On Monday, Gov. Ron DeSantis addressed the rapid deployment of an immigrant detention center in the Everglades and Florida's preparedness as a tropical system threatens to develop over the state.
The governor spoke at a press conference in The Villages, where he signed into law Florida's $117 billion state budget.
'Alligator Alcatraz'
DeSantis said President Donald Trump will visit the new detention center, which state officials are calling "Alligator Alcatraz," and tout Florida's leadership among states in helping to carry out his immigration crackdown.
The governor said he spoke with the president over the weekend and Trump is "very excited" about visiting the rapidly deployed site, which can house a thousand detainees.
It's an effective way to increase the number of deportations, DeSantis said. "You literally drive them to 2,000 feet, put them on a plane, and then they're gone. It's very logistically simple."
If they don't have a deportation order and need an immigration judge, DeSantis said members of the Florida National Guard can fill that role.
He discounted concerns raised by environmentalists over impacts on the Everglades and said they'll be ready in case of a hurricane.
Hurricane season uncertainties
Florida's Division of Emergency Management has a key leadership role in the state's immigration enforcement plan, as it seeks to be a "force multiplier" for the U.S. Department of Homeland Security and Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
Meanwhile, emergency managers also handle Florida's preparation for and response to hurricanes. One month into hurricane season, the National Hurricane Center is monitoring a weather pattern over the Florida peninsula that forecasters say has a 20% chance of becoming a tropical cyclone.
DeSantis said the department can do both jobs -- as they did in the midst of another hurricane season setting up monoclonal antibody treatment centers during the pandemic.
He said Florida officials are ready and that the storms will be their top priority.
But DeSantis said he does have questions about what will happen after a storm with the changes planned for the Federal Emergency Management Agency.
NPR reports that FEMA has cut billions of dollars in programs and lost hundreds of staff members. Its future is uncertain as the Trump Administration prepares to eliminate the agency or cut it way back.
DeSantis said federal assistance after a storm could be in the form of a block grant to the state for Florida to distribute.
"We have not necessarily gotten anything that would give us any directive on that," he said. "So I do think if there's a storm that happens -- I know FEMA is kind of in transition -- what's that going to mean?"
DeSantis said he might ask Trump about that when he sees him at Alligator Alcatraz.
