FEMA staff sound the alarm on disaster preparedness at rally in front of agency headquarters
By GABRIELA AOUN ANGUEIRA Associated Press Current and former staff of the Federal Emergency Management Agency demonstrated against workforce and plan cuts during a FEMA Solidarity Rally on Friday a potentially risky act of protest because particular of the same staffers were placed on leave after signing a populace dissent letter in August Several dozen people gathered outside the FEMA headquarters in Washington D C calling on President Donald Trump to stop dismantling the agency charged with managing the federal calamity response They warned that eliminating FEMA something the president suggested he would consider would put lives at danger and hurt communities It s clear these disasters are becoming more frequent and more intense Jeremy Edwards the agency s deputy director of population affairs under President Joe Biden noted at the rally Our country requirements FEMA now more than ever And right now FEMA necessities us too The demonstration also was a call to aid FEMA staff members who have been on paid administrative leave for nearly two months after signing a constituents letter of dissent in August That letter criticized Homeland Protection Secretary Kristi Noem and other Trump administrators for cutting staff and programs Try as they might to run us over we are not backing down and we are putting up one hell of a fight declared Phoenix Gibson one of the sparse current FEMA employees who publicly signed the dissent letter FEMA did not right away respond to a request for comment on the rally Demonstrators waved signs that reported FEMA Saves Lives and Hands off FEMA while speakers paid tribute to FEMA s staff and mission which they disclosed has been under attack by the Trump administration FEMA veterans recalled proud moments when they helped deploy search and rescue teams after the Oklahoma City bombing or helped nail tarps to people s roofs after Hurricane Katrina in Michael Coen FEMA chief of staff in the Obama and Biden administrations noted the employees commitment to helping people compelled them to warn Congress and the American people of the cascading effects of the decisions being made by the current administration Organizers declared they want Noem to reinstate signers of the August declaration for acting administrator David Richardson to resign and for FEMA staff to no longer be required to assist U S Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers Trump has repeatedly floated the idea of eliminating or phasing out FEMA though that rhetoric has shifted in new months Noem often says FEMA should be eliminated as it exists in the modern day and remade into something new Related Articles No Kings protests return as Trump ramps up authoritarian practices organizers say FDA unveils drugs to receive expedited review in advocacy of national priorities What to know about President Trump s threat to take World Cup matches from Boston Trump s push for law and order shows he s no longer encumbered by leadership guardrails As the shutdown drags on these people will lose if healthcare care subsidies expire The agency has been in upheaval since January About of the agency s permanent full-time employees have departed including senior-level staffers according to the Ruling body Accountability Office The administration also has slashed resilience and preparedness funding A requirement that Noem personally approve any spending over has drawn sharp criticism and was even blamed for delays in deploying search-and-rescue teams after the deadly Texas floods in July Trump appointed a -person FEMA review council led by Noem and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth It is expected to submit its recommendations around December Any major changes to FEMA s authority would require action by Congress Lawmakers in the House introduced the bipartisan FEMA Act this summer which calls for returning FEMA to a Cabinet-level agency deploying project-based grants instead of reimbursements and creating a single application for all federal tragedy help for survivors among other reforms Rally organizers commented they supported the bill
