‘Chilling’: Republican Senators Say FEMA Has Fallen ‘Well Short’ Of Its Mission

More than a dozen Republican senators said that FEMA was falling short of its mission to help all Americans after a government employee ordered relief workers in Florida to skip the homes of people showing support for Donald Trump. 

Nineteen Republican senators sent a letter to FEMA Administrator Deanne Criswell on Tuesday demanding answers on instructions from fired FEMA supervisor Marn’i Washington for relief workers in Lake Placid to “avoid homes advertising Trump.” The letter was sent the same day Criswell spent more than five hours testifying to House lawmakers about the guidance, which The Daily Wire first reported. 

“For a FEMA employee to withhold aid or support from a household due to political affiliation is unacceptable and frankly reprehensible,” the senators, led by Sen. Thom Tillis and Ted Budd of North Carolina, wrote. “While there are many dedicated public servants who are working around the clock to help disaster survivors at their most vulnerable point, it is clear that FEMA has fallen well short of its core mission to provide disaster relief to all Americans impacted by a natural disaster.”

Others who signed on included Mike Braun (IN), Roger Marshall (KS), John Cornyn (TX), Joni K. Ernst (IA), John Kennedy (LA), Bill Hagerty (TN), James Risch (ID), James Lankford (OK), Shelley Moore Capito (WV), Dan Sullivan (AK), Bill Cassidy (LA), Pete Ricketts (NE), Tim Scott (SC), Rick Scott (FL), John Boozman (AR), Susan Collins (AK), John Hoeven (ND).

The senators asked Criswell to provide all communications between Washington and her Disaster Survivor Assistance team related to the guidance. Whistleblowers told The Daily Wire that at least 20 homes were skipped because of the instructions. FEMA workers have since visited those homes and been given the opportunity to register for assistance, Criswell testified Tuesday. 

Criswell was asked to respond to claims made by Washington that FEMA has a widespread policy of avoiding “politically hostile” homes. 

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“The idea that citizens, whose tax dollars fund FEMA’s Disaster Relief Fund (DRF) and pay FEMA officials’ salaries, may be purposely excluded from vitally needed aid is chilling and further erodes many people’s already tenuous trust in this administration,” the letter said. 

They asked her to provide the total number of houses FEMA has skipped across all declared disaster zones and the listed reason for bypassing the homes. 

Sens. Katie Britt (AL), Josh Hawley (MO), Rand Paul (KY), Chuck Grassley (IA), and Marsha Blackburn (TN) have individually sent letters over the guidance and demanding compliance with the investigations that have been launched. 

Criswell testified Tuesday that she doesn’t believe a culture of avoidance exists within the agency and that there was no policy in place that would lead relief workers to proactively skip homes. She said the Inspector General would launch an independent investigation into the guidance, including whether there had been avoidance in North and South Carolina.