The President will spend the day with Texas Governor Greg Abbott.
February 26, 2021, 10:00 a.m.
5 min read
Share on FacebookShare on TwitterSend this article via email
President Joe Biden will travel to Houston Friday to investigate the damage from the winter Storm Last week, millions in Texas were without electricity and needed drinking water.
The trip to Texas marks the first time Biden has traveled to tackle a crisis beyond the world COVID-19 Pandemic that consumed his young presidency.
Biden will be traveling with First Lady Jill Biden Friday morning in the Lone Star State and will spend the day with Texas Governor Greg Abbott, White House press secretary Jen Psaki said Thursday.
“He’s going to be spending the day with the governor of Texas because this isn’t a partisan issue. This doesn’t just affect Democrats or Republicans. It affects everyone in the state. There was obviously a period of time when we were needed to make sure the people were Now we are in the recovery phase, in which we have to make sure that people have access to clean water, access to living quarters, “said Psaki on ABC’s” The View “.
“The president wants to investigate the damage so he can use all of the federal government’s resources. We’ve already declared an emergency in over 100 counties, and our FEMA administrator, our acting administrator, is still investigating, but the president wants to see for himself, and.” he wants to show his support and he wants to be informed by the governor, “she continued.
President Joe Biden aboard Air Force One at Andrews Air Force Base, Md., Feb. 5, 2021. Biden is spending the weekend at his Delaware home.
Biden declared a major disaster in Texas on Saturday and provided federal funding to residents in part of the storm-hit counties of the state.
He first responded to his plans to travel to the state last Friday and told reporters he did not want to strain local resources.
“If it actually comes to the conclusion that I can do without the local people when they deal with this crisis, I plan to move on,” Biden told reporters.
The storm’s effects were compounded by massive blackouts across the state that left millions without power in freezing temperatures, snow and ice.
Texas’s Electric Reliability Council (ERCOT), the not-for-profit company responsible for managing 90% of the state’s electricity, was scrutinized extensively for power outages during the storm. Texan lawmakers held hearings Thursday to investigate the failures.
When asked during the White House press conference whether Biden had any message for heads of state about the failure, Psaki said the government was continuing to focus on relief efforts.
“There is enough time to have a political discussion about better weathering and better preparation. And I am sure that it will be. But for now we are concentrating on relieving the people in the state and keeping them up to date to bring briefings that pull out all the stops of the federal government. “She said.
While in Texas, Biden is also expected to visit a vaccine site to see progress in distributing COVID-19 vaccines after the winter storm also caused delays in vaccine deliveries across the state.
