In the midst of managing his first natural disaster, a self-assured President Donald Trump on Monday promised the full force of the federal government to aid flood-ravaged Texas and Louisiana in the aftermath of Hurricane Harvey, while defending his pardon of former Arizona Sheriff Joe Arpaio with equal aplomb.

Trump offered a conventionally reassuring statement to the millions still reeling from the disaster, touting the unity and compassion of Americans and the resources the government is bringing to bear in his first live televised remarks on the historic storm.

Hurricane Harvey's Devastation View All 17 Images

But he appeared equally confident in defending a decision that dropped and created a political storm at the same time Harvey was nearing landfall: clearing Arpaio of potential jail time for having been found in contempt of court over immigrant-targeting patrols. During a joint press conference with Finnish President Sauli Niinistö, Trump even ghoulishly defended the Friday night timing of the pardon.

"Actually in the middle of a hurricane, even though it was a Friday evening, I assumed the ratings would be far higher than they would be normally. You know, the hurricane was just starting," the president explained, betraying a small grin.

He then pulled out a piece of paper nestled in his suit jacket and listed off highly contentious pardons granted during previous Democratic administrations, such as President Bill Clinton's pardon of international financier Marc Rich, who was indicted for tax evasion and fled the country, and President Barack Obama's pardon of Chelsea Manning, the former U.S. Army soldier who was convicted of leaking thousands of classified documents.

Trump appeared pleased to have the debate and gave no ground in his defense of Arpaio, even as many in his own party have criticized his decision.

"Sheriff Joe is a patriot. Sheriff Joe loves our country. Sheriff Joe protected our borders and Sheriff Joe was very unfairly treated by the Obama administration," he said.

Trump's mostly anchored response to Harvey provides him with a moment – however potentially fleeting – to look presidential after weeks of turmoil and controversy have plagued his administration.

In the handful of questions he faced Monday, none involved his checkered response to the violence in Charlottesville, Virginia, nor the ongoing investigation into his ties to Russian interference in the 2016 election or the exodus of top-level staffers. His certainty over the federal government's response to Harvey also provided him the political sheen with which to fend off his critics on the Arpaio pardon.

Trump is scheduled to visit Corpus Christi, Texas, on Tuesday and indicated he'll likely return to the region Saturday with another stop. The heartbreaking scenes the president will encounter will lend him another opportunity to espouse the sympathy and kindness Americans have come to expect from their commanders in chief during times of national crisis.

But Trump as president has never encountered a situation of this devastating magnitude and is not a natural empathizer with a common touch. More likely in these visits, he will fall back on an impulse to cheerlead and offer reassurance and strength.

"We will get through this, we will come out stronger and believe me, we will be bigger, better, stronger than ever before," he said Monday.

Trump's first hand-picked questioner at the press conference was Todd Gillman of The Dallas Morning News, virtually guaranteeing an inquiry about Harvey.

The president deflected any notion that his feud with Capitol Hill leaders would hamper any long-term recovery from the storm, predicting "rapid action" from Congress on relief funding. He also said his looming threat to embrace a government shutdown "has nothing to do" with disaster funds. "I think this is separate," he said.

But it's unclear if Congress could appropriate such funds if the government closes in the face of lawmakers' looming need to fund the government itself . Trump suggested last week in Phoenix that he may allow the government to shut down if Congress doesn't provide funding for his promised wall along the Mexican border.

He reiterated Monday that Mexico eventually would fund the wall, even though that nation's leadership has repeatedly contested the notion it would be providing such payments.

Even in the midst of calamity, Trump was not willing to rule out a showdown over one of his most consistent campaign promises.