Florida Gov Ron DeSantis began a joint briefing with President Joe Biden on Wednesday, October 5, by thanking the Biden administration for supporting the state’s recovery efforts after Hurricane Ian.

DeSantis and Biden delivered remarks in Fort Myers as the president visited Lee County and took an aerial tour to survey damage.

“We were very fortunate to have good coordination with the White House and with FEMA from the very beginning of this,” DeSantis said. "We declared a state of emergency last Friday, September 23.

“This wasn’t even … this was a disturbance out there by Colombia, and then the next day we got a major disaster declaration approved by the president. We really appreciated that, and that basically set off the massive mobilization that we had ready to be able to respond to this storm,” DeSantis said.

In his remarks, Biden thanked DeSantis for his hospitality and said the administration would continue to provide support. “Today, we have one job and only one job, and that’s to make sure the people of Florida get everything that they need to fully, thoroughly recover,” Biden said.

“This is the United States of America, and I emphasize united,” Biden said. “We’ve seen extraordinary cooperation at every level of government, as the governor has said, and the cooperation began before the storm hit.”

While in Florida, Biden was scheduled to meet with local residents and small business owners impacted by Hurricane Ian, as well as federal, state, and local officials working on the recovery efforts. Credit: The White House via Storyful