No politics for Biden and DeSantis
While Biden and DeSantis ensured comfort and resources, politics was far away from the conversation
Ron DeSantis, Governor of Florida and devout conservative, stuck by Trump as one of his biggest supporters. Now DeSantis’ Republican support has plummeted as he tries to continue search and rescue operations at the collapse of the Surfside, Miami Beach condo collapse of the Champlain Towers.
President Biden arrived last Thursday in Miami in Surfside at the site of the Champlain Towers collapse. The unspeakable tragedy put two opponents side by side, shoulder to shoulder as Biden offered any and all federal support also while sharing with DeSantis and the world that the U.S. Federal Government would be paying for the first 30 days of the recovery efforts.
Last Thursday, Biden’s visit to Florida was a time they both benefited from the public signal that they were setting aside any political differences to bring empathy and help to a grief-stricken community.
But on Thursday, DeSantis and Biden both benefited from the public signal that they were setting aside any political differences to bring empathy and help to a grief-stricken community.
After Miami-Dade County Mayor Daniella Levine Cava (D) commended the coordination between federal, state and local officials, Biden touched DeSantis’s arm for a moment and declared that they were “letting the nation know we can cooperate.”
“I mean, just the simple act of everybody doing whatever needs to be done,” Biden continued. “And it really makes a difference, Gov.”
DeSantis then took a moment to thank Biden before reflecting on the devastation in the area.
“And you’ve recognized the severity of this tragedy from day one. And you’ve been very supportive,” he said.
The episode earned praise for both leaders.
“It reminds us that we are all mortal and that we are all human and that we all share these same feelings, whether you’re red or blue,” said Barbara Perry, director of presidential studies at the University of Virginia’s Miller Center.
GOP former state lawmaker and current Miami-Dade County Commissioner René Garcia praised Biden and DeSantis’s show of unity, calling them both “strong leaders.”
“They’re man enough to say you know what, this is not about politics,” Garcia said. “This is about doing the right thing for our state and for our country and for our people.”
Biden is known for his emotional displays of empathy during times of calamity and hardship, having lived through a number of personal losses himself, and he’s made unifying the country and reaching across the aisle a key goal of his presidency.
“President Biden’s strength is that he believes in America,” said Christian Ulvert, who worked as a senior adviser on both Biden’s and Cava’s campaigns. “He brings that out in people, even [in] his most harshest critics.”
On Thursday, Biden announced that the federal government would pick up the costs incurred by the county and state for the recovery efforts for the first 30 days.
Basil Smikle, a Democratic strategist, said that the meeting allowed Biden to demonstrate that he is “quick to respond to crises and tragedies without political or partisan hesitation.”
DeSantis, on the other hand, is known in part for his combative exchanges with the press and his liberal critics. Thursday’s appearance marked a major contrast for the governor.
“Ron DeSantis introduced himself with an empathetic side for the first time in his governorship,” said one Democratic strategist. “The fact he helped the Democratic mayor [and] he welcomed and embraced the message of the Democratic president, some of his base may not love it. But the broader electorate is going to say this is a defining moment for him.”
Democrats, however, are not going to embrace DeSantis over his handling of one disaster.
“I’m saddened that it took such an immense tragedy for Gov. DeSantis to put politics aside and allow the federal government to aid Floridians in need,” said Steve Simeonidis, chair of the Miami-Dade Democratic Party.
Biden and DeSantis meeting in Surfside is not the first time members of two opposing parties have come together in the face of tragedy and it will not be the last.
“For DeSantis, he has seen that playbook that was handed down by Rick Scott, Jeb Bush and others, and he knows that the best thing he can do is look like somebody who is in control of the situation,” said Florida-based GOP strategist Ford O’Connell. “That means dispensing with partisan politics and putting on a mindset that is best for Florida.”
It’s unclear how the meeting will play with DeSantis’s political base, much of which overlaps with Trump’s. However, Florida Republicans argue that the base understands the political importance of the Sunshine State in a general election.
“If the Republican Party is going to get back into power in Washington. D.C., Florida has to put the party on its back and will them back into power,” O’Connell said.
DeSantis has an uncertain political future beyond 2022. The governor has been floated as a potential 2024 presidential contender, but would have to contend with the possibility of Trump launching another bid for the White House.
Trump held a rally in Sarasota, on the other side of the state, on Saturday evening, but DeSantis’s office told The Hill the governor will remain in Surfside over the weekend to support local efforts and families affected by the collapse.
Meanwhile, the governor’s office denied a report this week that he asked Trump not to hold a rally in the state after the tragedy.
“Governor DeSantis is focusing on his duties as Governor and the tragedy in Surfside, and has never suggested or requested that events planned in different parts of Florida — from the Stanley Cup finals to President Trump’s rally — should be canceled,” DeSantis’s office said in a statement.
Republicans argue that Thursday’s moment was a mere blip on the radar in the relationship between the Biden and DeSantis administrations. Indeed, Biden and DeSantis had little interaction before Thursday’s briefing, speaking over the phone for the first time last week after the collapse of the condo.
Humanity argues that humanity wins and President Biden and Fl. Gov. Ron Desantis has just proven that politics do not define us in times of inconsolable greif and loss.
The world felt a little bit of a ‘hug’ watching people from all over the world work together on one accord, one mission, and one heart- to complete this mission with a lot of dignity and love.
News is hard to watch and even more difficult to keep watching. Mr. Rogers always said, “When you watch the news, look for the helpers there are always helpers”.
We are continually praying for the families and friends of Surfside, the rescue personnel and nation as a whole.
