President Donald Trump on Wednesday blasted FEMA’s handling of natural disasters during the Biden administration, saying the agency was “getting in the way of everything.”
Trump made the comments during an interview with Fox News’s Sean Hannity, suggesting that states should take control of their own disaster response while the federal government could help out with funding. In the same interview, Trump said he plans to visit North Carolina on Friday before heading to California to see the ongoing fire destruction.
“FEMA has not done their job for the last four years. You know, I had FEMA working really well. We had hurricanes in Florida. We had Alabama tornadoes,” Trump said. “But unless you have certain types of leadership, it’s really, it gets in the way. And FEMA is going to be a whole big discussion very shortly, because I’d rather see the states take care of their own problems.”
PRESIDENT TRUMP: FEMA is getting in the way of everything and the Democrats actually used FEMA not to help North Carolina. On Friday, I’m stopping in North Carolina… because those people were treated very badly. We’re going to get that thing straightened out… and then I’m… pic.twitter.com/TxTPNfGKI2
— Trump War Room (@TrumpWarRoom) January 23, 2025
As an example, Trump said that Oklahoma should lead the recovery if they get hit by a tornado.
“I love Oklahoma, but you know what? If they get hit with a tornado or something, let Oklahoma fix it,” he said. “And then the federal government can help them out with the money. FEMA is getting in the way of everything, and the Democrats actually use FEMA not to help North Carolina.”
FEMA has faced scrutiny over its response to devastating flood damage caused by Hurricane Helene in September, with some communities in rural North Carolina and Tennessee saying the agency slow-walked its relief efforts. One whistleblower told Republicans on the House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure that FEMA had skipped entire neighborhoods in North Carolina if there were three or more signs showing support for Trump or other conservatives.
That complaint was made after The Daily Wire revealed that a FEMA supervisor in Florida ordered relief works to “avoid homes advertising Trump.”
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“The Democrats don’t care about North Carolina. What they’ve done with FEMA is so bad. FEMA is a whole ‘nother discussion, because all it does is complicate everything,” Trump said.
Deanne Criswell, President Joe Biden’s FEMA chief, resigned on Monday. Former Navy SEAL Cameron Hamilton is currently the agency’s acting administrator.
Trump said North Carolinians “were treated very badly by Democrats.”
“We’re going to get that thing straightened out because they’re still suffering from a hurricane from months ago,” he said.
From North Carolina, Trump will travel to Los Angeles County, California, where more than two dozen people have died after fires fueled by torrential winds had the nation’s most populous county on edge. Trump has accused top California Democrats like Governor Gavin Newsom of mishandling the fires.
