Biden and DeSantis have spoken regularly this week about the storm, which pummeled Florida's Big Bend region with Category 3 winds of nearly 125 miles per hour. Politics had not crept into their conversations, the president said.

President Joe Biden traveled to Florida on Saturday to survey the destruction from Hurricane Idalia and comfort victims of the storm, but he did not meet Governor Ron DeSantis, a potential presidential rival, who opted not to come.

Biden, who praised DeSantis during the visit, said he was not disappointed by the governor’s absence and said DeSantis had helped plan the trip.

DeSantis’ spokesperson said on Friday the governor had no plans to meet Biden, saying “the security preparations alone that would go in to setting up such a meeting would shut down ongoing recovery efforts.”