President Joe Biden spoke with Gov. Ron DeSantis (R-FL) Monday morning regarding the recent deadly shooting in Jacksonville, Florida.
DeSantis, who is also running for the 2024 Republican presidential nomination, was heckled at a prayer vigil on Sunday for the three victims of a racially motivated shooting, and White House officials say that Biden again "expressed his commitment to ongoing support for the people of Jacksonville following the horrific shooting on Saturday."
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"Even as we continue searching for answers, we must say clearly and forcefully that white supremacy has no place in America," Biden said in a statement on Sunday following calls with local Jacksonville lawmakers and law enforcement officials. "We must refuse to live in a country where Black families going to the store or Black students going to school live in fear of being gunned down because of the color of their skin. Hate must have no safe harbor. Silence is complicity and we must not remain silent."
White House officials also noted that Biden outlined to DeSantis on Monday his plan to mobilize federal assets in preparation for Hurricane Idalia's landfall later this week.
"President Biden spoke to Governor DeSantis this morning. He told him that he quickly approved the Emergency Declaration for Florida as they prepare for Hurricane Idalia. FEMA has pre-deployed personnel and assets, including multiple Incident Management Assistance Teams, in preparation for response efforts," White House officials said in a statement. "FEMA’s National Response Coordination Center has also been fully activated to support any requests for federal assistance. President Biden said Florida will have his full support as they prepare for Idalia and its aftermath."
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"This is going to be a powerful hurricane and this is absolutely going to impact the state of Florida in many many ways," DeSantis said at a Monday press conference while previewing evacuation orders for much of Florida's Gulf Coast.