OAN Staff Abril Elfi
10:50 AM – Saturday, November 9, 2024
A Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) official has been removed from her role after reportedly telling workers to skip the houses with Trump signs during Hurricane Milton relief.
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According to a report by the Daily Wire, A FEMA official, whose identity has not been disclosed by the agency, reportedly directed workers canvassing Lake Placid, Florida, to “avoid homes advertising Trump” while assessing residents for eligibility for federal aid.
The Daily Wire stated that the government employees informed the outlet that at least 20 homes displaying Trump signs or flags were skipped over between late October and early November due to the official’s “best practices” instructions.
Workers noted the exclusion in government systems, with messages like: “Trump signs no entry per leadership.”
A FEMA spokesperson told Fox News that it is “deeply disturbed” by the employee’s actions and says it is an “isolated incident.”
“FEMA helps all survivors regardless of their political preference or affiliation,” the spokesperson said via a statement. “While we believe this is an isolated incident, we have taken measures to remove the employee from their role and are investigating the matter to prevent this from happening ever again.”
It is currently unclear if the agent was fired from the agency altogether.
“The employee who issued this guidance had no authority and was given no direction to tell teams to avoid these homes and we are reaching out to the people who may have not been reached as a result of this incident,” the spokesperson said. “The agency has helped more than 365,000 households impacted by both Hurricanes Helene and Milton in Florida and provided nearly $900 million in direct assistance to survivors.”
“We are horrified that this took place and therefore have taken extreme actions to correct this situation and have ensured that the matter was addressed at all levels,” they said.
FEMA agents were reportedly instructed not to assist homes displaying Trump signs in Highlands County, a strongly conservative region in south-central Florida, which was severely impacted by tornadoes, heavy rain, and flooding after Hurricane Ian struck in October.
President-elect Trump had won nearly 70% of the vote in the area.
Governor Ron DeSantis (R-Fla.) criticized the federal agency on Friday after learning about the directive, and announced that his administration would launch an investigation into FEMA’s actions.
“The blatant weaponization of 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 Division of Emergency Management is launching an investigation into the federal government’s targeted discrimination of Floridians who support Donald Trump. New leadership is on the way to D.C., and I’m optimistic that these partisan bureaucrats will be fired.”
The U.S. House Oversight Committee, led by Rep. James Comer (R-Ky.), also criticized FEMA for failing to dismiss the official responsible.
Comer pointed out the contrast, noting that while FEMA has not taken action, the IRS has reportedly tried to force out whistleblower Gary Shapley. Shapley, an IRS supervisory special agent, along with IRS criminal investigator Joseph Ziegler, brought allegations of political interference in the Hunter Biden investigation to Congress.
“FEMA hasn’t fired this person… But the IRS has been trying to force 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 doesn’t say if the bureaucrat responsible has been fired,” the House Oversight Committee wrote on X. “Democrats relentlessly defend the rules that insulate unelected bureaucrats from accountability and make it nearly impossible to fire bad employees. This is why we need President Trump’s reforms to make bureaucrats accountable.”
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