Pool Reports of October 11, 2024

in-town pool report #1 — checking in

Greetings from the White House on a picturesque autumn Friday. So far, there have not been any changes to the schedule. We're is still tracking a 1 p.m. pool spray as President Biden and Vice President Harris (joining virtually) are briefed on hurricane rescue and recovery efforts. There is no indication this will be live-streamed, but your pooler recommends checking, and refreshing, the below link before the scheduled start time. Quotes and color will follow, of course. More TK from here.

https://www.whitehouse.gov/live/

in-town pool report #2 - gathering for spray

The in-town pool has gathered in the briefing room for the pool spray with POTUS and VPOTUS (joining virtually). This will be in the Roosevelt Room, where connectivity can be limited. Quotes to follow after. More TK.

in-town pool report #3 - Biden remarks/Pool exits

President Biden spoke for about 14 minutes. The pool was ushered out at 1:34 p.m. We entered the Roosevelt Room at 1:20 p.m.

He took questions for several minutes. Biden reiterated he would be asking Congress for funding for hurricane relief, said he does not believe misinformation about hurricane relief is now a permanent part of US politics, and said he has directed the Pentagon to give former President Donald Trump everything needed, ala a sitting president, to keep him safe in the final weeks of the presidential campaign. He responded "absolutely" when asked if he had asked Israel to not target UN peacekeepers.

Fuller quotes to come.

in-town pool report #4 - lunch lid/briefing details

The White House has called a lunch lid until 3 p.m., and the press office passes along the following:

The President is providing an update on the federal government's response to Hurricanes Milton and Helene.

In-Person Participants:

Secretary Jennifer Granholm, Department of Energy
Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas, Department of Homeland Security
Jeff Zients, Assistant to the President & Chief of Staff
Liz Sherwood-Randall, Assistant to the President & Homeland Security Advisor & Deputy National Security Advisor
Mike Donilon, Assistant to the President & Senior Advisor to the President
Ben LaBolt, Assistant to the President & Senior Advisor to the President & Director of Communications
Ali Zaidi, Assistant to the President & National Climate Advisor
Caitlin Durkovich, Deputy Assistant to the President and Deputy Homeland Security Advisor for Resilience and Response
Daniel Koh, Deputy Assistant to the President and Deputy Director of Intergovernmental Affairs
Lieutenant General William H. "Butch" Graham Jr., Chief of Engineers and Commanding General, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers

Virtual Participants:

The Vice President
Administrator Deanne Criswell, Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA)

in-town pool report #5 - Biden Q&A transcript

This is a transcript from President Biden taking questions at the bottom of the hurricane update pool spray. One change from the summary in pool report #4: POTUS did not specify the Pentagon when answering the question about giving former President Trump what he needs to be safe, he merely said "the department." See below. Location was the Roosevelt Room of the White House:

Q: Are you worried about the misinformation that you've been talking about related to this hurricane and the recovery efforts. Do you think it's temporary, or do you think and worry that this might be a permanent state of being for this country?

Biden: I think it's a permanent state of being for some extreme people. I don't think it's what the country's about. We're breaking through with it. We're breaking through with the truth. And if you notice, and I really am proud of it, on the phone, we're talking to a lot of Republican mayors and governors. They're standing up saying, this is not Joe Biden, but conservative, hardcore Republican governors, hardcore Republican mayors, standing up and saying, 'It's got to stop. It's got to stop.'

I believe there's nothing permanent about it. I'm pleased that more Americans are coming together and truly volunteering away. This is who the hell we are. America's in trouble, we know, and jump in and try to help, help your neighbor, and that's basically what's happened. But what the thing that bothers me the most is there's a lot of people who get caught in these crises, who're basically alone now, widowers, widowers, people in hospitals, people who are by themselves and they don't know, and they lose contact, and they get scared to death, scared to death, and anyway, so I think it's, I think those who have been spreading these lies to try to undermine the opposition are gonna pay a price for it.

Q: Is Donald Trump solely responsible for hurricane-related misinformation?

Biden: (Audible is garbled by cross-talk, but POTUS said he does not believe Donald Trump is solely responsible for the misinformation.)

Biden (referring to Trump on misinformation): He has the biggest mouth.

Q: Have you spoken to Speaker Johnson?

Biden: No, I haven't. I've spoken to Republicans who want to speak to Speaker Johnson. And I think Speaker Johnson is going to get the message that he's got to step up, particularly for small businesses.

Q: Will you meet with Gov. DeSantis in Florida on Sunday?

Biden: I've spoken to him. If he's available, yeah. He's been very cooperative. I've had no, we've gotten on very, very well.

Q: Are you asking Israel to stop hitting UN peacekeepers?

Biden: Absolutely, positively.

Q: Will you approve Mr. Trump's request for military aircraft for the rest of the campaign?

Biden: As long as he doesn't ask for F-15s. I've told the department to give him every single thing he needs, as [inaudible] for any other, as he were a sitting president, give all that he needs. If it fits into that category, that's fine.

in-town pool report #6 - POTUS opening & some color

Here are some quotes from President Biden's opening statement at the top of the hurricane update pool spray. He flipped through a binder as he spoke, glancing at the pages every so often. Not much news, but passing along some highlights below. Also sharing some color from the room, at the bottom of this report.

***

Biden (ON MISINFORMATION): "And again, let me say that the misinformation out there is not only just disgusting, but it's dangerous. It's misleading. And again, the first thing it does, I mean, it's silly. … People desperately want hope — tell me it's going to be okay. Tell me it's going to be okay. And they're in real trouble, a lot of them. And to hear this malarkey you're hearing from some of the people… I don't want to get into it. I'll lose my temper. But anyway, the truth is, we're providing all the resources that are needed."

Biden (ON EMERGENCY SPENDING): "We're going to be going to the Congress. We're going to need a lot of help. We're going to need a lot more money as we, as we identify specifically how much is needed. So I'm just telling everybody now, I want to hear them. This isn't going to be the end of it."

Biden said he has spoken to "50 to 75" officials "from North Carolina all the way down to Florida, talking to mayors and county executives. And anyway, it's just, it's amazing what's going on."

Biden: "You know, this is the third major storm, third major storm, to hit California, I mean, excuse me, Florida in three months. And experts estimate, that is early, early estimates, could be more, could be less, but estimate that caused damage is around $50 billion from Hurricane Milton alone, just alone, $50 billion. And I want everyone in the impacted areas to know we're gonna do everything we can to let you, help you pick back up the pieces and get back to where you were."

Biden: "Milton left over 3 million people without power, but with the dedication of 50,000 power line workers — 50,000 power line workers — from 43 states in the country and Canada have stepped up and come down to help and to restore. They've already restored power to 1 billion people, so far."

Biden: "We're going to continue to prioritize this effort so everyone is reconnected and back online. We've been able to get this work done quicker because of critical infrastructure investments we've made."

***

Some color: As POTUS wrapped his opening statement, Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm, seated to Biden's left at a long rectangular table, said something under her breath as she leaned slightly toward her boss.

Biden said he would "go to the vice president in a second," adding: "She's my boss here."

After he added his comment about "going to the Congress," Biden quipped: "So, with that I will yield to the president — I mean the vice president."

(h/t to fellow poolers for assists with audio.)

in-town pool report #7 - lid

The White House called a lid at 4:16 p.m. Have a great weekend, folks.

Post-lid note from WH

The White House passed along the following late last night:

Earlier today, the President had separate phone calls with Georgia Governor Brian Kemp and South Carolina Governor Henry McMaster to discuss the recovery and rebuilding efforts following Hurricane Helene. The President also spoke with Bradenton, Florida, Mayor Gene Brown to discuss the ongoing rescue and response efforts in Florida following Hurricane Milton.

On all of these calls, the President reiterated his commitment to provide any federal support needed to speed up response and recovery following both hurricanes.