Last week Joe Biden took the high ground: He said nice things about Republicans. After Mitch McConnell suffered a second bout of “freezing” up in public, the sitting president called the Senate Minority Leader a “good friend” and said he’d be reaching out to see if he’s okay. He also expressed enthusiasm in working with Florida governor Ron DeSantis to help out after Hurricane Idalia. It appears that was a one-way street.
As per Mediaite, DeSantis appears to have blown off a planned meeting with Biden. On Friday, Biden said he’d be jetting down to Florida for a pow-wow with his (very unlikely) 2024 presidential rival. DeSantis’ office then claimed no meeting had been planned. Who was lying? According to FEMA administrator Deanne Criswell, it’s DeSantis who’s not being level.
On Saturday morning, Criswell told CNN that there had been a “tremendous amount of coordination” between Biden and DeSantis’ teams about the meet-up.
“I traveled with the governor on Thursday and we went to some of the more rural coastal communities and access is fairly limited there,” Criswell said. “And so when the president contacted the governor to let him know he was going to be visiting, we mutually agreed. The governor’s team and my team mutually agreed on a place that would have minimal impact into operations.”
Criswell said she “would have to defer you to the governor on what his schedule is going to be,” but that “the president and the first lady are really looking forward to meeting with these first responders and these communities that have been impacted and letting them know that the government is here and that the president has directed all of us to bring the resources we have to help them on their road to recovery.”
Is it smart for the governor of a state recently impacted by a dangerous hurricane to blow off the president? Is he worried he’ll be smeared like Chris Christie was after he met with then-President Barack Obama after Hurricane Sandy? Is he putting his flailing presidential campaign over his constituents? Sure seems that way.
Kinzinger: Desantis, at the cost of the benefit to Florida, has decided his political campaign cannot have him meet with Biden, the president of the United States, who ultimately will be signing the checks that Florida is going to be begging for pic.twitter.com/5ZFJDxEvi8
— Acyn (@Acyn) September 2, 2023
After Katrina, Gov. Kathleen Blanco ordered staff to say nothing negative in the press about Pres. Bush, even though his WH attacked her & tried to undermine her. She put her residents’ wellbeing above politics. She met him every time he came to LA. DeSantis should do the same. https://t.co/5MFVwZ2otj
— Robert Mann (@RTMannJr) September 2, 2023
It’s yet another example of DeSantis’ cowardice? After all, this is the guy who’s afraid of a 15-year-old kid.
(Via Mediaite)