Biden and Harris step up public engagement about the dangers of Hurricane Milton

By Michael Williams, CNN

(CNN) — As Hurricane Milton barrels toward Florida, President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris have forcefully warned Americans multiple times on Wednesday about what the president is calling “the storm of the century.”

“To the people of Florida and all affected states, we’ve got your back,” Biden said in remarks from the White House’s Roosevelt Room. “We’ve got your back, and Kamala and I will be there for as long as it takes to rescue, recover and rebuild.” He also denounced misinformation about the hurricane response efforts as “un-American.”

Biden and Harris’ attempt to get out in front of this latest hurricane is a reflection of the severity of the storm, the misinformation about the federal response to Hurricane Helene that the administration is trying to combat — and a looming election that raises the stakes for a successful government response.

Both leaders participated in and asked questions during a televised briefing with officials from the National Weather Service and Federal Emergency Management Agency — Biden in-person from the White House, and Harris joining remotely from New York, where she stayed overnight after participating in a series of interviews. The vice president later called into CNN and the Weather Channel for interviews about the storm, telling CNN’s Dana Bash that it’s “unconscionable” for leaders to push hurricane misinformation.

Americans heard from Biden — who postponed this week’s overseas trip to Germany and Angola — about his administration’s response to the storm no less than three separate times on Wednesday, including the briefing, a call with rabbis where the president referenced the hurricane, and separate remarks on Milton later in the afternoon from the Roosevelt Room of the White House.

Later Wednesday, the White House said Biden had spoken by phone with officials in Florida in advance of Hurricane Milton making landfall.

Harris’ visible role on the storm response comes as Hurricane Helene and now Milton have become part of the 2024 campaign, with less than four weeks to go before Election Day.

She’s been making statements on issues that don’t typically fall under the purview of her official role as vice president. A statement from her office on Wednesday, for example, warned that anyone engaging in price gouging during the storm will be held “accountable” while reminding Americans of Harris’ role countering price gougers both as California’s attorney general and as a senator.

“It is dangerous – it is unconscionable, frankly, that anyone who would consider themselves a leader would mislead desperate people to the point that those desperate people would not receive the aid to which they are entitled, and that’s why I call it dangerous,” Harris told Bash about comments from former President Donald Trump and his allies suggesting that federal assistance has run out. “And we all know it’s dangerous, and the gamesmanship has to stop at some point, the politics have to end, especially in a moment of crisis.”

She went on to praise local officials. “And I’m talking about sheriffs, I’m talking about mayors, I’m talking about local officials – I don’t even know their party affiliation, by the way – but leaders on the ground who know that it is not in the best interest of the people living in those areas to not know their rights, not to know what they entitled to, and to be afraid of seeking help.”

Earlier in the week, she told ABC’s “The View” that Trump “really lacks empathy” and her campaign debuted a digital ad hitting Trump on his own disaster relief efforts.

Her campaign has been consumed in recent days by the latest hurricane as it is working to evacuate staff, pause voter outreach across Florida and keep an eye on potential early voting ramifications following Hurricane Helene in a battleground state like North Carolina. The campaign has launched a hotline with hundreds of operators who can answer voters’ questions about how to register to vote, or vote in person or by mail, especially in light of changes to polling locations in western North Carolina in the aftermath of the storm, officials said.

During Wednesday’s hurricane briefing – usually a nonpolitical affair – Biden also took the opportunity to call out Trump for what he said was “an onslaught of lies” and Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene of Georgia for spreading misinformation.

“Assertions have been made of properties being confiscated. That’s simply not true. They’re saying people impacted by these storms will receive $750 in cash and no more. That’s simply not true. Saying the money needed for this crisis is being diverted to migrants – what a ridiculous thing to say – it’s not true,” Biden said, adding that Greene’s assertion that the government can control the weather is “beyond ridiculous.”

The administration is bracing for potentially an unprecedented scale of damage, while they are also still smack in the middle of helping communities recover from the devastating damage that Hurricane Helene unleashed across the Southeast just days ago.

“Winds will be fierce, at well over 100 miles per hour, with storm surges reaching up to 15 feet and up to 18 inches of rain. It’s looking like the storm of the century,” Biden said during the briefing.

“Many communities in Hurricane Milton’s path do not have a moment to catch their breath between Helene and Milton, two historic storms in two weeks,” Biden said before pleading with residents to listen to evacuation warnings.

“I know it’s really tough leaving behind your home, your belongings, everything you own, but I urge everyone in the hurricane’s path to follow all safety instructions as we head to the next 24 hours. It’s a matter of, literally, a matter of life and death.”

This story has been updated with additional developments.

CNN’s MJ Lee and Donald Judd contributed to this story.

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