There are still tough times ahead for southwest Florida as the region recovers from Hurricane Ian, but the recovery process began quickly and, in some ways, is moving quickly, state Rep. Daniel Perez, the incoming House speaker, told Newsmax on Thursday.
"The damage is very real," the Miami Republican said on "Wake Up America." "The photos and the videos that you're seeing on social media, they're not fake news, so they're very, very real, and there are some tough, tough times ahead for them."
Perez commended Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis' efforts, a day after President Joe Biden was in the state, and noted that about 90% of the people who lost power in the storm have had it restored.
"That's after there were hundreds of thousands of people without power with houses that were lost, so we've been able to move quickly," said Perez. "There's been a bridge that has been constructed within three days, to make sure that people on the island can have the resources to get their life back together. So the recovery has been quick."
Perez noted that his wife was born in raised in New Orleans, and her family lost their home in Hurricane Katrina 17 years ago.
"We go back almost every year and the city is still rebuilding," said Perez. "I think leadership matters. I lived in New Orleans for many years. I went to law school in New Orleans. That city is still recovering from Katrina almost 20 years later. I think in Florida, it'll be different. We've moved quickly. Everyone has come together."
Florida also has a budgetary surplus of more than $20 billion, one of the largest in the country, and "we're going to be able to hopefully use some of those funds so that immediately we can get these families back on their feet," Perez added.
Meanwhile, when asked if he thinks the storm will shift the political dynamic in Florida with the midterm elections coming up, as there are several key races in play, including the governor's seat, Perez said he agrees with DeSantis and Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla., that this is not a time to play politics.
"This is a time to make sure that Florida families can get back on their feet and live their lives the way they did before the hurricane hit land here," said Perez, noting that House Democrats have gone to southwest Florida to help some their Republican colleagues.
"There has been a bipartisan effort to make sure that we can help everyone, regardless of what their party is," said Perez. "We want to make sure that we can help everyone."
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