Several Republican members of Congress have called for an immediate investigation into a recently fired Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) staffer who advised relief team members to bypass homes that had signs showing support for then-Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump.
On Saturday FEMA administrator Deanne Criswell confirmed that a FEMA employee advised “her survivor assistance team to not go to homes with yard signs supporting President-elect Trump,” and has since been “terminated,” in a post on on X, formerly Twitter. The confirmation comes as reports of the FEMA staffer have circulated online in recent days.
Recently, a FEMA employee departed from these values to advise her survivor assistance team to not go to homes with yard signs supporting President-elect Trump. This is a clear violation of FEMA’s core values & principles to help people regardless of their political affiliation.
— Deanne Criswell (@FEMA_Deanne) November 9, 2024
Criswell called the actions “reprehensible,” and a “clear violation of FEMA’s core values & principles to help people regardless of their political affiliation.”
She noted that the matter has been referred to the Office of Special Counsel. Her post did not note in relation to which Hurricane, although ABC News and The New York Times cited it was in reference to Hurricane Milton in Florida, which came just days after the devastating Hurricane Helene.
Win McNamee/Getty Images
Newsweek has reached out to Trump’s campaign, FEMA and the Office of Special Counsel for comment via email on Saturday evening.
A handful of Republicans have posted on social media calling for an investigation into the situation and calling out the political discrimination.
Maine Senator Susan Collins wrote in an X post, “The Inspector General must immediately conduct a full investigation, and all those responsible for playing politics with vulnerable people’s lives and homes should be held accountable.”
Yesterday, ahead of Criswell’s post confirming the incident, Representative Matt Gaetz said the FEMA staffers actions are “unconscionable discrimination, and Congress MUST INVESTIGATE!”
Senator Mike Lee of Utah called the action “reprehensible” on X, adding that “This sort of political discrimination by public servants tasked with helping Americans in distress is abhorrent.”
At the state level, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis wrote yesterday, “At my direction, the Division of Emergency Management is launching an investigation into the federal government’s targeted discrimination of Floridians who support Donald Trump.” He added, “New leadership is on the way in DC, and I’m optimistic that these partisan bureaucrats will be fired.”
Representative Lauren Boebert of Colorado wrote that “accountability must come,” calling the government staffer’s actions “one of the most egregious things I’ve ever seen.”
On Tuesday, Trump won the presidential election, securing both the popular vote and the Electoral College majority. The president-elect won his state of residence, Florida, which was hit by Milton in early-October.
An Elon University poll ahead of the presidential election, found that Hurricane Helene, which ravaged through several states, including Florida, Georgia, South Carolina, North Carolina, Virginia, and Tennessee, killing more than 227 people, “galvanized the plans of about a fifth of North Carolina’s voters to cast ballots this year.”
The poll of 800 registered North Carolina voters conducted between October 10 and 17, found “sharp partisan differences” on respondents view of the government’s response to Helene.
When asked how to describe the federal and state agencies’ response to Helene in the state, 68 percent of Democrats said they were doing at least a good job, while only 24 percent of Republicans agreed. On the other hand 57 percent of Republicans said the agencies were doing a poor job, compared to 12 percent of Democrats feeling that way. The poll has a margin of error of plus or minus 3.99 percentage points.
Trump won in North Carolina, with just over 51 percent of the state’s voters casting their ballots to support him.
Prior to the anti-Trump staffer report, the Biden-Harris administration received criticism from Republicans over concerns about FEMA’s cash flow during Hurricane Helene after Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas’ commented on the agency’s financial difficulties during hurricane season.
The agency also faced allegations and misinformation surrounding hurricane relief efforts and efficacy, prompting FEMA to publicly debunk rumors and address myths on its website.
