By Will Weissert and Chris Megerian
Associated Press
FLETCHER, N.C. 鈥� President said he was considering 鈥済etting rid of FEMA鈥� as he visited North Carolina on Friday during the first trip of his second term.
The comment, made during a briefing on the monthslong recovery from Hurricane Helene, was the latest signal of how Trump is planning sweeping changes to the federal government鈥檚 role in managing catastrophes.
鈥淔EMA has been a very big disappointment,鈥� the Republican president said. 鈥淚t鈥檚 very bureaucratic. And it鈥檚 very slow. Other than that, we鈥檙e very happy with them.鈥�
Trump, who also planned to visit Los Angeles later in the day, said he was looking at signing an executive order on the Federal Emergency Management Agency.
鈥淚鈥檇 like to see the states take care of disasters,鈥� he said after landing in the Asheville area. 鈥淟et the state take care of the tornadoes and the hurricanes and all of the other things that happen.鈥�
Trump said that would be quicker than sending in FEMA.
鈥淔EMA just hasn鈥檛 done the job,鈥� the president said. 鈥淲e鈥檙e looking at the whole concept of FEMA.鈥�
to disasters when local leaders request a presidential emergency declaration, a signal that the damage is beyond the state鈥檚 ability to handle on its own. FEMA can reimburse governments for recovery efforts such as debris removal, and it gives stopgap financial assistance to individual residents. Some of Trump鈥檚 conservative allies have proposed reducing how much money the agency should provide.
Trump former President for his administration鈥檚 response to Hurricane Helene in North Carolina. As he left the White House on Friday morning, he told reporters that 鈥渋t鈥檚 been a horrible thing the way that鈥檚 been allowed to fester鈥� since the storm hit in September, and 鈥渨e鈥檙e going to get it fixed up.鈥�
Trump will receive a briefing on recovery efforts and then travel to a small town outside Asheville to meet with residents who have been helped by Samaritan鈥檚 Purse, a humanitarian organization headed by evangelical leader Franklin Graham.
Once in California, Trump plans to tour the Pacific Palisades neighborhood, where rows of homes He鈥檚 expected to receive a briefing on the fires, , with thousands of people under evacuation orders.
Trump has showered California leaders with disdain for water policies that worsened the recent blazes. He said he would 鈥渢ake a look at a fire that could have been put out if they let the water flow, but they didn鈥檛 let the water flow.鈥�
Members of Congress will be at the briefing, and the meeting Trump has suggested using federal disaster assistance as a bargaining chip during unrelated legislative negotiations over government borrowing, or as leverage to persuade California to change its water policies.
鈥淧laying politics with people鈥檚 livelihoods is unacceptable and a slap in the face to the Southern California wildfire victims and to our brave first responders,鈥� said Rep. Young Kim, a Republican from Orange County, south of Los Angeles, in a recent statement.
Trump has a history of injecting politics and falsehoods into disaster response. During his first term, he talked about limiting help for Democratic states that didn鈥檛 support him, according to former administration officials. While running for president last year, that Democrats were 鈥済oing out of their way to not help people in Republican areas鈥� of the battleground state of North Carolina.
He鈥檚 also been focused on , specifically fish conservation efforts in the northern part of the state.
鈥淚 don鈥檛 think we should give California anything until they let the water run down,鈥� Trump said Wednesday in an interview with Fox News Channel鈥檚 Sean Hannity.
The president also suggested shifting more responsibility to individual states for managing disasters.
鈥淚鈥檇 rather see the states take care of their own problems,鈥� he told Hannity, adding that 鈥淔EMA is getting in the way of everything.鈥�
Michael Coen, who served as chief of staff at FEMA during the Biden administration, said Trump was 鈥渕isinformed鈥� about an agency that provides critical help to states when they鈥檙e overwhelmed by catastrophe.
In addition, Coen criticized the idea of attaching strings to assistance.
鈥淵ou鈥檙e going to pick winners and losers on which communities are going to be supported by the federal government,鈥� he said. 鈥淚 think the American people expect the federal government will be there for them on their worst day, no matter where they live.鈥�
The last time Trump was president, he visited numerous disaster zones, including the aftermaths of hurricanes and tornadoes. He sometimes sparked criticism, like when he to survivors of Hurricane Maria in Puerto Rico.
鈥淚f you鈥檙e a disaster survivor, no matter who you voted for, it鈥檚 always good when the president comes to town,鈥� said Pete Gaynor, who headed FEMA during the first Trump administration between 2019 and 2021. 鈥淵ou can see him and hopefully talk to him about what you need in your community.鈥�
Laurie Carpenter, a 62-year-old retiree in Newland, North Carolina, said she鈥檚 looking forward to Trump鈥檚 visit because she鈥檚 been disappointed by the federal response. She said there鈥檚 still debris and trash strewn around her part of the state months after Hurricane Helene.
鈥淚f anybody鈥檚 going to do something about it, I think he will,鈥� Carpenter said.
Trump tapped Cameron Hamilton, a former Navy SEAL with limited experience managing natural disasters, as FEMA鈥檚 acting director. He also said individual states should be in charge of directing response to natural disasters rather than FEMA, and that the federal government should only step in subsequently to provide funding.
Biden vowed before leaving office that the federal government would cover all the costs of responding to the wildfires around Los Angeles, which could end up being the . However, that promise won鈥檛 be kept unless Congress comes up with more funding.
Friday鈥檚 trip could prompt some uncomfortable conversations about climate change, which Trump has played down and denied. Both Hurricane Helene and the Los Angeles wildfires were exacerbated by global warming.
In Helene鈥檚 case, a study by international climate scientists at World Weather Attribution found that climate change In California, the state suffered 鈥� its traditional wet season 鈥� which made the area around Los Angeles more vulnerable to blazes.
鈥淭his is just breaking our comfort zone of what is supposed to be normal,鈥� said University of Oregon researcher Amanda Stasiewicz.
After visiting North Carolina and California, Trump plans to hold a rally Saturday in Las Vegas. Advisers said he will offer details on keeping a campaign promise to exclude tips from federal taxes, while reveling in in an Election Day upset.
鈥淚鈥檓 going to go to Nevada to thank them,鈥� Trump said. He was the first Republican candidate to win the state since 2004, when George W. Bush beat John Kerry.
Las Vegas鈥� 24-hour economy is fueled by the hospitality and service industries, where everyone from restaurant waiters to valet parkers to hotel maids relies on gratuities. However, exempting them from taxes would likely be difficult to implement and require to remain permanent.