A.G. Gancarski
A Congressman who would like to be the next Florida Governor is agitating for fixes to the Federal Emergency Management Administration (FEMA).
During a Wednesday appearance on the Fox Business Network, Rep. Byron Donalds echoed calls from Gov. Ron DeSantis for reform to the agency, which has developed a reputation for politicized and delayed responses to natural disasters in Florida and beyond.
“We know that FEMA was discriminating against Donald Trump supporters, but we also know that FEMA is a very bureaucratic agency. It’s not been responsive to the needs of the American people at a time of crisis. They typically are slow to respond. They do a bunch of bureaucratic checks. They’re not doing reimbursements in a timely fashion,” Donalds said.
FEMA fired three supervisors connected to a political discrimination scandal following Hurricane Milton.
The terminations followed an investigation showing FEMA workers providing ground support to hurricane victims skipped past 20 homes because they had Trump signs displayed.
The three recent firings were in addition to FEMA supervisor Marn’i Washington, who was let go months prior shortly after the incidents were first reported.
While FEMA’s Office of Professional Responsibility “found no evidence that (discrimination against Trump supporters in Florida) was a systemic problem, nor that it was directed by agency or field leadership,” Donalds and other Republicans have argued differently. Attorney General and current Sen. Ashley Moody sued the agency for alleged discrimination in 2024.
Beyond politicized response, Donalds contends that the glacial pace of action has left constituents of his in the lurch.
“I still have local governments in my district from Hurricane Ian three years ago still waiting for FEMA reimbursements,” Donalds said. “Then when they make mistakes, they try to come in a lot later, apologize and act like nothing ever happened. It’s wrong, so FEMA must be reformed.”
Donalds alluded to a proposal favored by the current Governor, who says the state doesn’t “need” FEMA and could use federal money to manage its own response to natural disasters such as hurricanes.
“The President and his team (are) doing the right thing, actually having a council look at the ways to bring FEMA into the future, redesign the agency totally. I know people are talking about block granting FEMA to the states, letting governors have direct command and control of those dollars to marry them with state dollars to get people back on their feet, but what is happening today with FEMA cannot be allowed to continue.”
Donalds spotlighted issues from around the country, claiming FEMA has not been accountable.
“Ask the people in Western North Carolina. ask the people still trying to recover from Helene and Milton last year. They have done a bad job. They’re not going to report on themselves,” Donalds said. “They just want to poke holes in what we’re trying to do, and that is (to) reform FEMA or whatever it’s going to be called into the future, make it responsive so that when disaster strikes, communities in our country, there is the federal element that is quickly there to help people get back on their feet. I can talk about Maui. I can talk about East Palestine, Ohio. The list is long. It has been a failure.”
10 comments
Christine Smith
May 8, 2025 at 6:19 am
What about the US Small Business Administration (SBA) who loans federal dollars to the disaster survivors? Is that being looked into to be reformed also? They work side by side with FEMA at the Disaster Recovery Centers. Someone needs to look into their practices and procedures to the American people. Thanks!
Earl Pitts American
May 8, 2025 at 6:31 am
Thank you, Beautiful Christy,
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Thank you Beautiful Christy, Earl’s Biggest Besty,
Earl Pitts American
MH/Duuuval
May 10, 2025 at 2:34 pm
SBA ran out of money due to high number of natural crises last year and the MAGAs haven’t gotten around to refilling its coffers — it they don’t try to kill it like FEMA.
Earl Pitts American
May 8, 2025 at 6:25 am
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AND THAT’S “THE REST OF THE STORY”:
Earl Pitts American
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PeterH
May 8, 2025 at 8:38 am
After recent devastation from flooding in Arkansas, Trump denied FEMA funding AND gutted staffing . This should be a wake up call to Florida and any other State that FEMA may not be a guarantee of any relief.
MH/Duuuval
May 9, 2025 at 7:23 pm
Nor will hard-hit NC see any more federal funds — unless Trump changes his mind.
George
May 8, 2025 at 9:00 am
The LAST thing we should do is put discretionary cash in DeSantis’ hands. Either DeSantis.
MH/Duuuval
May 9, 2025 at 7:27 pm
Dee continues to send back money to the federal government. Or, so Dee claims. He has an unusual take on federal funds, apparently influenced by the DOGE made-up discoveries of fraud, waste, and abuse. He has given back money never sent or already spent.
MarvinM
May 8, 2025 at 11:02 am
So, my first reaction to reading this was “what are your plans and ideas to fix it?”
Then I read elsewhere here on FP fellow U.S. Rep. from Florida Jared Moskowitz is filing a bill with such concrete ideas, and apparently Byron Donalds has signed on to it.
Why wasn’t that mentioned here?
Now in general I am not a fan of block grants which are too often offered up as overly simple solutions to very complex problems. They are used as a way to try to make people think there is an alternative and everything with funding to them will be “just fine”. That’s often not the case.
However, this seems like the block grants are basically in two targeted areas and are requested on a state-by-state basis in response to emergencies experienced by that state.
It might work. Worth looking at.
But Donalds seems to be conflicted by signing on to this bill, while at the same time seeming to be in support of a plan “favored by the current Governor, who says the state doesn’t ‘need’ FEMA and could use federal money to manage its own response to natural disasters such as hurricanes.”
Where he really stands on this matters if he wants to be the governor.
MH/Duuuval
May 9, 2025 at 7:32 pm
Block grants were pioneered by Richard Nixon and on the surface seemed like a good idea. However, with the Dee-MAGA mentality, block grants will be used to justify tax breaks for donors and will not be spent proportionality. Also, Trump proposes to skim off 20 percent of the monies before sending them to the states. (Still looking for cuts to balance off his second yuge tax cut for his fellow kleptocrats.)
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