Trump suggests FEMA's future is in doubt: 'It gets in the way'

[LetMyPeopleVote]

The new president doesn’t appear interested in overhauling or reforming FEMA, only in eliminating the agency altogether.
https://bsky.app/profile/stevebenen.com/post/3lggbq2bvak2a

Link to tweet

https://www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddow-show/maddowblog/trump-suggests-femas-future-doubt-gets-way-rcna188923

No one was especially surprised when Donald Trump gave his first post-inaugural interview to Fox News’ Sean Hannity, since the two are longtime political partners. What did raise some eyebrows, however, were the parts of the interview related to federal disaster aid. The Washington Post reported:

President Donald Trump threatened to withhold federal aid from California as it works to recover from devastating wildfires, recycling several baseless claims and attacks against California’s Democratic leaders during his first sit-down interview since his inauguration. ‘I don’t think we should give California anything until they let water flow down,’ he told Sean Hannity during a Fox News interview that aired Wednesday night.

As the president really ought to understand by now, his comments didn’t make substantive sense. What’s more, he was presenting a threat without precedent in the American tradition: The federal government has never told an American community devastated by a natural disaster that its disaster relief funding would be conditional.

But that was not the only relevant exchange related to federal responses to disasters in the interview. USA Today took note of the Republican’s related comments about the Federal Emergency Management Agency, better known as FEMA.

‘FEMA is a whole ‘nother discussion, because all it does is complicate everything. FEMA has not done their job for the last four years,’ he said. ‘But unless you have certain types of leadership, it’s really, it gets in the way. And FEMA is going to be a whole big discussion very shortly, because I’d rather see the states take care of their own problems.’

In fact, the new president suggested that if a state suffers in the wake of a tornado, he envisions a model in which the federal government doesn’t respond much at all. “FEMA is getting in the way of everything,” Trump added.
https://bsky.app/profile/did:plc:4llrhdclvdlmmynkwsmg5tdc/post/3lgeslfcv3v2r?ref_src=embed&ref_url=https%253A%252F%252Fiframe.nbcnews.com%252FpE4xlrW

Link to tweet

......But if the president is serious about states “taking care of their own problems” in the wake of devastating natural disasters, it will create a new test for Republican officials. Are they prepared to go along with the elimination of FEMA? Even in red states like Florida, Texas and Louisiana, which tend to get hit by deadly hurricanes?

What’s more, it's worth appreciating where this idea comes from. An Axios report noted, Project 2025 suggests “reforming FEMA emergency spending to shift the majority of preparedness and response costs to states and localities instead of the federal government.”

Evidently, Trump is inclined to agree

[Irish_Dem]

1. The federal government, constitution, democracy, laws, all get in Trump's way.

[Solly Mack]

2. ...

[at140]

3. Trump can you think straight?

How can California afford to help home owners who have lost hundreds of Billions worth of property destroyed by natural fires?

[Keepthesoulalive]

5. He doesn't care

Perhaps being the vindictive sob he is, he wants them to suffer.

[bdamomma]

7. He wants

everyone to suffer, because he has deep mental issues. Listen to his niece Dr. Mary Trump, Psychologist she knows. I'm beginning to think he is the anti-christ.

Bishop Budde looked at him directly, his cold eyes fille with anger, I hope all that anger does him in.

[quakerboy]

11. thats the cause not the flaw

The interesting part will be what happens if he does shut it down, then the next set of hurricanes hit.

California is surely much better equipped to self handle fires and recovery than quite a few other disaster prone areas.

[Johonny]

4. Who voted for this dipshit

Every time he is interviewed he spouts stupid shit. Who looked at this sad saggy man and thought there's a guy up to the task.

He can't run the executive branch.

[bdamomma]

6. He

Gets in the wayTSF

All this, is to screw states for example California, and he's screwing his supporters states too. Or should I say all states.

He is not interested in anything but $$$$$ and his sick power. Evil never wins.

[nini]

9. Lots of his buddies will get the job with no accountability

I'm sure it will work out fine

[LetMyPeopleVote]

10. Jeffries draws red line on debt-for-aid deal: 'Nonstarter'

TFG is attacking FEMA because TFG wants to cram down a debt ceiling increase in exchange for aid to California. Minority Leader Jeffries has said NO to this plan

Link to tweet

https://www.politico.com/live-updates/2025/01/23/congress/dems-fire-aid-debt-limit-00200221

Top House Democrats are pouring cold water on a Republican proposal to trade a debt limit increase for California wildfire aid, with House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries telling reporters it was a “nonstarter.”

He did not address whether Democrats would be willing to parlay on a more expansive deal that would include government funding ahead of a March 14 deadline, as some Republicans are starting to discuss. But he did set some red lines for those potential talks.

“What we are not willing to do is to enable extreme MAGA Republicans to have a blank check so they can enact massive tax breaks for billionaires and wealthy corporations and make working class Americans pay for it,” Jeffries told reporters Thursday morning. "The ball is in the Republicans' court right now."

They’re still waiting for a formal offer from Republicans — or even a phone call.

“The Republicans have not opened up any lines of communications with us,” he said. “It's not hard to find me. They know where I'm at. They know my number. I haven't received a single call about a single one of these issues."

Coming out of a leadership meeting Thursday morning, other Democrats signaled they were still opposed to conditioning aid to rebuild after devastating wildfires in California.

[videohead5]

12. Congress will never vote

To get rid of FEMA. Some Republicans are already getting cold feet about cutting the ACA and other safety net programs.

[LastDemocratInSC]

13. Never tear down a fence or fill in a drainage ditch or eliminate a federal agency

unless you are certain the conditions that caused the thing to be created no longer exist. This is like the decision a few years ago where the Supreme Court stated that racism has been eliminated (Shelby v Alabama?) and struck down the pre-clearance requirement for changes in election laws and apportionment. The original reason for the pre-clearance requirement (systemic racism) still existed at the time and still does today.

The original justification for FEMA was a series of environmental problems that were not handled well due to a lack of coordination between agencies.

Also, many of the smaller states may not have enough money in the bank to prevent or recover from an environmental emergency.

[GreenWave]

14. In the way until mierda de lago gets hit.

[Wounded Bear]

15. It gets in the way of he and his cronies and their grifting the victims...nt

[LetMyPeopleVote]

16. Donald Trump says he wants the states to handle their own natural disasters instead of FEMA.

Who is surprised by this?

Link to tweet

[Initech]

17. No, Trump and his stupid conspiracy theory goons are the ones getting in the way.

Don't blame FEMA - blame Sean Hannity, Charlie Kirk, Tucker Carlson, and Alex Jones instead.

[LetMyPeopleVote]

18. TFG (aka The Felony Guy) wants to abolish FEMA