FEMA chief grilled in Congress over anti-Trump bias in disaster aid
WASHINGTON - The head of the Federal Emergency Management Agency told lawmakers she s a full investigation of an employee who told subordinates not to go to homes of hurricane victims with Trump campaign signs in their yards.
Deanne Criswell was grilled Tuesday during a hearing on Capitol Hill about how the employee was fired over the incident.
Although it happened in Florida during the response to Hurricane Milton, it occurred during a time when FEMA employees were also working in the CSRA in response to Hurricane Helene.
Criswell said she’s encouraged the agency’s inspector general to review whether the employee was acting alone.
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Criswell said a critical function of the agency is to go door-to-door and meet with survivors to make them aware of federal resources available. The employee, she said, wrote to about 11 staffers under her supervision that they should “avoid homes advertising Trump.”
Criswell said her senior leadership team provided her with evidence and recommended that the employee be terminated. She concurred.
“I do not believe that this employee’s actions are indicative of any widespread cultural problems at FEMA,” Criswell said. Still, she said she would an independent investigation into the matter.
Criswell said the employee’s text message to workers resulted in 20 homes being skipped.
Criswell said evidence uncovered so far showed that the employee’s actions were an isolated incident.
But House Republicans at the hearing wanted to dig deeper after the employee said in multiple media appearances that she was following orders.
“She said it’s common practice? You said it’s reprehensible and isolated. Both statements can’t be true. So someone’s not giving us the facts. And I’m kind of trying to figure out who’s not telling the truth,” said Rep. Jim Jordan, R-Ohio.
Criswell said the incident was a clear violation of FEMA’s core values and encouraged the agency’s inspector general to review whether the former employee was acting alone.
“Why should we believe this is an isolated incident?” said Rep. James Comer, R-Ky., chairman of the House Oversight Committee, which hosted the hearing.
“Chairman, I understand your concern, and I share your concern because I want to ensure that the American people know that FEMA is there to all people, which is why we are conducting an investigation and why we have asked the IG to look into this further,” said Criswell.
Rep. Scott Perry, R-Pa., acknowledged that while the employee was quickly terminated, it was clear from an interview with that worker that she believed she was carrying out directions from the agency.
“It seems this particular worker believes she is being treated like the scapegoat, and if that is the case, more people at FEMA must be held able,” said Perry, who chairs the that held Tuesday’s hearing.
Criswell said she is committed to ensuring “nothing like this ever happens again.” In the meantime, a different team was sent into the field to all the homes that had been skipped over at the employee’s direction.
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