DHS Inspector General Confirms FEMA Probe, Says Aid Should Not Be Politically Based
Homeland Security Inspector General Joseph Cuffari confirmed Monday that his office was investigating FEMA over concerns that disaster relief was withheld from Trump supporters, according to a letter shared with The Daily Wire.
Cuffari confirmed the investigation in a letter to House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure Chair Sam Graves (R-MO) and Rep. Scott Perry (R-PA), who requested on December 3 a probe into whether FEMA supervisor Marn’i Washington’s instructions to “avoid homes advertising Trump” in Lake Placid, Florida, may have been part of a broader agency policy. Washington was fired after The Daily Wire first reported that at least 20 homes were skipped to her directive.
“I share your sentiments that any disaster funding provided by Congress must be made available to all affected and that it cannot be conditioned or delayed based on political views,” Cuffari wrote on Monday.
“On December 17, 2024, my office initiated an audit of FEMA’s Assessment of Community Trends,” he added. “The objective is to determine how well FEMA followed its policies and procedures when addressing safety concerns and determining community trends that impact disaster survivor assistance in response to Hurricanes Helene and Milton.”
Washington claimed that her directive to skip Trump homes was based on FEMA’s “community trends” policies.
In their December 3 letter, Graves and Perry wrote that they were aware of reports out of North Carolina “of FEMA employees skipping any home that displayed a ‘Make America Great Again,’ ‘Drain the Swamp,’ ‘Don’t Tread on Me’ or Trump campaign sign. If the FEMA field team encountered three or more of these signs, the field team could abandon the entire neighborhood without notifying hurricane victims of assistance available to them.”
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Cuffari said that he was thankful for the information provided by the Republican lawmakers and that he would be happy to schedule a briefing with them on the findings.
“We greatly appreciate the information you provided, as it aided our decision-making process. I will be glad to share the results of this audit, future reports on this topic, or any of our numerous projects, with you if you would like to schedule a briefing with me,” he wrote.
FEMA administrator Deanne Criswell said that the incident in Lake Placid was “isolated,” and confirmed last month that there are multiple ongoing federal investigations into potential discrimination by the agency.