Trump's Breaking News [2PM] 10/9/24 FULL HD | ️ Trump Latest News October 9, 2024
Trump's Breaking News [2PM] 10/9/24 FULL HD | ️ Trump Latest News October 9, 2024
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00:00Today, a big push by the Harris-Walz campaign to show off Republican support.
00:06At this hour, Tim Walz is in Arizona, where any moment now, he is scheduled to appear
00:11at an event with Jim McCain, son of Republican icon John McCain.
00:15And tonight, Liz Cheney hosts an event in Pennsylvania, arguing against Trump's reelection.
00:21But retiring Utah senator and former Republican presidential nominee Mitt Romney said this
00:27when asked if he would endorse Harris.
00:30I made it very clear that I don't want Donald Trump to be the next president of the United
00:34States.
00:35And you're going to have to do the very difficult calculation of what that would mean, all right?
00:40And my own view is that I want to continue to have a voice in the Republican Party following
00:49this election, because I think there's a good shot that the Republican Party is going to
00:52need to be rebuilt and reoriented, either after this election or Donald Trump is reelected
00:58after he is the president.
01:01And believe I will have more influence in the party by virtue of saying it as I've said
01:04it.
01:05Matt Gorman is a former aide to Mitt Romney, who also served as communications director
01:10for the National Republican Congressional Committee.
01:12Michael Hardaway is former communications director for House Minority Leader Hakeem
01:16Jeffries.
01:17But I want to get to Republicans and Kamala Harris in a minute.
01:22We have breaking news, Matt.
01:25We just got new fundraising numbers.
01:29Kamala Harris has been running for president since the day essentially that Joe Biden stepped
01:36down and almost immediately said he was backing her.
01:40So 80 days.
01:42She has crossed the $1 billion mark.
01:47She has raised $1 billion in 80 days.
01:52My very complicated question for you, Matt, is what?
01:57Yeah, I think what I'll say is this.
02:02Joe Biden was essentially acting like a proverbial dam on Democratic money and enthusiasm at
02:08the end there.
02:09And we saw, I think, in those first, especially 60 days when Kamala became the nominee, was
02:13a flood of the stuff that was being held back.
02:15Now, the great paradox in a lot of this stuff is when it comes to presidential politics,
02:21money matters less than, say, if you were a House candidate, if the House spending disparity
02:25were the same as a House race, it'd be a big deal.
02:28But really, you'd rather be Kamala Harris's bank account than than Donald Trump's right
02:34now.
02:35Just like just like all of us, we'd rather have more money than less, of course.
02:40But when it comes to actually what it can do and move the needle, there are fewer ways,
02:43it's funny enough, when you get to the presidential level, because it relies so much more on earned
02:47media than it does on, say, paid media, right?
02:49What one ad, one killer ad are you going to put against Donald Trump that's suddenly going
02:54to make, change the race after he spent 10 years in the spotlight, a lot harder to do?
02:59Yeah, I mean, he is right about that, of course, Michael.
03:02Earned media is something Donald Trump has done extraordinarily well since the day he
03:07came down that golden escalator.
03:11But what can you do with one billion dollars?
03:14And so help us get it into some perspective.
03:17What does it mean, given this very different landscape that we're in right now?
03:22The biggest value of all that money is she should give it away.
03:25And she's already done this to some degree in writing a check to the DCCC, writing a
03:30check to the DNC and the DSCC.
03:32But she should write larger checks, because if she wins or if she loses, we need to have
03:37a majority in the House.
03:38We need to have a majority in the Senate.
03:40And there are local groups that are doing that work.
03:42And so the answer to your question is, in less than a month, she can't spend that money,
03:47obviously.
03:48But she should give it away to the groups that can help Democrats control the House
03:51and control the Senate.
03:53I think also the CBC is doing good work on the ground.
03:56And I think that's another opportunity for her to spread out some of that cash.
03:59OK, we're going to be watching.
04:01Oh, go ahead, Matt.
04:02Go ahead.
04:03That's actually, that's a very good point by Michael.
04:05And you're going to see this on the Republican side, too, right?
04:07You see Trump, he's doing a rally in Coachella, California, obviously not a swing state.
04:12He's going to do an event at Madison Square Garden, again, New York, not a swing state.
04:16The reason of those two states, again, same thought as Michael.
04:20They want to juice up Republican turnout in House races, where California and New York
04:24are some of the most competitive House districts in the country.
04:28So again, you're that they're looking at down ballot race to try and help them if either
04:32is elected president.
04:33OK, so and I think there are actually three big venues, all not in battleground states
04:40where he's going to be doing those kinds of events.
04:43But let me ask you about Mitt Romney, because you know him so well, Matt.
04:46And he's surprised that he said, you know, kind of do the math.
04:50But he wouldn't say I endorse Kamala Harris.
04:52No, you know what, look, I love Mitt Romney.
04:55I will never say a bad word about him.
04:57He's he's a great man, a great, great boss.
04:59I think he's he's playing it smart.
05:00Right.
05:01I think if you go out and you go out way out on a limb and you really make a big scene
05:05like Liz Cheney and others have done, look, is that right?
05:07They can certainly do it.
05:09It's going to fight.
05:10It's a lot harder to come back to the party afterwards.
05:12Right.
05:13Because, right.
05:14Trump could win or lose.
05:15But, you know, the party is moving in a more populous direction.
05:17So if you want to rebuild, want to be a voice, you want to stay in the tent proverbially.
05:23And let me ask you, Michael, about something The Wall Street Journal wrote about, because
05:27they talked to actually an NBC pollster who said this in combined NBC polls this year,
05:33Republicans led by two percentage points over Democrats, 42 to 40 percent when voters were
05:38asked which party they identify with.
05:41That compares with Democratic leads of six points in 2020, seven in 2016, nine points
05:49in 2012.
05:51What do you make of that?
05:52And does it tell you anything about November?
05:57We're all getting old.
05:58And I think as people get older, they vote more Republican.
06:01But listen, I think at a functional level, if you look at policy by policy, there are
06:06many Democratic policies that Americans support.
06:09I think, you know, when you take a step back, people that are answering that question probably
06:14are looking at personality and the way they feel currently about perhaps the economy and
06:18other areas.
06:20But if you break out sort of Obamacare and a number of policies that Democrats have delivered,
06:25there is significant support on both sides, I think, for those policy.
06:29Michael Hardaway and Matt Gorman, gentlemen, was good to get a little politics.
06:33President Biden now talking about the form, the storm rather.
06:36I know it's really tough being behind your home, your belongings, everything you own.
06:41But I urge everyone in Hurricane Milton's path to follow all safety instructions as
06:46we head to the next 24 hours.
06:49It's a matter of literally a matter of life and death.
06:52Second, for the last week, my team has done everything possible to prepare for this storm.
06:58I immediately approved an emergency declaration in Florida and a Seminole tribe in Florida.
07:04I also served search and rescue teams, water, food, power generators, ambulances to the
07:09region.
07:10In my direction, Administrator Criswell will be in the State Emergency Operations Center
07:15in Florida tonight.
07:18And Kamala and I are going to keep pressure on the company so prices stay stable on gasoline,
07:24flights and goods people need.
07:26Finally, we're teaming up with state and local officials to support impacted communities.
07:32I spoke with the Florida Governor DeSantis, with Mayor Tampa, Clearwater Mayor Rector
07:41and the Pinellas County Chairwoman Peters.
07:45I offered them everything we need, everything we have, everything they need.
07:49And I made it clear to them they should reach out if there's anything more they need.
07:54I gave them my personal phone number here at the White House to contact me directly
07:58if that's necessary.
07:59Let me close with this.
08:00I want to thank the governors of all the affected areas over the last couple of weeks.
08:06Florida, North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, Tennessee, Virginia.
08:10You know, we've been in constant contact, and they've been very thankful and appreciative
08:16of the help the federal government is providing, and I'm appreciative of all they're doing
08:19as well.
08:20I've told them to contact me with anything else they need.
08:25We have made available an unprecedented number of assets to deal with this crisis.
08:29We're going to continue to do so until the job is done.
08:33But now I want to be clear about something.
08:36Over the last few weeks, there's been a reckless, irresponsible, and relentless promotion of
08:40disinformation and outright lies that are disturbing people.
08:44It's undermining confidence in the incredible rescue and recovery work that has already
08:48been taken and will continue to be taken.
08:51It's harmful to those who need help the most.
08:54There's simply no place for this to happen.
08:57Former President Trump has led the onslaught of lies.
09:01Assertions have been made that property is being confiscated.
09:04That's simply not true.
09:07They're saying people impacted by these storms will receive $750 in cash and no more.
09:13That's simply not true.
09:15They're saying the money is needed for this crisis is being diverted to migrants.
09:20What a ridiculous thing to say.
09:22It's not true.
09:24Now the claims are getting even more bizarre.
09:27Former Marjorie Taylor Greene, a congresswoman from Georgia, is now saying the federal government
09:31is literally controlling the weather.
09:33We're controlling the weather.
09:35It's beyond ridiculous.
09:37It's got to stop.
09:39Moments like this, there are no red or blue states.
09:42There's one United States of America where neighbors are helping neighbors, volunteers
09:47and first responders risking everything, including their own lives, to help their fellow Americans.
09:53State, local, and federal officials are standing side by side.
09:56Let me repeat, no one should make the American people question whether their governments
10:01will be making sure that this is acting on a strike.
10:04They'll be there.
10:05We will, all of us.
10:07I'm going to turn it over to Vice President Harris, if that's okay with all of you.
10:12Madam Vice President.
10:14Thank you, Mr. President.
10:16And Liz, thank you for the work that you've been doing.
10:19As the president said, we've been working around the clock to prepare for Hurricane
10:22Milton and to ensure that people are safe, including ensuring federal, state, and local
10:28resources are being coordinated in a smart and efficient and effective way.
10:33We have also been in constant contact with the leaders in Florida to make sure that we
10:37are cutting any red tape that might get in the way of getting relief to folks, to make
10:42sure also that communities receive the resources and the support that they need as quickly
10:47as possible.
10:49Already, we have sent more than 1,000 federal personnel to be on the ground in Florida to
10:56assist with what needs to happen in the state to prepare for this hurricane, and we will
11:00continue to scale up those efforts.
11:03To the people of Florida, and in particular, the people of the Tampa region, we urge you
11:10to take this storm seriously.
11:13As has been said before, this is a storm that is expected to be of historic proportion.
11:21And many of you, I know, are tough, and you've ridden out these hurricanes before.
11:25This one's going to be different.
11:27And so we ask you that by every measure, understand it's going to be more dangerous, more deadly,
11:33and more catastrophic.
11:35So please listen to your local officials.
11:37They know what they're talking about.
11:39They know what they're doing.
11:40And if you are told to evacuate, please evacuate immediately.
11:45Do not wait until it is too late.
11:49And in the hours and days ahead, President Biden and I and our administration will continue
11:53to do everything we can to protect the people who have been in the path of this storm.
11:58And once the storm has passed, we will be there to help folks recover and rebuild.
12:05As we continue to do for those communities in Florida, Georgia, North and South Carolina,
12:10and across the Southeast who have been devastated by Hurricane Helene.
12:14Finally, as the President mentioned, to any company that or individual that might use
12:20this crisis to exploit people who are desperate for help through illegal fraud or price gouging,
12:28whether it be at the gas pump, the airport, or the hotel counter, know that we are monitoring
12:35these behaviors and the situation on the ground very closely, and anyone taking advantage
12:41of consumers will be held accountable.
12:44The bottom line is this hurricane poses an extreme danger, and we urge everyone in Florida
12:49to take extreme caution.
12:51And we are with you, and we will get through this together.
12:56And with that, I will hand it over to Homeland Security Advisor Liz Sherwood-Randall.
13:01Thank you, Madam Vice President.
13:03Mr. President, Madam Vice President, you will now receive a briefing on the latest forecast
13:09for Hurricane Milton and actions that we have taken to prepare for it and be ready to respond
13:14to it.
13:15You'll hear from Administrator of FEMA Deanne Criswell, the Director of the National Hurricane
13:20Center Mike Brennan, the Director of the National Weather Service Ken Graham, Secretary
13:26of Homeland Security Ali Mayorkas, and the Commandant of the Coast Guard, Admiral Linda
13:31Fagan.
13:32We'll begin the briefing with Administrator Criswell.
13:35Over to you, Deanne.
13:39Thank you, Liz.
13:40Mr. President, Madam Vice President, I just want to assure you we are taking this storm
13:46very seriously.
13:48As you will hear from Dr. Brennan shortly, Milton is currently a Category 4 storm and
13:53will remain a hurricane as it crosses over Florida.
13:58As your direction, Mr. President, I will be traveling down to Tallahassee tonight to embed
14:02at the state EOC to meet with my team, as well as our state partners, and I will be
14:07there to assess the damages and the impacts immediately following the storm, working in
14:13close coordination with the state to ensure that they have everything that they need to
14:19support their priorities.
14:22As you have always directed me to do, I am leaning forward to make sure that we are strategically
14:26placing our resources and our teams to be able to rapidly respond in Florida.
14:33There are currently over a thousand federal personnel on the ground in Florida supporting
14:38the efforts from Hurricane Helene, as well as the previous storms that have happened
14:42over the last few years, and I have directed, at your direction, an additional 1,200 search
14:49and rescue personnel from FEMA, the Coast Guard, and the Department of Defense to stage
14:55in Florida so they are ready to take action as soon as Milton makes landfall.
15:01This also includes 30 high-water vehicles, helicopters, as well as boats, to be able
15:07to go in and support the counties and the states as needed.
15:11I've also moved over 500 ambulances to help assist with the response, six incident management
15:17assistance teams, one specifically into Tampa and others throughout the region, multiple
15:23power assessment teams, and dozens of medical facility assessment teams, so they can go
15:29in and check on the health and medical facilities as soon as the storm passes.
15:34And Mr. President and Madam Vice President, I have also moved millions of meals and liters
15:38of water into Florida to be able to support any of those immediate needs.
15:44I really appreciate, Mr. President and Madam Vice President, your continuous effort to
15:50help lift up the warnings and the guidance that you just gave about what people need
15:55to do in the path of Hurricane Milton.
15:59This is an extremely dangerous storm, and we need all of the residents that are in the
16:04path of the storm to listen to their local officials.
16:09They will tell you if there's still time to evacuate or what you need to do if you are
16:13still where you're at.
16:15They will give you the right information about what you need to do to protect yourself where
16:20you are at right now.
16:23Sometimes just traveling a few miles inland can mean the difference between life and death,
16:27and nobody has to lose their life as a result of this storm.
16:31So in short, Mr. President and Madam Vice President, I assure you we are taking this
16:35storm extremely seriously.
16:37We are focused, and we are ready to support the people of Florida.
16:41Dan, you're doing a hell of a job.
16:43You always have.
16:44We've been through a lot of this together, all three of us, including the Vice President.
16:49And I have one question right now, though.
16:52What are you most worried about today and into tomorrow?
16:57And what messaging can we do to help people in the hours before it makes landfall?
17:05Mr. President, the biggest concern is making sure people have gotten out of harm's way.
17:11Over the next 24 hours, we are going to see significant winds.
17:14We are going to see storm surge.
17:16We are going to see flooding from the rain.
17:19People need to be able to take this storm seriously.
17:21They need to move if they still have time to move out of harm's way.
17:26And we are prepared to support Florida with additional search and rescue assets to help
17:31save lives.
17:32That's our immediate concern, Mr. President, is saving lives over the next 24 hours.
17:36Have you ever seen a storm like this one since you've been in charge?
17:42I think this is going to be one of the biggest ones that we have seen after it makes landfall.
17:45I mean, we saw a lot of impact from Hurricane Ian, but this one is different.
17:51This one just looks different.
17:53And I think we're going to have a lot of impacts and people that are going to need
17:56our help, sir.
17:57Well, thank you very much, Administrator Christopherson.
18:02Yes, ma'am.
18:03Are we concerned about any misinformation or disinformation regarding evacuations that
18:09we need to clear up at this point?
18:13There's been a lot of misinformation out there, Madam Vice President.
18:16That's for sure.
18:17But I have not heard anything specific to the evacuations.
18:21I think that the local officials, the state officials have been very strong in getting
18:25that message out there and getting people to move out of harm's way.
18:29I was in Florida on Monday and met with the mayor of Tampa as well as the mayor of St.
18:35Petersburg, and we saw people evacuating.
18:37And so they are listening to their local officials, and that was encouraging.
18:41That's great.
18:44I think we'll move on then.
18:46Thank you, Administrator Criswell.
18:47We'll move to Director Brennan from the National Hurricane Center.
18:53Thank you, Liz.
18:54Mr. President, Madam Vice President, good afternoon.
18:57As Administrator Criswell mentioned, we are just hours away from seeing a potentially
19:01catastrophic hurricane landfall along the west coast of Florida.
19:04With the center of Milton expected to cross the coast late this evening or very early
19:08tomorrow morning, it's a powerful major hurricane and a large hurricane at that.
19:12We are already seeing multiple life-threatening hazards playing out across Florida.
19:17We have multiple tornado warnings in effect across portions of southern Florida.
19:20We're seeing winds increasing, heavy rainfall spreading across much of the state, and conditions
19:25are going to rapidly deteriorate over the next few hours, especially where landfall
19:28is going to occur along the west coast.
19:31That's where we're expecting that devastating storm surge of as much as 10 to 15 feet above
19:36ground level from somewhere near the Tampa Bay region southward to Port Charlotte, with
19:40significant storm surge extending hundreds of miles even farther south to the Fort Myers
19:45and Naples area.
19:47And that is why we have been supporting so many evacuation decisions to get people away
19:51from that devastating storm surge.
19:54Time is running out now for people to leave along the west coast before conditions deteriorate
19:58further.
19:59Additionally, Milton is going to be a powerful hurricane when it makes landfall and move
20:02quickly across the state and remain at hurricane intensity as it moves across Florida tonight
20:08and as it enters the western Atlantic during the day tomorrow.
20:11So that is going to bring the risk of hurricane conditions to much of the central portion
20:15of the state.
20:16We have hurricane warnings in effect from Fort Myers up through Tampa to Cedar Key along
20:20the west coast, all the way through the I-4 corridor across Orlando to Daytona Beach up
20:25to St. Augustine, including the Cape Canaveral area and the east coast down to Port St. Lucie.
20:30So a large area is at risk of seeing devastating wind impacts, widespread power outages, structural
20:36damage.
20:37And that could lead to a very unsafe environment after the storm, where we tend to see a lot
20:42of post-storm fatalities in this very dangerous environment that's left.
20:46Additionally, we are expecting very heavy rainfall, 6 to 12 inches, amounts as high
20:51as 18 inches across the heavily populated I-4 corridor from Tampa to Orlando to Daytona
20:56Beach, which could lead to widespread catastrophic and life-threatening flash flooding and urban
21:02flooding tonight and into Thursday in that area.
21:05And that's an area where we lost about 16 people in Hurricane Ian to that same type
21:09of flooding.
21:10So there's a tremendous risk to both life and property there.
21:14I do want to thank the administrator in FEMA for her team's support and our coordination
21:19on that.
21:20And I finally want to thank the NOAA and Air Force Reserve Hurricane Hunters, who've been
21:23flying into Milton for days now, providing us just tremendously valuable direct data
21:28that has really helped inform our life-saving forecast and warnings.
21:32So thank you, Mr. President, Madam Vice President.
21:34Mike, I know you're tired of hearing from me, I've been talking to you so much lately.
21:38I appreciate your constant input you've given me and let me know what's going on.
21:45What more can you tell us about how the location of this storm is going to affect the storm
21:53surge in Florida?
21:54I mean, because that's pretty consequential, right?
21:57The surge?
21:58I mean, that's what you're focusing on?
22:00Yes, Mr. President, that just a shift of a few miles in the landfall location will make
22:05a big difference in what area sees that very worst storm surge.
22:08So a track of the center to the north of Tampa Bay would push the highest storm surge into
22:14Tampa Bay itself.
22:15A track five or 10 or 20 miles south would push that higher storm surge, say, down to
22:19the Sarasota, Port Charlotte area.
22:22Even as close as we are to landfall, it's not really possible to tell exactly where
22:26that worst surge will occur.
22:28It's one wobble away from shifting 10 or 20 miles.
22:31So that's why we've conveyed that risk across such a large area to help support the evacuation
22:36of much of that west central coast of Florida.
22:39But Tampa Bay is particularly vulnerable, correct?
22:42Correct.
22:43Yes, Mr. President.
22:44It's one of the most vulnerable locations along the entire west coast of Florida because
22:48water gets funneled up into the bay.
22:50If you were to see a worst case scenario there, you could see storm surge as much as twice
22:54as high as they saw during Helene, where it got up to seven or eight feet in the bay.
22:58It could potentially get up above 10 feet in this event.
23:01Well, thanks a lot, Mike.
23:03I appreciate it.
23:04Hey, Mike.
23:05It's good to see you again, and thank you for all your work.
23:09So for the folks who have been living in Florida a long time and have experienced these storms
23:14many times, how are you talking with them about how this is going to be different?
23:21And so the difference between what they're used to and what this will be as a way to
23:25hopefully give them more encouragement to know that they need to get out.
23:29Yeah.
23:30Thank you, Madam Vice President.
23:31Yes, we've been emphasizing that the size and the intensity of the storm and the direction
23:36at which it's approaching, which is unusual and really raises that storm surge risk for
23:40the west coast of Florida.
23:42We typically see hurricanes approach the west coast of Florida from the south or southeast
23:45moving parallel to the coast.
23:47This track more perpendicular to the coast really raises the storm surge risk.
23:51And the size of the storm is going to produce hazardous impacts across much of the peninsula.
23:56So we've been hitting the surge risk on both coasts, actually, the hurricane force winds,
24:00the flooding rainfall threat, the tornadoes, and trying to reemphasize the scale and breadth
24:05of the threat, which is somewhat unusual for Milton.
24:09And thanks for your good work.
24:10Mike, one more question.
24:11Yes, sir.
24:12For people listening, what is the width of the state of Florida from the Tampa Bay area
24:19across to Sebastian Inlet in that area to Palm Beach?
24:26What kind of distance are we talking about?
24:28You know, across the state of Florida, you're probably talking about, you know, 150, 200
24:33miles.
24:34That's an estimate.
24:35But the storm is going to be moving at 15 miles per hour.
24:37So it's going to be moving across that area very quickly.
24:40And the tropical storm force winds, the 30, 40 mile per hour winds are greater now extend
24:45almost out more than 200 miles from the center.
24:48They're going to get even larger as the storm approaches the coastline.
24:51So that's going to cause those wind impacts to affect much of the state.
24:54The reason I ask the question is I think, at least for me, having done a lot of this
25:00the last three years, emphasizes the consequential damage this storm can do.
25:07I mean, this is going to enter Florida on the west as a hurricane and leave as a hurricane.
25:14And that's pretty unusual.
25:16Anyway, thank you.
25:18Yes, sir.
25:20Thank you so much.
25:24We will move on now to the National Weather Service Director, Ken Graham.
25:28All right.
25:29Thanks, Liz.
25:30I appreciate it.
25:31And I wanted to thank Administrator Criswell for everything through this and Dr. Brennan
25:35as well.
25:36The Hurricane Center has been really focused on this and on it with such great forecast
25:40the whole way.
25:41I just wish we could minimize those impacts, but that doesn't look like what's going to
25:45happen.
25:46Thank you, Mr. President, Madam Vice President.
25:47We continue to work at the National Weather Service with our federal, state, and local
25:51decision-makers during the storms.
25:54We actually have our scientists embedded with FEMA, the state and local emergency operations
25:59centers.
26:00And we also have our scientists embedded with the U.S. Coast Guard District 7 to really
26:04help out with these decisions to make sure they're right there to answer the questions
26:08as they come up.
26:09They're covering really the subtleties, as you've mentioned in this forecast.
26:13Dr. Brennan mentioned those small changes can make a big difference.
26:17Little wiggles really do matter.
26:18Those small wobbles make a difference in the storm surge.
26:21And all these big storms, they wobble and wiggle all the way in.
26:24We'll see that happening as this gets closer to landfall.
26:28So as Administrator Criswell said, listen to those local officials.
26:31I can't stress enough, you know, 30 years with NOAA, 30 years in the Weather Service,
26:36this is a particularly dangerous track.
26:39People really need to be getting into their safe locations as the impacts start deteriorating
26:43really quickly over the next few hours.
26:46Words really matter in these storms.
26:48Even if the winds decrease somewhat near landfall, we really try to avoid words like weaken.
26:55It really gives a false sense of security to the public.
26:58So we really want to stress that no matter what happens to the wind speed in this system,
27:03catastrophic impacts will result either way.
27:06The size of the wind speed, the actual size of it will be expanding, as Dr. Brennan was
27:11saying.
27:12So much of that impact will cover most of the peninsula.
27:15And Mr. President, like you said, Milton, think about it, it just goes over my mind
27:20over and over.
27:21Milton will enter as a hurricane and exit as a hurricane.
27:24So you'll see damage from the landfall point on the West Coast and you'll see damage on
27:28the East Coast as well.
27:30So it's really important to focus on those impacts.
27:33Again, seeing those impacts on both coasts, we're really starting to see the impacts as
27:38we speak.
27:39I was just looking at the radar before doing this meeting here and we've got tornadoes
27:44already touching down in some spots in Florida and some have been confirmed that have touched
27:49down as well.
27:50And about 90% of those tornadoes occur on that right front quadrant of a tropical system.
27:56So really, our folks at the Weather Service are on duty 24 hours a day watching that radar
28:01to make sure that we can get those warnings out quickly to people so they can take cover.
28:06And as Dr. Brennan said, think about it, Mike Wright, 140 miles wide, now we're 200 and
28:13we expect it to be greater than 240 miles away from the center with these winds.
28:16So that's a huge area that we can see some of that damage.
28:21Very concerned about the storm surge and I wanted to double down on something.
28:25It's not just Tampa Bay with that 8 to 12 foot forecast or 10 to 15 down to Boca Grande.
28:31I mean, you can see 5 to 8 feet of storm surge all the way down to Chokoloskee.
28:35Think about Fort Myers, Naples, well away from that center.
28:39We just got to really keep reminding people they're not safe even though you're not near
28:43the center of the storm.
28:45So we'll continue to really message that as we can.
28:48The other part of this, flooding could last a while.
28:50So unlike other areas with elevation, there's not much elevation in Florida.
28:55So some of these rivers are going to be slow to drain.
28:58Some of these rivers could stay up for about a week after the storm.
29:01The storm surge will act as a blocker to drain some of that rain from the inland area.
29:06So that could really be some challenges to some communities with the flooding and recovery
29:11efforts as some of the roads will be pretty impassable.
29:14So I was looking at this, Mr. President, Madam Vice President, yesterday I said the clock
29:19was ticking.
29:20Today, I'm saying the alarm bell is going off.
29:22People really need to start getting into their safe place.
29:25As always, the Weather Service remains on duty 24 by 7 to make sure that the decision
29:30makers have all the information they need and the updates to the storm.
29:34Ken, I'd like to focus on one thing you said.
29:36I don't think most people would think it, but you know, the idea that sometimes it takes
29:43days for rivers to crest after a major storm like this.
29:48Are there any particular areas of concern that relate to this type of flooding?
29:54And how long do you think the flooding conditions could last?
29:56In other words, I think people think once the winds are died down and have gotten through
30:02that okay, we're all set, but these rivers flooding are consequential and that takes
30:07time, right?
30:08It takes time.
30:09That storm surge pushes up every nook and cranny of Florida.
30:13So it goes up bays, goes up rivers, it fills in all these areas.
30:17And then you add that incredible amount of rainfall and that rain can't drain because
30:21the storm surge has it blocked.
30:23So just really looking at some of the areas and Hillsborough River, Alifaya River, Peace
30:28River, some of these type of traditional places that could flood, we really got to watch those
30:34areas and those communities.
30:35So it takes quite a while for that water to drain.
30:40Thank you very much.
30:41Hey Ken, I have a question for you.
30:43You mentioned Words Matter and I know there is a lot of media following this briefing.
30:51So there have been, we've gone from a cat five to a cat four and the language that a
30:57lot of folks have been using is downgrade.
31:00But it sounds like you're cautioning us that that may communicate a sense that the danger
31:05is lessened when in fact it's not.
31:08Can you talk a little bit about that?
31:09Because I know a lot of folks are watching right now and would love to have your feedback
31:13on how we should be talking about this.
31:15We need everybody that communicates to the public to be on the same page with the words
31:19because I've 30 years of doing this.
31:21I've seen this so many times.
31:22People will think, oh, it was a cat five, now it's a cat three.
31:25That's not a reason to relax.
31:27It's not weakened.
31:28That's not diminished.
31:29That means that we've expanded the wind field.
31:31The impacts don't change associated with that.
31:33And I've seen this in Hurricane Florence and other historic hurricanes.
31:36So we have to be mindful of the words that we use and focus on those impacts.
31:41Those impacts haven't changed no matter what the wind speed does over the next 24 hours.
31:48That's very helpful.
31:49Thank you, Director Graham.
31:50We'll go now to Secretary Mayorkas, the Secretary of Homeland Security.
31:55Ali, over to you.
31:56Thank you very much, Liz.
31:58Mr. President, Madam Vice President, if I can just pick up on the important phrase,
32:04the words matter.
32:05I want to thank you for the strength and moral clarity with which you have been speaking
32:10to bat down false information that is being spread.
32:14That false information is only hurting survivors in need of help, and it is also hurting the
32:20first responders who are so bravely risking their lives to deliver that help to the survivors.
32:27Mr. President, Madam Vice President, we are executing on your directive to not only rely
32:32on FEMA to provide emergency relief, but to draw upon other resources throughout the Department
32:38of Homeland Security and throughout the federal government, throughout your administration.
32:43I know you will hear from the Commandant of the United States Coast Guard, Linda Fagan.
32:47The United States Coast Guard has deployed almost 1,300 personnel to Florida, not just
32:54for search and rescue, but also to ensure the safety and security of the Port of Tampa,
32:59which is a critical lifeline for supplies that are needed by Florida and elsewhere.
33:06I want to also say that our U.S. Customs and Border Protection has devoted search and rescue
33:12personnel as well as other parts of our department.
33:16To give you just a quick snapshot of some of the resources that are devoted from other
33:21parts of the administration, the Department of Defense is providing search and rescue,
33:27commodity movement, commodity distribution, and security to Florida.
33:32We already have 1.5 million meals and 2.8 million liters of water ready to provide to
33:39people in need.
33:41The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers is providing temporary power, temporary roofing, debris
33:46removal support, and engineering expertise.
33:50The U.S. Forest Administration is also providing debris removal.
33:54This is absolutely critical so that our search and rescue personnel can reach the people
34:00in need and provide them with the humanitarian relief upon which they rely.
34:06Health and Human Services is providing hospital and health-related support.
34:10The Small Business Administration has dedicated 137 personnel to assist people who have lost
34:17or whose businesses are destroyed to get them back up on their feet and understand what
34:23resources are available to them.
34:26We have an entire administration dedicated to this effort at your direction.
34:31And with that, I'll pause.
34:34Hey, Ali, Mr. Secretary, do you have anything in need from all the federal departments and
34:44the agencies in support of this response?
34:46Is there anything lacking?
34:50We certainly do have all of the resources.
34:52We are well positioned to continue to respond to Hurricane Helene, to respond to Hurricane
34:58Milton, Mr. President.
35:00We are meeting the moment and meeting the challenges because of the extraordinary people
35:05who have spoken before me.
37:30We are meeting the moment and meeting the challenges because of the extraordinary people
37:50who have spoken before me.