President Joe Biden is set to visit Florida‘s Gulf Coast on Sunday to assess the damage caused by Hurricane Milton. During his visit, he will also urge Congress to approve additional emergency disaster funding. Biden hopes to persuade House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) to secure more funding before the upcoming election, although Johnson has stated that the matter will be addressed after the election. The President emphasized the importance of supporting small businesses and improving resilience in affected areas during a meeting with Vice President Kamala Harris and their aides on Friday.
In Florida, Biden plans to announce $612 million for six Department of Energy projects aimed at enhancing the region’s electric grid resilience in hurricane-affected areas. This funding includes $94 million for two projects in Florida: $47 million for Gainesville Regional Utilities and $47 million for Switched Source partnering with Florida Power and Light.
Meanwhile, Vice President Harris visited Raleigh on Saturday where she met with black elected officials and religious leaders. She also assisted volunteers in packaging personal care items for victims of Hurricane Helene in western North Carolina. On Sunday, Harris is scheduled to speak at a church service as part of her campaign’s “Souls to the Polls” initiative, which aims to encourage black churchgoers’ voter turnout before Election Day.
Biden is urging Congress to take swift action in providing necessary funds for hurricane relief efforts led by the Small Business Administration and Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA). He emphasized that Hurricane Milton alone has caused an estimated $50 billion worth of damages. While Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas assured that FEMA can meet immediate needs resulting from both hurricanes, he warned about insufficient funding lasting through hurricane season.
However, Speaker Johnson disagrees with immediate action on additional funding, stating that current resources are sufficient until after the election when lawmakers can address this issue during a lame-duck session.
Amidst these discussions surrounding disaster response efforts, tensions have arisen between Vice President Harris and Florida Governor Ron DeSantis regarding politicization accusations related to federal storm response efforts. Despite these tensions, Biden expressed hopefulness about meeting Governor DeSantis during his visit.
During his trip along Tampa and St. Pete Beach via aerial tour on Sunday, Biden will survey damage caused by Hurricane Milton while receiving briefings from federal, state, and local officials. The Category 3 storm made landfall last Wednesday evening resulting in at least 10 fatalities and leaving hundreds of thousands without power.
Officials credit widespread evacuations as a key factor preventing even greater loss of life during this hurricane season; recent devastation caused by Hurricane Helene likely influenced many residents’ decision-making process regarding evacuation measures.