FEMA Official Says Biden Meeting At Hurricane Idalia Site Was ‘Mutually Agreed’ Before DeSantis Pulled Out

FEMA Administrator Deanne Criswell told CNN the meeting between President Joe Biden and Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis at a Hurricane Idalia site was “mutually agreed” before the governor’s office claimed there was no meeting planned.

President Biden announced Friday that he would be traveling to Florida to survey damage from the hurricane that made landfall there this week, and confirmed to CNN that he would be meeting with DeSantis. But hours later the governor’s office told CNN they had no plans for such a meeting.

On Saturday morning’s edition of CNN This Morning Weekend, Criswell told anchor Amara Walker the meeting actually had been agreed on beforehand and said the governor’s office would be the ones to explain the discrepancy:

AMARA WALKER: I do want to ask you before we let you go, Administrator, you know, as you know, presidential trips to disaster zones, you know, they’re closely coordinated with local and state leaders. And of course, there’s been this back and forth on whether or not President Biden will be meeting with the governor of Florida, Ron DeSantis. How much coordination has there been between the federal and state level? And will President Biden be meeting with Governor DeSantis today?

ADMINISTRATOR DEANNE CRISWELL: Yeah, there has been a tremendous amount of coordination. I traveled with the governor on Thursday and we went to some of the more rural coastal communities and access is fairly limited there.

And so when the president contacted the governor to let him know he was going to be visiting, we mutually agreed. The governor’s team and my team mutually agreed on a place that would have minimal impact into operations.

And so Live Oak, you know, the power is being restored, the roads aren’t blocked, but there’s families that are hurting there.

I would have to defer you to the governor on what his schedule is going to be, but I know that the president and the first lady are really looking forward to meeting with these first responders and these communities that have been impacted and letting them know that the government is here and that the president has directed all of us to bring the resources we have to help them on their road to recovery.

When reached for comment, the White House confirmed Criswell’s account to Mediaite.

Watch above via CNN This Morning Weekend.