Press Gaggle by Senior Deputy Press Secretary Emilie Simons and Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Michael Regan en Route Milwaukee, WI

12:30 P.M. EDT

MS. SIMONS:  All right.  Good morning, everyone.  Given the projected trajectory and strength of Hurricane Milton, President Biden is postponing his upcoming trip to Germany and Angola in order to oversee preparations for and response to Hurricane Milton, in addition to the ongoing response to the impacts of Hurricane Helene.

The president was briefed again this morning by his team, and as Karine said yesterday, FEMA and other federal agencies continue to actively pre-position lifesaving resources in advance of the storm, including temporary power teams, swiftwater rescue teams, and search and rescue teams. 

FEMA has two staging bases stocked with 20 million meals and 40 million liters of water to deploy as needed. 

Currently, nearly 900 staff are already in the region, including over 440 specifically deployed for Helene recovery. 

Yesterday, FEMA Administrator Criswell was on the ground in Tampa.  Today, she is back in North Carolina.  So, we maintain our focus on both storms.

And yesterday evening, as we read out, the president had separate calls with Governor DeSantis and Tampa Mayor Castor to discuss efforts for Helene recovery and preparations for Milton.  He asked them to please keep directly in touch with him if they need anything.

And to anyone in Milton’s path, this storm will be catastrophic.  We urge you to listen to local officials, especially if you are told to evacuate.

And onto today’s trip.  Today, the president is traveling to Milwaukee, along with all of us, where he will announce that the EPA is issuing a final rule that will require drinking water systems nationwide to replace lead service lines within 10 years.  He’s also announcing that the EPA is investing an additional $2.6 billion for drinking water upgrades and lead pipe replacements funded by President Biden’s landmark Bipartisan Infrastructure Law. 

This comes as part of our work to sprint through the finish and deliver on our historic Investing in America agenda. 

To talk a little bit more today about the announcement, here is EPA Administrator Regan. 

ADMINISTRATOR REGAN:  Well, thank you all.  Let me tell you, this is a very exciting day.  This is something that President Biden talked to me on day one.  He came to this administration with the promise of a 100 percent lead-free future for every family and every child in this country.  And today, I’m proud to announce that this rule will mandate that every single utility in this country identify the sources of lead service lines and remove them within the 10-year window. 

We’re also announcing $2.6 billion will be flowing simultaneously along with this announcement. 

I’ll take a step back and say that in the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, $26 billion dedicated to drinking water, $15 billion specifically aimed at eradicating lead service lines.  Between those bill dollars and this regulation, the president is really accomplishing his goal and keeping his promise.

Q    On — on the window.  Ten years —

ADMINISTRATOR REGAN:  Yeah.

Q    — this is very ambitious, and there’s obviously a lot, a lot of pipes that need to be replaced in this country.  But how do you get that done?  And is there a worry that, you know, it’s not just one administration that you — you’re going to have to go through; it’s at least two to get to this goal.  How — is there a concern that not just one Republican administration could out — could undo this but perhaps two?  Like, why should Americans be confident that this is actually going to get done?

ADMINISTRATOR REGAN:  Well, listen, in my conversations, I have to tell you, I would hope that both Republicans and Democrats would want to remove lead and lead service lines from impacting our children.  We know that it causes learning impairments, you know, heart disease.  We know that they’re — oh, with this rule, we’ll save or prevent over 900,000 low birth weight. 

So, you know, listen, it’s — it’s a bipartisan issue.  Everyone wants this lead out.  That’s the first thing. 

The second thing is that many of these cities are already moving forward.  Just under the president’s watch over the last three and a half years, over 367,000 lead pipes have been removed.  We know that this rule will get 99 percent of all of the cities who say they can step up and can do this, especially with the bill funding. 

So, we believe it can get done.  The cities have indicated that they want to get it done.  No one wants to roll back this rule or roll back these health protections, especially given that it’s tied to Bipartisan Infrastructure Law money.  So, we feel confident. 

By the way, the rule is legally durable.  It’s scientifically sound, well within the four corners of the Clean Water Act.  We feel very confident that it’s legally durable, scientifically sound, and that there are resources flowing to help these mayors and these county commissioners and these local governments all over the country. 

Q    In retrospect, is there any wish that you guys started earlier on this and actually the implementation?

ADMINISTRATOR REGAN:  This is a very complicated rule.  We started on day one.  It’s taken us some time to really put the rule in place.  We had to roll back a rule that the Trump administration put in place that was not as protected.  So, we had to do that due diligence in the process and put forward a legally sound, scientifically relevant rule.

And, listen, by the way, let me — let me just say that we’ve also, through the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, given a lot of cities the resources to specifically identify where these lead service lines are. 

So, the identification process has occurred.  States feel confident.  Now it’s time to govern.

Q    During the administration’s contacts with these local officials, are you seeing any pushback or hesitance to jump on board and take this money and — and redo these water lines?  Or is everyone sort of, you know, gung ho, and as soon as the money is available, they’re going to start with these projects? 

ADMINISTRATOR REGAN:  You know, everyone that I’ve engaged with is ready to go.  Obviously, there was some apprehension in the beginning about the timeline and the level of aggressiveness.  We have worked with our stakeholders to smooth out those wrinkles. 

And, again, 99 percent of the cities and states are saying that they can do what this rule is asking them to do.  For that very small portion that will need some assistance, we will work with them on the timeline.  We will also work to prioritize resources to keep them in the game. 

Q    Are — are you guys working with private-sector companies or matching private-sector companies with these local officials to make sure the plans and the build-outs can get accomplished as soon as possible?

ADMINISTRATOR REGAN:  Absolutely.  There’s a lot of public and private partnerships happening right now.  We know that many of these water systems are complicated.  We are creating, through these investments, a lot of good-playing — -paying union jobs to come in and eradicate these pipelines. 

So, the public-private partnership is very strong, and we’ll continue to move forward together. 

Q    Just one more quick one.  Is the partnership — part of that partnership, does that involve contracting at the federal level, or is all — that all happening at the state and local level?

ADMINISTRATOR REGAN:  It’s all happening at the state and local level.  The state and local level have all the autonomy.  We’re not being paternalistic.  We have some guidelines.  We’re giving them the resources.  This rule gives them the rules for the road, and they’re ready to hit the ground running. 

Q    Why Milwaukee?  Why Milwaukee?

ADMINISTRATOR REGAN:  You know, Milwaukee has some of the most heart-wrenching stories that I’ve witnessed, the vice president has witnessed, the president has witnessed.  We’ve been here time and time again.  I’ve traveled to Milwaukee previously with the vice president.  It’s full circle for many of us. 

One of the first stories we heard was a mother named Deanna and her son, Aidan, who was lead poisoned.  We’ve held roundtables here. 

Milwaukee is an excellent example of a city who is ready to go, who has demonstrated that they can meet the timeline, who’s put the resources in place, and has the local advocacy on the ground that is partnering with the government along with the private sector.  It’s a great example of how we can do this together. 

MS. SIMONS:  Thank you so much. 

ADMINISTRATOR REGAN:  Thank you.

Q    Emilie, with the president — with the president canceling his trip to Germany and to Angola, does he still have plans to get to Africa before the end of his term?

MS. SIMONS:  So, as he said before departing the White House, he does hope to make that trip to Africa.  He really wants to continue — and the whole essence of the trip was to underscore our commitment to our partners in Africa, and especially because Sub-Saharan Africa is such an important global leader. 

So, I don’t have any additional.  This has happened this morning, but we will keep you posted.

Q    On the Middle East.  Hezbollah’s deputy leader has said he supports attempts to secure a truce and, for the first time, did not mention the end of the war in Gaza as a precondition for halting the combat on the Israel-Lebanon border.  Do you see this as an opening for a ceasefire?  Have you spoken to Israel about these comments?  And — and what are you hearing from Israeli counterparts?

MS. SIMONS:  So, we continue to have discussions with the Israelis about their response to the earlier attacks last week.  I’m not going to get ahead of those discussions, as this is their operation.  I hear the new statements that you’re saying from the Hezbollah leader. 

And what we understand right now is that what they’ve been working on is efforts to destroy Hezbollah infrastructure.  This is in line with Israel’s right to defend its citizens. 

I think we are all eager for a ceasefire, speaking from the United States.  And along with our G7 leaders, we put out a statement last week about the need for peace in the region so people can return safely to their homes.  So, we definitely are continuing to urge that from our side. 

Q    And have you gotten any assurances from Israel that they will not target Iran’s nuclear or oil facilities? 

MS. SIMONS:  This is their operation.  We continue to have discussions with them about their response, but I won’t get ahead of that.

Q    Hey, Em.  On Israel.  There was a report in Axios this morning that a U.S. official said that they had sort of lost trust with Israel in — in conveying their planned activities.  There’s also Bob Woodward’s book in which he — which the president reportedly used some language to describe Prime Minister Netanyahu that we might normally hear at a Phillies game instead — (laughs) — of in the Oval Office.

So, I’m wondering: Do you agree with that assessment, that the trust has broken down between the U.S. and Israel?  And are you taking any steps to try to get it back on track at this crucial period?

MS. SIMONS:  The commitment that we have to the State of Israel is ironclad.  The relationship between Netanyahu and the president goes back decades.  They can have very honest and straightforward conversations with each other. 

Just yesterday, President Biden spoke with President Herzog on the anniversary of October 7th and spoke about a range of issues, including the need for peace and what the Israeli people have been through in this past year and also what the Palestinian people have been through and the hope for peace in the coming months. 

Q    So, their relationship is fine, or — or are those — and those reports are incorrect, or — 

MS. SIMONS:  The relationship between the United States and the State of Israel is as strong as ever. 

Q    Just to follow up on the storm as well.  The — in addition to the trip to Africa, the president was going to Germany and had meetings with a number of top allies, including in Ramstein with President Zelenskyy.  Is that going to be rescheduled, or will a different U.S. — you know, the secretary of Defense or State go in the president’s stead?  Do you have any update on that?

MS. SIMONS:  Yeah.  So, for this weekend, given the trip was pulled down today, we’re still working through exactly how the Ramstein engagement may play out.  Our commitment to Ukraine was a big piece of this, and that is unwavering, including the security and financial announcements that come along with that.  That is not going anywhere.

     And we are committed to the transatlantic alliance.  It’s a huge reason why we were going to Germany.  I know the president said that he’s hoping to connect with Scholz today, so hopefully we’ll have more to read out soon. 

Q    Will he talk to the other European leaders and — and President Zelenskyy who are planning to attend or just Chancellor Scholz?

MS. SIMONS:  Our team throughout this morning has been in touch with a variety of officials from the different countries to inform them that due to the strength of the hurricane, we had to change our plans

Q    Could I — if I could just follow on Justin on the Woodward aspect of the — the Bibi rel- — revelation and the very rough language that the president allegedly used?  One, are you — did that — did that happen, or are you saying it didn’t happen?

And then, more broadly, is — how is that helpful at, like, this time?  Is th- — is there any concern that that’s going to further, you know, hurt the relationship at a critical time? 

MS. SIMONS:  Well, first of all, when it comes to the Woodward book, there are plenty of books that are being written about this administration and others.  That’s normal.  We’re not going to comment on each anecdote that may come out of different reporting.

On specific — about the relationship between the president and Netanyahu, they have a long-term relationship.  They have a very honest and direct relationship.  And I don’t have a comment on those specific anecdotes. 

Q    Emilie, can you talk a little bit about the president’s conversations with Governor DeSantis related to the storm?  You said earlier that they had a good conversation.  Can you tell us a little bit more about that and — and if it came up about whether or not he’s going to speak with the vice president, or his public comments to that?

MS. SIMONS:  Yes.  Last night, President Biden spoke with Governor DeSantis and he spoke with Tampa Mayor Castor ahead of landfall for Milton and also about the ongoing recovery efforts with Helene.  It was a very productive conversation.  It was expressed that the state has what it needs, the city has what it needs, but that it is going to be catastrophic, and everyone needs to heed local warnings. 

One thing that we are hearing continuously about the storm is debris removal and the issues relating to the debris left by Helene and what the risk can be as winds pick up because of Milton. 

So, to that point, FEMA is supporting the state of Florida to expedite the removal of debris from Hurricane Helene in the Tampa region in advance of Hurricane Milton’s landfall.  There’s a few ways we’re doing this: We are surging additional resources to get as much debris picked up as possible, management sites are open 24 hours a day, and contracted trucks are now collecting debris around the clock. 

The governor of Florida has additionally activated 4,000 state active-duty National Guard, many of whom are going to help with that debris removal. 

Q    They didn’t discuss anything about the vice president’s outreach to the governor?

MS. SIMONS:  So, the president and the governor kept their conversation to the storm at hand.  I know that the vice president’s office has been in touch with various local officials, as our team has as well, from the city all the way up the state and back down.  So, we’re all going to continue that important engagement. 

Q    And just one other one on a different topic.  Elon Musk, again, was joking in a recent interview or a conversation with Tucker Carlson about the assassination — or hypothetical assassination of Vice President Harris.  And after that, former Congressman Adam Kinzinger, among others, noted that this is a person who happens to be the largest contractor with the Defense Department, who the government — who just has billions of dollars in federal contracts.  And Congressman Kinzinger said that that should be reconsidered, that some of those contracts should be revoked, because no member — no person with ties to the Pentagon, no serviceman, would be allowed to say those things. 

Does the administration have any response to that, or are there any reviews that may come as far as those contracts based on the things that Elon Musk is saying? 

MS. SIMONS:  I’m not going to get into any hypotheticals about government contracts.  But what I can say is that we take rhetoric very seriously.  Want to be mindful of any comments about assassinations or attempted.  This is a — these are volatile words.  But I don’t have comments on government contracts.

Q    Emilie, just back to the hurricane.  North Carolina is weighing loosening absentee ballot restrictions for people in the western part of the state who are obviously impacted by flooding, and the mailing system is out of whack still.  Does the president support states this close to the election changing their electoral rules, one, to allow those people to vote, but just looking back on all of the chaos we saw in 2020, both before and after the election?

MS. SIMONS:  We know that people are facing a variety of obstacles in everyday life, including in voting.  Karine spoke to this from the podium yesterday.  We would direct you to state and local officials about their own state and local voting rules.  But we know that this is an issue that folks are facing in a variety of states this close to an election.

Q    And then, total change of topics.  How closely is the president following these hacks of U.S. telecom companies?

MS. SIMONS:  The president has been made aware of these reported intrusions into U.S. telecom companies.  Congress has also been briefed. 

I would refer you to FBI and CISA, who are looking into this. 

Q    Just a quick follow-up.  Is there any indication that Beijing is involved in this, or are these independent actors?

MS. SIMONS:  I would refer you to FBI and CISA. 

The U.S. government has warned many times about the risk posed by PRC state-sponsored cyber actors, but I would refer you to the FBI.

Q    Dr. Biden’s office today announced that she’s going to be visiting five battleground states in the coming weeks.  The president has been in Pennsylvania.  Why — why aren’t we seeing the president in more battleground states?  How much of this is about scheduling?  How much of it is — this about that he just can’t be an effective surrogate in these places outside his home — or his birth state?

MS. SIMONS:  I need to be mindful of the Hatch Act when it comes to the campaign and the election.  But we are going to continue traveling to very important states around the country. 

Today, we’re traveling to Wisconsin.  We’ll be in Pennsylvania later. 

I’ll let the first lady’s office speak to her travel, especially as it relates to being a surrogate or the campaign.

But in the next few weeks, you will see us continue to travel across the country.

Q    Will he campaign outside of Pennsylvania?

MS. SIMONS:  You will continue seeing us travel the country, as we are today, to very important states.  Everyone is important.  But I have to be mindful of campaign — campaign talk.  But we’re excited to go to Wisconsin today, and we’ll be in Pennsylvania later.

Q    I’ll just ask one on Russia.  What does the White House make of the revelation in the new Woodward book that Trump has spoken to Putin several times since leaving office?  Are there national security concerns around this?

MS. SIMONS:  So, once again, when it comes to the book, I’m not going to comment on the specific antidote — anecdotes that are coming out.  It’s very common for books to be written about this administration and others, so I’ll leave others to speak to that. 

Meanwhile, we have a continued commitment to President Zelenskyy and doing everything that we can to support Ukraine in their unprovoked aggression from Russia.

Q    But do you have concerns about Trump speaking to Putin several times since leaving office?

MS. SIMONS:  I don’t have a specific comment on that.

Q    I — I guess I just wanted to follow or push a little bit on that.  It is a national security concern.  We — we have one president at a time, right?  Why are we having multiple — a former president talking to foreign leaders that were — in pretty tense times?

MS. SIMONS:  President Biden has been crystal clear about his views of Putin as a dictator.  He’s made that clear repeatedly and whenever asked. 

There are — I — I won’t get into the former president’s engagements with president — with Putin, both when he was president when — sorry, when Trump was president and today. 

But we are focused on doing everything that we can to secure our relationship with Ukraine and ensure they have everything they need to continue to fight against Russia’s aggression.

Q    Is the administration aware that the — the calls were happening?

MS. SIMONS:  I don’t have anything further to say on the Woodward anecdotes.

Q    Can I ask one last one on the hurricane response?

MS. SIMONS:  Yes.

Q    The president canceled his trips to Germany and Africa.  Is it fair to assume that he won’t be traveling to Delaware at all this weekend?

MS. SIMONS:  I do not have any weekend travel to purview — to preview.  We are — just as the storm updates are continuing to roll in, we are taking this hour by hour, day by day, making sure that every city, every impacted community and family has what they need to get through this storm. 

The president is the president wherever he goes, so we will keep you posted.

Q    Would he like the vice president to stick around Washington to help him with — handle the storm?

MS. SIMONS:  I would refer you to her team for the vice president’s schedule.

Q    I was asking you about, would he like her?

MS. SIMONS:  Would he like her?  They are in close contact.  They’re both in touch with the various impacted states and their relevant governments and local state leaders.  So, they’re continuing to do the job on behalf of those who may be affected.

Q    One more quick one, Emilie.  Does the president have a plan B to stop the proliferation of ghost guns and other related tech should the Supreme Court rule against them in this challenge that started today?

MS. SIMONS:  So, while I can’t comment on pending cases before the Court, what I can say broadly is that we know ghost guns are the weapon of choice for many gun traffickers because they are very difficult for law enforcement to trace and are available without a background check. 

In 2021, there were approximately 20,000 suspected ghost guns reported to the ATF.  That’s a 1,000 percent increase compared to 2017. 

So, our administration remains committed to stopping illegal manufacturers and sale of kits and parts that can easily be made into functional ghost guns.

Q    Does the president — is he confident those rules and executive actions he took are legally sound?

MS. SIMONS:  We stand by the Justice Department’s rulemaking to do this.

Okay?

Q    Thank you so much.

MS. SIMONS:  Thank you.

Q    Thanks, Emilie.

MS. SIMONS:  Thanks, guys.

12:52 P.M. EDT