Trump suggests ending FEMA before visiting California fire sites
U.S. President Donald Trump speaks during a disaster briefing at the Asheville Regional Airport in Asheville, North Carolina, January 24, 2025, during a visit to the Asheville Regional Airport in Asheville, North Carolina , assess recovery efforts and visit areas devastated by Hurricane Helene.
Leah Millis | Reuters
President Donald Trump said Friday he plans to take executive action to overhaul or possibly terminate the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), criticizing the agency's response to North Carolina's historic flooding.
“I think we would advise FEMA to leave,” Trump said at a news conference in Asheville, North Carolina, which suffered devastation from Hurricane Helene in September.
The president will travel later Friday to Los Angeles, which continues to battle wildfires ravaging large swaths of the city.
“We're looking at the whole concept of FEMA,” Trump told reporters on the airport tarmac after arriving in Asheville.
“Frankly, I like the concept that when North Carolina gets hit, the governor takes care of it. When Florida gets hit, the governor takes care of it, which means the state takes care of it,” he said.
“Having a bunch of people come in from an area that doesn't even know where they're going to try to solve a problem right away never works for me,” Trump said.
Trump added that additional aid to North Carolina and California should come directly from the federal government.
“So it's going to go through us, not through FEMA,” he said.
Trump's comments about FEMA appear to be consistent with a conservative policy blueprint known as Plan 2025, which calls for reforming the agency's spending to “shift the majority of preparedness and response costs to states and localities rather than the federal government.” .
Trump politicized Helen shortly after it struck the United States, criticizing then-President Joe Biden's handling of the federal response and spreading lies about FEMA's actions.
When Los Angeles' Pacific Palisades neighborhood was razed by unprecedented wildfires in January, Trump sought to blame California's Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom for the devastation.
He also threatened federal aid to fight wildfires if the state's water policy changes.
As of Nov. 5, the Biden administration has approved FEMA assistance totaling more than $2.7 billion for survivors of hurricanes Helen and Milton, which struck Florida's west coast less than two weeks after Helen.
Lucy Bickers, a resident of Swannanoa, waits to visit U.S. President Donald Trump in Swannanoa, North Carolina, the United States, on January 24. She held a placard in support of government disaster relief agencies as she drove Trump's motorcade. , 2025.
Jonathan Drake | Reuters
The New York Times reported earlier Friday that while some former FEMA leaders agree with Trump that states should be responsible for managing their own disasters, states themselves often need more federal help.
The Trump administration has not released any formal proposals to reorganize FEMA or federal disaster relief policy.
While considering eliminating FEMA, Trump continues to promise disaster-stricken communities that they will receive federal help.
“We will provide you with the resources you need and the support you deserve,” he said Friday in Asheville.