Pool Reports of October 5, 2022

White House In-Town Pool Report #1 - checking in

Good morning and good yontif from the White House, where your pooler has been tested and is awaiting the call to gather for President Biden's Marine One departure from the South Lawn.

The president and Dr. Biden are expected to arrive in Fort Myers, Florida, at 12.45 p.m. Eastern, where they will survey the damage from Hurricane Ian by helicopter, receive an operational briefing on response and recovery efforts, and meet with Florida residents who have been affected by the storm.

This afternoon, the president will deliver remarks on his plan for the recovery effort. Those remarks are currently scheduled for 3.15 p.m. Eastern.

The president and first lady are currently scheduled to return to the White House at 7.10 p.m. Eastern this evening, where your in-town pooler will be waiting, hopefully dry.

White House In-Town Pool Report #2 - gathering for Marine One

Reporters are gathering for President Biden's Marine One departure from the South Lawn.

White House In-Town Pool Report #3 ? Marine One departs

Marine One lifted off from the South Lawn at 10.15 a.m. Eastern. President Biden appeared to hear a few questions shouted from the gathered press about OPEC, but his response was entirely drowned out by the sound of Marine One's idling engine. He did at one point give a "thumbs up," the context of which is now lost to history.

A group of White House staffers and women with visitors badges ? primarily fanous Latina women, including actress America Ferrera, per a staffer ? were gathered on the lower balcony of the South Portico to see the president off. President Biden waved to them before walking to Marine One.

See you this evening!

White House In-Town Pool Report #3a - traveling with POTUS and FLOTUS

Per the White House:

? Jen O'Malley Dillon, Assistant to the President & Deputy Chief of Staff

? Annie Tomasini, Assistant to the President & Director of Oval Office Operations

? Anthony Bernal, Assistant to the President & Advisor to the First Lady

White House In-Town Pool Report #4 - gathering for Marine One

The in-town pool is gathering for President Biden's early arrival on the South Lawn.

White House In-Town Pool Report #5 - Marine One arrival

Marine One touched down on the South Lawn at 6.25 p.m. Eastern, after spooking a red-tailed hawk that had been perched on a branch of the cedar of Lebanon tree planted by President Jimmy Carter.

President Biden did not respond to scattered shouts from the assembled press, although Dr. Jill Biden gave them a little wave.

The president did head upstairs to greet a group of mental health advocates who were gathered on the lower balcony of the South Portico to watch Marine One. (His remarks were, obviously, out of earshot.)

The president and the group went inside the White House at 6.32 p.m. Eastern.

White House In-Town Pool Report #6 - lid

A lid was called at 6.42 p.m. Eastern. Have a good night, and hope all those observing Yom Kippur had an easy and meaningful fast.

White House In-Town Pool Report #6a - balcony visitors

More on the visitors on the lower balcony of the South Portico, per the White House:

"The President and the First Lady greeted guests on the [South] Portico after arriving on Marine One. The guests included the First Ladies of DE, MA, NE, OK and UT along with youth mental health care leaders. They are here for a summit tomorrow at HHS with the Secretary to discuss youth mental health."

Travel Pool Report #1: JBA departure

President Biden landed at JBA in Marine One at 10:28 am EDT.

He exited M1 at 10:30 am, waiting at the bottom of the stairs for FLOTUS before he continued on with Col. Jones and Mrs. Jones.

The first lady walked and talked with Mrs. Jones, giving her a hug at the steps of the plane. FLOTUS boarded ahead of POTUS, who walked up the steps without taking questions. He waved twice, once at the bottom of the stairs and once at the top.

At 10:31 he entered the plane.

Greeting the President and the First Lady on arrival at Joint Base Andrews, per the WH:

Colonel Matthew Jones, Commander, 89th Airlift Wing, and his wife Christie.

Travel Pool report #2: AF1 travelers

Traveling with the President and the First Lady on Air Force One en route Fort Myers, Florida, per the White House:

Administrator Deanne Criswell, Federal Emergency Management Agency

Jen O'Malley Dillon, Assistant to the President & Deputy Chief of Staff

Annie Tomasini, Assistant to the President & Director of Oval Office Operations

Anthony Bernal, Assistant to the President & Advisor to the First Lady

Kate Bedingfield, Assistant to the President & Director of Communications

Karine Jean-Pierre, Assistant to the President & Press Secretary

Julie Rodriguez, Assistant to the President & Senior Advisor to the President & Director of the Office of Intergovernmental Affairs

Liz Sherwood-Randall, Assistant to the President, Homeland Security Advisor & Deputy National Security Advisor

Herbie Ziskend, Special Assistant to the President & Deputy Director of Communications

Caitlin Durkovich, Special Assistant to the President & Senior Director for Resilience & Response

Sheila Grant, Special Assistant to the President & Senior Presidential Speechwriter

Vanessa Valdivia, Special Assistant to the President & Press Secretary for the First Lady

Jordan Montoya, Special Assistant to the President & Personal Aide to the First Lady

Travis Dredd, Special Assistant to the President & Trip Director

Gabe Amo, Special Assistant to the President & Deputy Director of the Office of IGA

Carla Frank, Special Assistant to the President & Director of Strategic Planning

Travel Pool Report #3: Florida arrival

AF1 landed in Florida at 12:38 pm.

FEMA administrator Criswell and White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre gaggled toward the end of the flight.

Audio here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OeU8GvkO-3o&feature=youtu.be

Only one other visitor to the press cabin during the flight: deputy communications director Herbie Ziskend stopped by briefly to say hi.

During the flight TV screens were set to CNN, and passengers were able to see the SpaceX rocket launch from Florida.

Travel Pool Report #4: tarmac

President Biden deplaned AF1 at 12:49 pm with the first lady and made his way down a line of officials on the tarmac, shaking hands as he went. (See below for a list of names provided by the WH; Florida's governor and U.S. Senators were not on it.) Officials were too far away from pool for reporters to hear their conversation.

At 12:52 pm, press was led away and loaded onto Ospreys.

Greeting the President and the First Lady upon arrival at Southwest Florida International Airport, per the WH:

Government Officials

• Cecil Pendergrass, Lee County Chairman (FL)
• Representative Byron Donalds (FL-19)

First Responders

• Ryan Lamb, Fire Department Chief for Cape Coral
• Laurel Cornelius, Firefighter
• Fernando Junco, Firefighter
• Zair Gonzales, Firefighter
• Jonathan Burley, Firefighter
• Colleen Brooks, Administrative Chief Aid, Ft. Myers Beach
• Harvey Muns, Operations Branch Director, White Incident Support Team, FEMA
• Julie Green, Sgt Cape Coral
• Brandon Sancho, Officer Cape Coral

Travel Pool Report #5: aerial tour

The president is currently on an aerial tour.

Pool loaded into its Osprey before the president boarded his helicopter and didn't see him take off. Osprey was wheels up at 12:56 pm. We are currently in the air.

More details on aerial tour below, per White House.

Joining the President and the First Lady for the aerial tour of impacted areas overlooking Florida on Marine One:

Cecil Pendergrass, Lee County Chairman (FL)
Administrator Deanne Criswell, Federal Emergency Management Agency
Liz Sherwood-Randall, Assistant to the President, Homeland Security Advisor & Deputy National Security Advisor
Anthony Bernal, Assistant to the President & Advisor to the First Lady

Travel Pool Report 6: Aerial tour over

Ospreys landed back at the airport at 1:20pm. From what the pool observed, the president would have seen some flooding and damage during his aerial tour. But again, pool did not see the president or Marine One while in the air.

Pool loaded in vans immediately after completing the aerial tour. At 1:35 pm the president exited M1 and entered an SUV. Motorcade was rolling from the tarmac at 12:37 pm to POTUS' next destination.

Travel Pool Report #7: briefing arrival

President Biden arrived at Fisherman's Wharf at 2:07 pm. At various points along his route from the airport onlookers held up cell phones -- snapping pictures -- and sometimes their middle finger.

POTUS is due to receive a briefing with state, local and federal officials at the wharf, which is covered in debris. Will attempt to send some pictures.

*Also the motorcade was rolling at 1:37pm from the airport.

Travel Pool Report #8: DeSantis

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis and his wife greeted President Biden and first lady Jill Biden upon their exit from the SUV at Fisherman's Wharf.

DeSantis was speaking loudly but not loudly enough for press to make out what he was saying from where it was pre-positioned.

They have moved into the wharf, and the two families are speaking with three men and a woman, who the White House says are impacted citizens. Conversation is inaudible.

More from the WH below:

Greeting the President and the First Lady on arrival at the Fisherman's Pass:

Governor Ron DeSantis (FL)

Casey DeSantis, First Lady of Florida (FL)

Travel Pool Report #9: briefing underway

Apologies, the group was speaking to three men and two women (one of whom was out view earlier) who the White House says are impacted citizens. Pool has not been provided their names.

As the officials concluded their conversation, the president gave one of the women (wearing a blue top) a side hug, putting his arm around her shoulders.

After, the group moved on to a second spot, near three photos sitting on black easels that depicted the destruction, the president engaged in conversation with Florida Sens. Rick Scott and Marco Rubio.

FEMA's Criswell eventually led POTUS, who had moved on to another group of unidentified officials, to the photos and DeSantis began the briefing.

"Thanks to President Biden" and the administration for their support, DeSantis began the briefing by saying.

Briefing is ongoing. More to come.

Travel Pool Report #10: briefing participants/ POTUS question/ more remarks

Criswell finished delivering remarks that you hopefully heard at home (we still can't make out much of what is being said). Army Corps of Engineers' Spellmon (see below) also spoke.

Throughout, the president -- who is wearing medium blue pants, brown shoes, a dark blue blazer with gold buttons, sunglasses and a blue and white striped shirt -- stood with his hands clasped, listening.

"Anything else for the good of the order?" DeSantis said at the end.

The president the began to answer a question from pool -- but stopped and said he would speak in more detail in his remarks.

He said, per co-pooler Tolu Olorunnipa:

Biden: this won't be a matter of days or weeks, it'll be months or years

"The only thing I can assure you is that the federal government will be here until it's finished."

Also from earlier briefing per Tolu:

DeSantis thanked Biden and then went into a lengthy description of what had been accomplished since the storm hit:

"We now have over 97% of power in Florida"

"We surged thousands of additional lineman" to this area.

Florida's First Lady (Casey DeSantis) worked on a volunteer effort, to allow donations to flow to the state, he said.

"It's been a team effort and we really appreciate what you guys have been able to do" (unclear exactly who that comment was directed to... FEMA and local responders were also on site. Biden is standing next to DeSantis)

Participating in the briefing on Hurricane Ian Response and Recovery, per the WH:

• Governor Ron DeSantis (FL)
• Florida First Lady Casey DeSantis
• Administrator Deanne Criswell, Federal Emergency Management Administration
• Senator Rick Scott (FL)
• Senator Marco Rubio (FL)
• Representative Byron Donalds (FL-19)
• U.S. Coast Guard Rear Admiral Brendan McPherson
• Major General James O. Eifert, The Adjutant General of Florida
• Commanding General Scott Spellmon, Army Corps of Engineers
• Associate Administrator Francisco Sanchez Jr., Small Business Administration
• Cecil Pendergrass. Lee County Chairman (FL)
• Mayor Ray Murphy, Mayor of Ft. Myers Beach (FL)
• Kevin Guthrie, Florida State Emergency Manager

Travel Pool #11: briefing concludes, remarks kick off

Wrapping up the briefing, after moving to their last location at the wharf, DeSantis was speaking to a group closer to press and could be heard saying that he flew over Sanibel Island after the storm and you have to be on the ground to really see the devastation.

He said later that the same is true of Coral -- from the air, you don't see the tarps.

He moved back and the president moved closer to press.

"Alright, I'm going to take my coat off," the president said at one point as he took off his jacket.

It is 85 degrees in Fort Myers.

DeSantis began the remarks portion of the event at 2:52 pm.

He said that Florida was "fortunate to have good coordination" with the White House and FEMA from the start.

Some stats that DeSantis gave:

2,500 rescues

28 points of distribution of resources

45 million bottles of water

2 million pounds of ice

Over 97 percent of the state has power back, he said, and 85 percent of Florida Power and Light customers in Lee Country have power restored.

He thanked Criswell in particular.

"We are cutting through the bureaucracy," DeSantis said. He said that applies to every level of government up to the presidency.

"We appreciate the team effort."

"The spirit of the people of this state and southwest Florida has been phenomenal."

Concluding, he told Biden, "Welcome to Florida, we appreciate working together."

Biden began his remarks by saying:

"Gov, first lady. Thank you very much."

"I'm sure it's much worse (on) the ground, but you can see a...hell of a lot from the air."

"Today we have one job and only one job," Biden said, to make sure the people of Florida get everything they need.

POTUS Remarks ongoing.

Travel Pool Report #12: more POTUS remarks

President Biden says his administration is working to address housing, insurance and other issues facing residents.

By tomorrow he says three more disaster centers will be open in Lee County.

He said that the most important step residents can take is register so they can find out what support they are eligible for.

Biden said that he was told on AF1 on the way down that residents are waiting for hours and hours on the phone trying to get help.

"We're going to try to speed that up by having additional personnel."

He asked them to have patience and said they can also go online or in person to find out about assistance.

"We have a long road ahead of us," he said.

"You have my commitment... that we're not going to leave."

Travel Pool Report #13: POTUS takes several questions

President Biden took several questions at the end of the briefing. I'm told the WH feed cut out before that point.

Transcript to the best of our ability is coming.

Here's part of what he said (thanks Tolu):

Asked about how DeSantis has performed in the response:

"I think he's done a good job," Biden said.

"We worked hand in glove. We have very different political philosophies, but we've worked hand in glove....In dealing with this crisis, we've been in complete lockstep."

Key times:

3:16 the president concluded his remarks.

3:20 the motorcade departed for the airport.

Travel Pool Report #14: more from POTUS gaggle

Question: What do state and local and federal officials need to do differently to prevent future loss of life?

"What the governor's done is pretty remarkable -- so far...First of all, the biggest thing that the governor's done, and so many others have done, they've recognized this thing called global warming. The world is changing. It's changing, and we have to change the way with the zoning codes. And for example, the woman who heads up all this area for me, Liz, showed me a picture of the telephone poles we put up."

He beckoned Liz Sherwood-Randall and said, "Liz where they?"

"Anyway, Liz showed me a picture of telephone poles we put up in Florida."

She came over and POTUS asked her where it was. She told him it was in Fort Myers Beach."

He said that instead of doing cement poles or wooden poles, "They put up steel poles. And guess what? They all were sustained. They all survived. The wires survived, the poles survived. It cost more money to put them up. But they survived."

He said that they also know ? like in California ? we put a lot of this underground. "It costs more money ? tunnel it ? it survives. So we got to change the way we build and where we build. The question every community is going to have to ask, is should we rebuild in this spot or that spot. Will it be able to withstand what's likely to come again. That's a local decision."

NOTE: We are almost back to the airport.

Travel Pool Report #15: Rest of POTUS gaggle/departure from FL

Motorcade arrived back at the airport at 3:50pm. President Biden was already boarding the plane when pool made it to the steps. The president waved at the top and entered.

AF1 should be wheels up shortly en route back to Washington. It's rolling as of 4:03 pm.

With regards to the president's remarks during his tour, it was hard for scribes to hear what the president was saying. I would refer you to video and audio of his tour that is apparently circulating.

Here's the rest of the POTUS remarks from the gaggle a little earlier:

Question: How has Gov. DeSantis handled this recovery effort?

"I think he's done a good job. Look I called him ? I think even before he called me, when I heard this storm was on it's way. We worked hand in glove, we have very different political philosophies, and ? but we worked hand in glove. And he's been on ? on things related to dealing with this crisis, we've been completely lockstep. There's been no difference."

Final Question: INAUDIBLE are you considering anything like that for homebuyers who are struggling?

"The answer is that's something that will be discussed. But look: the fact of the matter is, states like Florida, where they've had a lot of natural disasters, because of flooding and hurricanes and the like, the insurance industry is being very stretched. We're going to have to take a hard look at whether or not the insurance industry can (inaudible)."

Travel Pool Report #16: GOP Rep. Byron Donalds/follow up from FL briefing

In the parking lot just after the briefing ended, pooler caught up with Rep. Byron Donalds, R-Fla., and asked him a couple questions.

Why was it important to you today to put politics aside and be here with the president?

"Because our area needs all the help it can get, so we'll deal with the politics later," Donald said. Said right now it is about "getting people back on their feet."

How has the federal response been?

"The response has been good. Everybody has been all hands on deck. Which is what we needed."

Also, during the walking tour and just before the briefing, the White House sent the pool a run of show. It had local officials speaking after DeSantis and before POTUS at the podium. But at the end of his remarks, DeSantis introduced the president, and the local officials never gave remarks. Here's the background the White House provided (and pool did not see until AF1 was taking off and the internet had already cut out):

The President will deliver remarks on Hurricane Ian Response and Recovery:

In attendance:

• Local, state, and federal officials
• First Responders
• Impacted community members

Run of Show:

• Governor Ron DeSantis (FL)
• Ft. Myers Beach Mayor Ray Murphy
• Jacki Liszak, the Executive Director of the Fort Myers Beach Chamber of Commerce and the Fire Commissioner
• The President

Travel Pool Report #17: JBA arrival

AF1 touched down at JBA at 5:59pm. No visitors to the press cabin during the flight back from Florida.

Travel Pool Report #18: M1 take off

The president and first lady deplaned at 6:08pm. They boarded Marine One immediately. Helicopter was aloft at 6:15 pm and headed back to the WH.

Traveling with the President and the First Lady on Marine One en route the White House, per the press office:

Jen O'Malley Dillon, Assistant to the President & Deputy Chief of Staff

Annie Tomasini, Assistant to the President & Director of Oval Office Operations

Anthony Bernal, Assistant to the President & Advisor to the First Lady

Travel Pool Report #19: Criswell on search and rescue efforts

One last thing from me: in response to a request for clarity on the difference in the number of rescues that DeSantis and Biden gave today (DeSantis said 2,500, Biden said 3,800) here's the explanation that Administrator Criswell gave during a brief conversation on the tarmac at JBA:

Criswell said, "The numbers are really dynamic. Some of those numbers include the efforts of local responders and some of them are just the federal/state responders, so it really depends on who they're looking at that's doing it."

She said that DeSantis could have been referring to just the federal and state teams, whereas the president's stat could have included some of the local efforts.

Have a great rest of your evening, everyone!