Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Kristi Noem said Sunday that the Trump administration is trying to remake the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) rather than dismantle it.
“I think [President Donald Trump] recognizes that FEMA should not exist the way that it always has been. It needs to be redeployed in a new way, and that’s what we did during this response,” Noem told NBC News’ “Meet the Press,” responding to questions about the federal response to deadly flooding in central Texas.
“It’s not just FEMA that can respond in these situations. The federal government has all kinds of assets, and we deployed them,” Noem said, pointing to the Coast Guard and U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) helping with disaster response. Both groups routinely respond to disasters.
Earlier on in his administration, Trump suggested in an interview that he would consider eliminating or significantly overhauling FEMA, which is the main agency that responds to weather-related disasters such as hurricanes and tornadoes. In January, he ordered the creation of a review council for FEMA, citing concerns of political bias in the wake of how it handled Hurricane Helene’s aftermath last year.
Last month, Trump told reporters that the administration wants to “wean off FEMA” and signaled that he wants states to respond to their own natural disasters. He made similar comments in January in explaining why he wants FEMA dismantled.
“A governor should be able to handle it, and frankly, if they can’t handle it, the aftermath, then maybe they shouldn’t be governor,” Trump said at the time.
Hellbound and Down 