The acting head of the Federal Emergency Management Agency was dismissed from his post after testifying before Congress that eliminating FEMA would not serve the American people.
Cameron Hamilton was called to Department of Homeland Security headquarters in Washington, D.C., where he was fired by Deputy Homeland Security Secretary Troy Edgar and Corey Lewandowski, a senior adviser to President Donald Trump, according to Politico. The dismissal occurred one day after Hamilton testified before a House Appropriations subcommittee.
The Congressional Testimony
During Wednesday’s hearing, Hamilton stated, “I do not believe it is in the best interests of the American people to eliminate the Federal Emergency Management Agency.” His remarks appeared to contradict recent statements by Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem regarding Trump’s consideration of dismantling FEMA and redirecting its funding to state-level emergency management.
FEMA’s press office confirmed Hamilton’s departure and announced that David Richardson, the assistant secretary for the Department of Homeland Security’s Countering Weapons of Mass Destruction Office, would assume the role of Senior Official Performing the duties of the FEMA Administrator.
Trump Administration’s FEMA Overhaul
President Trump has signaled his intent to fundamentally reform or eliminate FEMA, describing the agency as “not good” during a visit to North Carolina last week. The administration is also examining how FEMA allocated federal resources, with reports indicating the agency sent substantial funds to house migrants in New York City hotels.
The Department of Homeland Security fired four FEMA employees for what officials called an “egressive” payment to house migrants in New York City hotels. Elon Musk posted on social media that the agency had sent “$59M LAST WEEK to luxury hotels” for this purpose.
Future Direction
Trump pledged to work with state officials on disaster response and recovery efforts, arguing that states could manage these responsibilities more efficiently and cost-effectively than the federal agency. “I’d like to see the states take care of disasters, let the state take care of the tornadoes and the hurricanes and all of the other things that happen,” Trump said. “And I think you’re going to find it a lot less expensive.”
This story has been updated. CNN’s government affairs team contributed to this report.
