Biden To Deliver Remarks On Florida Storm Response

President Biden will shortly deliver remarks from the White House on the federal government response to recent wildfires in Maui, Hawaii and Hurricane Idalia which made landfall in Florida today.

• Livestream: LINK
• The response to the Hurricane will be closely scrutinised ahead of the 2024 election with two key players, Biden and Florida Governor Ron DeSantis (R-FL) tasked with appropriating funds and managing operations on the ground.
• Biden came in for intense criticism in the conservative press this month for a perceived callous response to reporter questions on the Maui wildfires. Prior to that Biden was criticsed for a slow response to a train derailment in East Palestine, Ohio.
• Conversely, DeSantis was praised for his response to Hurricane Ian in September last year. Some analysts pointed to his management of the crisis as a key factor in his landslide re-election at the 2022 US Midterm Elections.
• The White House will likely to take steps to address messaging over the response and limit potential weaknesses that could be exploited by Republican opponents on the campaign trail.