FEMA official fired for diverting hurricane aid away from Trump supporters’ homes

On November 10, 2024By Pranco

LAKE PLACID, Fla. – A Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) official providing instructions Hurricane Milton care workers to leave home with Trump Boards have been removed from her role, a FEMA spokesperson told Fox News Florida Governor Ron DeSantis is investigating the federal agency over the controversy.

The FEMA official, who has not been named by the agency, ordered the recruitment of workers Lake Placid in Florida to avoid “homes that advertise Trump” as they considered which residents could qualify for federal aid, according to internal communications first obtained by the Daily Wire.

The Daily Wire reports that administration officials told the newspaper that at least 20 homes with Trump signs or flags were bypassed from late October through November because of the official’s “best practices” guidelines. The houses were skipped by the workers, who wrote messages such as: “Trump signs no entry by leadership,” in a government system, the newspaper said.

On Saturday, Deanne Criswell, FEMA’s employee misconduct administrator, confirmed to Fox News Digital that the employee had been fired. She called her actions “reprehensible” and a clear violation of FEMA’s core values and principles of helping people regardless of their political beliefs.

“We take seriously our mission to help everyone before, during and after disasters. This employee has been terminated and we have referred the matter to the Office of Special Counsel,” Criswell said. “I will continue to do everything I can to ensure this never happens again.”

A FEMA spokesperson told Fox News it is “deeply troubled” by the worker’s actions and says it is an “isolated incident.”

“FEMA helps all survivors, regardless of their political affiliation or beliefs,” the spokesperson said via a statement.

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“The employee who issued these guidelines had no authority or direction to tell teams to avoid these homes, and we are contacting those who may not have been reached as a result of this incident,” the spokesperson said. that the agency has assisted more than 365,000 households affected by both Hurricanes Helene and Milton in Florida and provided nearly $900 million in direct assistance to survivors.

“We are shocked that this has occurred and have therefore taken extreme measures to rectify this situation and ensured that the matter was addressed at all levels.

WASHINGTON DC, UNITED STATES – OCTOBER 09: Signage for the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) is seen outside the agency’s headquarters in Washington, DC on October 9, 2024. (Photo by Nathan Posner/Anadolu via Getty Images)

FEMA agents were ordered not to assist homes with Trump signs in Highlands County, a deep red area in south-central Florida that was hit by tornadoes, torrential rains and flooding as the Category 3 hurricane hit against The Sunshine State in October. President-elect Trump won almost 70% of the votes there on Tuesday.

DeSantis on Friday denounced the federal agency after learning about the official’s actions and announced that his administration will investigate FEMA into the incident.

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“The blatant weaponization of the government by partisan activists in the federal bureaucracy is yet another reason why the Biden-Harris administration is in its final days,” DeSantis wrote on X.

“At my direction, the Department of Emergency Management is launching an investigation into the federal government’s targeted discrimination against Florida residents who support Donald Trump. New leadership is on its way to DC, and I am optimistic that these partisan bureaucrats will be fired.”

The U.S. House Oversight Committee and Rep. James Comer, R-Ky., also took aim at the agency, specifically for not firing the official.

He said this comes despite the IRS trying to force whistleblower Gary Shapley out of that agency. Shapley, an IRS special agent, has filed claims of political influence in the Hunter Biden investigation with Congress, along with IRS investigator Joseph Ziegler.

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“FEMA did not fire this person… But the IRS tried to get IRS whistleblower Gary Shapley out for blowing the whistle! We must hold these unelected bureaucrats accountable,” Comer wrote on X.

“FEMA admits this happened, but does not say whether the bureaucrat responsible has been fired,” the House Oversight Committee wrote about to dismiss. This is why we need President Trump’s reforms to hold bureaucrats accountable.”

Donald Trump Jr., the son of the newly elected president, has also criticized the agency.

“This is outrageous, even for the Democrats in charge, and should be criminal,” Trump Jr. wrote. at X. “These people need to be expelled from FEMA, government and society! A full investigation is in order!”

Fox News’ Madison Scarpino contributed to this report.