During a FEMA briefing on preparations for Hurricane Ian, FEMA Administrator Deanne Criswell spoke about everything the Biden administration has done to prepare for the storm.
Video of Criswell:
President Biden comes through for Gov. Ron DeSantis and the people of Florida before Hurricane Ian hits. This is what country first leadership looks like. pic.twitter.com/4PTAePVwbM
— Sarah Reese Jones (@PoliticusSarah) September 27, 2022
Administrator Criswell said from the White House:
I did speak with Governor Desantis on Friday to hear his main concerns and his priorities for the response and the preparedness actions. We immediately began moving resources and personnel in. President Biden signed Governor Desantis’ emergency declaration request on Saturday.
This made sure we were able to immediately start supporting the governor’s concerns that he relayed to me. The preparation for this storm has been extensive and it has been coordinated. It has been a coordinated effort between FEMA, our federal, our state and our non-profit partners. A little bit about some of that forward-leaning posture we put in place.
Search and rescue we know that this is going to be a priority. We have established a search and rescue coordination group that’s going to be in Miami. It includes members from FEMA’s urban search and rescue teams, Coast Guard, Department of Defense, Department of the Interior as well as the state of Florida.
These teams are going to coordinate search and rescue efforts by land, by air and by sea. We have also pre-staged 128,000 gallons of fuel for immediate deployment. We have moved a variety of generators of all sizes and types to help restore power to critical infrastructure after the storm passes.
The Army Corps of Engineers has pre-staged 300 personnel to conduct power and fuel assessments as soon as the storm passes. We have 3.7 million and 3.5 million liters of water in Alabama. There are multiple volunteer organizations that are posture and prepared to support feeding
operations as soon as it is safe to do so. The Red Cross, they have established 29 shelters right now for evacuees. They are prepared to open an additional 60 shelters if needed. We have 200 ambulances from our FEMA contract that are in the state working side by side with local officials.
We have four medical — federal medical teams on standby. While we are postured and ready to support Florida as they prepare for the impacts of Hurricane Ian.
The President is leading the nation and working with a governor who has been a constant critic to save lives in Florida.
Since the nation went without it for so many years, it must be pointed out that this is what true presidential leadership and governmental competence look like.
Biden isn’t dragging his feet on helping Florida because the state didn’t go for him in 2020. President Biden isn’t forcing DeSantis to say nice things about him to get aid for his state.
The President is doing his job and ensuring that the resources will be available to Florida during this crisis.
America now has a government and a president that it can count on.
Mr. Easley is the managing editor. He is also a White House Press Pool and a Congressional correspondent for PoliticusUSA. Jason has a Bachelor’s Degree in Political Science. His graduate work focused on public policy, with a specialization in social reform movements.
Awards and Professional Memberships
Member of the Society of Professional Journalists and The American Political Science Association
