The meeting will come when Biden travels to Florida and Puerto Rico next week in the wake hurricane’s Fiona and Ian which both struck within the last ten days.
Biden will visit Puerto Rico on Monday before heading to Florida on Wednesday.
The White House has not yet provided specific details for the visit, but Biden had previously said he expected to visit both locations in part to reassure residents that the federal government will assist in recovery efforts.
The politicians have managed to steer clear of political attacks in the last week.
When asked by a reporter how his relationship with DeSantis was, the president was particularly positive.
‘In fact, very fine. He complimented me,’ Biden said. ‘He thanked me for the immediate response we had. He told me how much he appreciated it. He said he was extremely happy with what’s going on.’
‘This is not about anything having to do with our disagreements politically. This is about saving people’s lives, homes, and businesses.’
DeSantis has also toned down his rhetoric in recent days.
Previously he had criticized federal hurricane assistance as a ‘boondoggle’ saying it was being delivered with a ‘put it on the credit card mentality.’
However, last week, in Florida’s hour of need, DeSantis reached out to the federal government for aid.
‘You know, when people are fighting for their lives, when their whole livelihood is at stake, when they’ve lost everything — if you can’t put politics aside for that, then you’re just not going to be able to,’ the governor said.
Hurricane Ian flooded communities across the state, knocked out power and forced people into shelters with the death toll standing at 77 as of Saturday night.
