Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis speaks during a news conference at the Pinellas County Emergency Operations Center, Monday, Sept. 26, 2022, in Largo, Florida. DeSantis was updating residents of the path of Hurricane Ian.
Chris O’Meara/AP Photo
President Joe Biden hasn’t called Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis about Hurricane Ian.
DeSantis said he’d welcome a call from the president, and that it was a time to work together.
“My phone line is open,” DeSantis said at a press conference in Tallahassee.
MIAMI, Florida — Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis said Tuesday that he would be receptive to a phone call from President Joe Biden about the Hurricane Ian as it closes in on his state.
The White House confirmed earlier in the day that Biden hadn’t called, but repeatedly dodged questions about why.
“I’m happy to brief the president if he’s interested in hearing what we are doing in Florida,” DeSantis said Tuesday at a press conference in Tallahasssee. “My view on all this is you have people’s lives at stake, you have their property at stake, and we don’t have time for pettiness.
“We have got to work together to make sure we are doing the best job for them. My phone line is open.”
He added that Florida officials “appreciate” how quickly Biden approved the emergency declaration.
Deanne Criswell, the administrator of the Federal Emergency Management Agency, or FEMA, spoke to DeSantis over the phone on Friday about Hurricane Ian. On Tuesday, DeSantis said that Gracia Szczech, the regional administrator for FEMA, had been with Florida officials for several days.
“We feel like we have a good relationship with FEMA,” he said.
The White House did not immediately respond to an inquiry about DeSantis’ comments.
Ahead of the storm, Biden has called other Florida elected official, including Tampa Mayor Jane Castor Tampa and St. Petersburg Mayor Ken Welsh — both Democrats — and with Clearwater Mayor Frank Hibbard, a centrist Republican. Biden raised the calls during an event in the White House the Rose Garden but did not mention DeSantis.
“I told each one of them whatever they need — I mean this sincerely — to contact me directly and they know how to do that,” the president said. “I have a lot of personnel down there already. We are here to support them in every way we can.”
The storm is set to hit all three cities and the first landfall is expected Wednesday night. DeSantis said it was predicted to get stronger and to cross the state and then head north on Friday morning, toward Georgia or South Carolina. Roughly 2.5 million Floridians are in regions with mandatory evacuations.
“This thing is the real deal it is a major, major storm,” he said.
Presidents and governors typically hold a phone call at a time of natural disasters so presidents can offer federal relief and rescue, as well as show bipartisanship.
DeSantis is up for reelection in six weeks. He has been a frequent Biden critic on COVID-19 mitigation measures, coronavirus vaccines and treatments, and on immigration policy.
It’s possible he will challenge Biden for president in 2024, particularly if former President Donald Trump doesn’t seek the White House again.
Biden was set to appear at a campaign event in Florida Tuesday alongside DeSantis’ Democratic challenger, Charlie Crist, but the White House canceled the event due to the storm. The Biden administration has criticized DeSantis after he recently authorized planes to take Venezuelan migrants from Texas to Martha’s Vineyard, Massachusetts.
But DeSantis and Biden have brokered bipartisan moments. For instance, they came together roughly a year ago following the Surfside, Florida, building collapse.
DeSantis also sat near first lady Jill Biden at Surfside’s one-year memorial this year, and neither made mention of the Supreme Court’s decision overturning Roe v. Wade, which occurred just as the event began.