In a staggering admission that is sending shockwaves through social media, Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Sec. Alejandro N. Mayorkas admitted that the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) does not have enough funding to last through the remainder of the 2024 hurricane season.
The announcement comes as FEMA is conducting search-and rescue-operations in remote sections of Appalachia six days after Hurricane Helene made landfall in Florida and moved north, causing widespread destruction and the deaths of at least 183 people across six states. President Biden has in recent days approved major-disaster declarations for the states affected by the storm.“We are meeting the immediate needs with the money that we have,” Mr. Mayorkas told reporters on Wednesday while en route to meet with officials in South Carolina. “We are expecting another hurricane hitting — we do not have the funds, FEMA does not have the funds, to make it through the season.”
The proposal to grant the agency more money may work, but it will require members of Congress to return to Washington, D.C., and provide the necessary legislative approval.
Congress recently replenished a key source of FEMA’s response efforts, providing $20 billion for the agency’s disaster relief fund as part of a short-term government spending bill to fund the government through Dec. 20. The bill also gave FEMA flexibility to draw on the money more quickly as needed.Both chambers of Congress are scheduled, however, to be in their home states and districts until after the election, as lawmakers focus on campaigning.House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., gave no hint he was considering changing that schedule during a speech Tuesday. He said that Congress just provided FEMA with the funds it needs to respond and that lawmakers would make sure those resources are appropriately allocated.A bipartisan group of Senators from affected states wrote their leadership this week saying it’s clear Congress must act to meet constituents’ needs. They said that may even require Congress to come back in October, ahead of the election.
Meanwhile, Americans are unhappy with congressional and administrative budget priorities in social media.
For example, our citizens could now benefit from the billions spent on Ukraine.
And many are noting the monies that have gone to illegal immigrants and their resettlement into this country.
In fact, in March of this year, the DHS, through FEMA and Customs and Border Protection (CBP), announced a hefty sum for communities dealing with migrants. The department allocated $300 million in direct funding plus an additional $340.9 million through a competitive grant process through the Shelter and Services Program (SSP).
The SSP is designed to aid state, local, and tribal governments and non-profit organizations that suddenly have an influx of migrants. These funds help cover the costs of shelter, food, clothing, acute medical care, and transportation. One might consider the program a federally funded Airbnb for illegal aliens.
Therefore, it indirectly supports those illegal aliens, but all those monies could now be going to beef up a potential response to another severe storm.
Of course, the news broke today…after the final debate of the 2024 election cycle. However, the Biden-Harris administration are now dealing with a significant October surprise.
One final note: Some progressives may be laughing at the plight of the red regions of the Southeastern US.
However, disasters can strike as easily in blue ones. For example, a major earthquake off the Cascadia subduction zone will require massive recovery efforts…that we also can’t now afford.
Many Western Washington residents live in fear of the natural disaster to end all natural disasters: the “Big One.”Scientists say that the Cascadia subduction zone off the coast of the Pacific Northwest has the potential to spark a magnitude-9.0+ earthquake, plus a subsequent tsunami. That scenario last occurred here in the year 1700.Inquiring minds want to know: When will it happen again?
This destructive set of priorities has the potential to hurt all Americans.
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