We’re seeing horrifying weather events this past year and also recently. The most recent has killed 37 people, spawned tornadoes, dust storms, etc. With the current administration getting rid of FEMA, it would seem that those states, which are mostly red, are up Shit Creek regarding assistance from the feds. Any signs of this happening?
Maybe too early to know.
None of this starts until the affected states’ governors formally request assistance; AFAICT, this hasn’t happened yet.
It may already be affecting Blue states:
A month after parts of Southwest Virginia were decimated by flooding following days of torrential rain, there’s still no word about requests for an expedited major disaster declaration from President Donald Trump.
Neither U.S. Sen. Mark Warner nor Sen. Tim Kaine, both Democrats, had any information about the requests, they said separately while speaking to reporters Thursday.
On the other hand response may simply be slow [although both Virginia and West Virginia had the same floods, submitted requests at the same time–and Red West Virginia has gotten assistance].
Missouri’s governor has not yet requested Federal assistance, despite this weekend’s storm causing substantial damage in 27 counties resulting in 12 confirmed deaths. Maybe our Republican governor has decided to go it alone.
I’ll be curious to see how this all plays out. One of his big points on the campaign stump was that states should take care of their own problems and that FEMA is a disaster in its own right.
He and our State House are too busy with trying to destroy the will of the voters by asking the Supreme Court to negate the minimum wage law and abortion amendment, so nah, he will let the poor in SEMO and other rural places become angry and desperate and use that to his advantage. Also, he has to get Bad Ole St Louis City and Kansas City in line, because, ya know, they vote blue and he likes to meddle in their affairs to teach them a lesson. (I live in suburb of St Louis). Oh, I know it isn’t exactly the governor doing this stuff, but he has to lead the way and tell his AG and the Republican saturated State House what he wants.
“you’re doing a heckuva job, muskie”
I can’t recall any federal assistance given to California for the recent Altadena and Pacific Palisades fires. Is Trump and company trying to get revenge for not getting
California’s vote in the last election? Or perhaps DOGE is holding up the funding?
Trump officials working to strip FEMA’s role in disaster recovery by Oct. 1
Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi L. Noem and other Trump administration officials expressed support in meetings this week for dramatically diminishing the role of the Federal Emergency Management Agency, with the aim of all but eliminating the embattled agency’s role in disaster recovery by Oct. 1, according to four people familiar with the talks.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/climate-environment/2025/03/26/fema-disaster-recovery/
Nonpaywalled repost:
Helping people is for suckers and losers.