President Donald Trump has rolled out a FEMA taskforce to fix the emergency system, which he said was “terribly broken.”
Trump’s new Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) review council will be tasked with reforming the emergency system and returning the power to deal with emergencies to the state-level.
The president and his allies have been strongly critical of FEMA’s failure to handle recent natural disasters, prompting Trump to sign another executive order back in January that called for major reform at FEMA. He has even hinted at eliminating the agency altogether, and instead giving that power back to the states to handle their own emergencies with federal funding.
Trump is now announcing a FEMA Review Council that will help achieve these goals, writing in a post on Truth Social: “I am proud to announce the formation of the FEMA Review Council, comprised of Top Experts in their fields, who are Highly Respected by their peers. I know that the new Members will work hard to fix a terribly broken System, and return power to State Emergency Managers, who will help, MAKE AMERICA SAFE AGAIN. Congratulations to all!”
Trump noted in the executive order that the FEMA Review Council will be tasked with assessing “the existing ability of FEMA to capably and impartially address disasters occurring within the United States and shall advise the President on all recommended changes related to FEMA to best serve the national interest.”
The order also calls on the taskforce to develop proposals on how to improve and reform FEMA, scrutinize states and other entities effected by natural disasters, and come up with a comprehensive report on FEMA and how the United States handled disaster relief before the agency was created.
Trump also highlighted a concerning recent scandal from FEMA in his executive order, pointing to the FEMA supervisor in Florida who had ordered her subordinates to skip the homes of anyone with Trump signs or flags while responding in the aftermath of Hurricane Milton.
“There are serious concerns of political bias in FEMA,” the president wrote in the executive order. “Indeed, at least one former FEMA responder has stated that FEMA managers directed her to avoid homes of individuals supporting the campaign of Donald J. Trump for President.”
This taskforce will include several Trump administration officials and other prominent Republicans, such as Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem, Texas Gov. Greg Abbott, Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin, former Mississippi Gov. Phil Bryant, Republican National Committee (RNC) Chair Michael Whatley, and Tampa Mayor Jane Castor.
“As a proud son of Western North Carolina, I have seen first-hand the incredible work of the Trump Administration to help the region recover from Hurricane Helene and look forward to working with these great leaders to bring much-needed reforms to federal emergency response across the country,” Whatley responded to the news in a post on X.
Posts
