(Washington Insider Magazine)-After hurricanes devastated the 2 areas, President Joe Biden and First Lady Jill Biden visited Puerto Rico on Monday and will go to Florida on Wednesday.
The Bidens surveyed the effects of Hurricane Fiona, which devastated Puerto Rico last month and left more than 2 dozen people dead, in Ponce on the island’s south side. Deanne Criswell, the administrator of the Federal Emergency Management Agency, accompanied them as they helped load bags containing food and other supplies while also visiting with families, and political and community leaders from the island, according to ABC NEWS.
In a reference to former President Donald Trump’s decision to delay relief to the island following Hurricane Maria in 2017, Biden promised his commitment to investing in the island for “as long as it takes.”
Biden hinted at Puerto Rico’s previous issues with the federal government over disaster help as he departed the White House on Monday morning.
The president spoke briefly about declaring a disaster before Hurricane Fiona even made landfall, praising his administration’s help with lost property and home repairs, as well as the more than 1,200 FEMA workers he claimed, were on the ground in Puerto Rico assisting with the search, rescue, and debris removal.
Puerto Rico’s electricity infrastructure was already vulnerable when Fiona hit the island in September, leaving a large portion of the island in the dark and unable to recover. On Sunday’s episode of ABC’s “This Week,” Criswell said that 90% of the population had subsequently had their power restored.
As soon as he started speaking, Biden mentioned Delaware and his links to the Puerto Rican population there. He said that the state had sizable Puerto Rican and Black communities and that he had sort of been raised in the Puerto Rican community at home.
The president’s trip takes place as the extent of Ian’s devastation in Florida only begins to become apparent.
According to Criswell on “This Week,” search and rescue operations were still underway as of Sunday, so the death toll may easily increase as more of the region is investigated.
The White House frequently underlined that the administration was working as “one team” following Hurricane Ian, but has not yet confirmed whether Biden will meet with Florida GOP Governor Ron Desantis in Florida on Wednesday.
