President Biden announced $600 million in aid for areas affected by Hurricanes Milton and Helene on Sunday as he visited the storm-damaged St. Pete Beach area of Florida.
“This is all a team effort, my friends. It’s made a big difference,” Mr. Biden said. “And it saved lives. But there’s still more to do, and we’re going to do everything we can to restore power to your homes, not only to help you recover, but to help you build back stronger .”
Mr. Biden thanked local officials, first responders and health care workers for their help, and stressed that “in times like this, we come together, not as Democrats or Republicans, but as as Americans.
He also said he knows “how devastating it is to lose your home” because years ago his Delaware home was struck by lightning and was damaged. Media reports at the time indicated that the strike had caused a small fire in the kitchen which was brought under control within 20 minutes.
Energy Secretary Granholm also spoke, along with some local officials.
Earlier, Mr. Biden visited the devastation inflicted on Florida Gulf Coast by Hurricane Milton and spoke with first responders and local residents.
Mr. Biden’s visit to Florida offers him a new opportunity to pressure the Republican speaker of the House of Representatives. Mike Johnson to get lawmakers to provide more funding before the Nov. 5 election. Johnson said the issue would be resolved after the election.
Mr. Biden left early Sunday morning, with FEMA Administrator Deanne Criswell among the passengers on Air Force One.
Biden announces more than $600 million in aid
“I think President Johnson is going to understand that he has to step up, especially for small businesses,” Mr. Biden told reporters Friday as he and Harris met with aides to discuss the federal response to Hurricanes Milton and Helene. Biden and Johnson have yet to directly discuss the issue.
In Florida, Biden announced $612 million for six Department of Energy projects in hurricane-affected areas to improve the resiliency of the region’s power grid, the White House said. The funding includes $94 million for two projects in Florida: $47 million for Gainesville Regional Utilities and $47 million for Switched Source in partnership with Florida Power and Light.
“We are one United States”
Mr. Biden spoke of the government’s relief efforts “from the state and local level to FEMA, to us, the Army Corps of Engineers to the Coast Guard, the Department of Energy , the Environmental Protection Agency, the Department of Defense, to name a few.
“FEMA has delivered 1.2 million meals along with 300,000 gallons of water and 2 million gallons of fuel, and so far we have installed 100 satellite terminals to restore communications in affected areas, so that families can talk to their loved ones to make sure everything is okay.” okay, and I can also ask for help.
“Speaking of help, so far we have opened 10 disaster recovery centers in Florida with more to come, so people can have one stop to meet with officials and get federal assistance to which they are entitled.” He said direct and immediate financial assistance was available, including interest-free loans, mortgage relief and more.
For a more comprehensive list of disaster relief programs, residents can go online to disaster assistance.gov or call 1-800-621-FEMA.
Recent hurricanes and the government’s response have added a new dimension to the presidential race.
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Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump said the Biden administration’s response to the storm has been lacking, particularly in North Carolina after Hurricane Helene. And Mr. Biden and Harris criticized Trump for spreading lies about the federal response.
Trump made a series of false statements after Helene’s attack in late September, including falsely claiming that the federal government was intentionally withholding aid from Republican victims of the disaster. He also falsely claimed that the Federal Emergency Management Agency was strapped for cash because all that money had gone to programs for illegal immigrants in the country.
Mr Biden said Trump was “not alone” responsible for the spreading false allegations in recent weeks but that he has the “biggest mouth”.
Homeland Security chief warns FEMA is running out of relief funds
The president is pushing for rapid congressional action to ensure the Small Business Administration and FEMA have the money they need to get through the hurricane season, which ends Nov. 30 in the Atlantic. He said Friday that Milton alone caused an estimated $50 billion in damage.
Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas said last week that FEMA would be able to respond to “immediate needs” caused by the two storms. But he warned following the Helene affair that the agency did not have enough funds to get through the hurricane season.
But Johnson backtracked, saying agencies had enough money for now and that lawmakers would take up the funding issue in the lame duck session following the election.
Harris and DeSantis trade accusations over storm response
In the background, tensions between Harris and Florida Governor Ron DeSantis. As Helen headed to Florida last week, the Democratic vice president and the Republican governor traded accusations that the other was trying to politicize the federal response to the storm.
Harris’ office suggested last week that DeSantis was avoiding his phone calls. DeSantis responded that he did not know she had called and complained that she had not been involved in the federal government’s response before becoming the Democratic presidential nominee.
Mr. Biden, for his part, said he hoped to see DeSantis on Sunday, if the governor’s schedule permitted.
“He’s been very cooperative,” Mr. Biden said of DeSantis. He added: “We got along very, very well.”
DeSantis said Saturday he had no details about the president’s visit.
During Sunday’s visit, Biden called the storm recovery “a team effort, folks.” It made a big difference and saved lives. But there is still much to do. And we’re going to do everything we can to restore power to your homes. , not only to help you recover, but also to help you build back stronger.”
Hurricane Milton made landfall in Florida as a Category 3 storm Wednesday evening. At least 10 people were killed and hundreds thousands of inhabitants remain without electricity.
“Earlier this morning, I took an aerial tour of St. Petersburg and the battered coastline,” Biden said. “I flew over Tropicana Field and…the roof is almost completely torn off. But, thank God, not many people were injured. I talked to the first responders who were working around the clock. I also met some small business owners here and owners who took a real hit [with] consecutive storms. And they are heartbroken and exhausted, and their expenses are piling up. »
Authorities say the toll could have been worse without widespread evacuations. The still fresh devastation caused by Hélène just two weeks earlier, many people probably had to flee.
Manuel Balce Ceneta / AP
