TL/DR –
Following the devastating Texas floods, the New York Times reported thousands of calls to the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) went unanswered. Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem reportedly implemented a policy requiring her signature on any contract over $100,000, causing a halt in services and the firing of hundreds of contractors. The Trump administration, including Noem, has expressed intentions to reform or eliminate FEMA, with Noem’s attempts to cut costs causing delays in rescue operations and a lack of readiness for future disasters.
Responding to a New York Times report indicating that thousands of calls to the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) following the disastrous Texas floods went unattended, Homeland Security Sec. Kristi Noem claims fake news.
Noem dismissed the Times’s report, insisting that the response time was swift. The Times, however, revealed that FEMA only responded to a fraction of the calls on the days following the storm due to Noem’s new policy requiring her signature on contracts exceeding $100,000.
Noem’s policy caused hundreds of contractors to lose their jobs, leading to fewer answered calls. Despite NBC’s Kristen Welker presenting these figures, Noem disputed their accuracy, suggesting that the information was politically motivated.
Later, Noem denied that her contract signature caused delays. However, the aftermath of the Texas floods – which claimed at least 129 lives and left over 160 people missing – saw operations being delayed due to increased flooding threats.
Reports from CNN suggested that Noem’s cost-cutting measures delayed rescue crews. She didn’t authorize Urban Search and Rescue teams until three days post the floods, and FEMA’s response to Texas’s request for aerial images was delayed until she approved the contract.
Past statements by Trump and Noem indicate their intention to revamp or even dismantle FEMA. Trump once labeled FEMA as “not a very successful experiment,” whilst Noem in March expressed intentions to “eliminate FEMA.”
Their administration has resulted in hundreds of FEMA employees being laid off. Noem previously stated that Trump believed FEMA should be “eliminated” and that states should handle disasters with federal support. She recently reiterated that FEMA “needs to be redeployed in a new way.”
An internal FEMA review in mid-May highlighted that the agency was unprepared for the hurricane season, citing issues like staffing limits and lack of state coordination.
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