During a anxious press conference with local authorities, Trump repeatedly bemoaned the perceived decrease of FEMA, saying that it “was great” in years past, but it’s” no great again”. He suggested putting an end to the agency immediately and suggesting that a regional approach to organic catastrophe response would be more effective and efficient.
Trump said, “FEMA is ineptly run, and it costs about three times more than we can spend money on institutions instead of giving cash to bureaucracy,” causing some applause from the audience.
He claimed that big states like California would have no trouble gathering the necessary staff to deal with natural disasters and that the “problem with FEMA is they come from all over the nation.” He claimed that a national response that utilized employees from across the nation rather than just local circumstances would create confusion regarding regional conditions. Hurricane Helene in North Carolina was “one of the greatest disasters of all time.”
” What FEMA did in North Carolina, you know, they still haven’t gone to specific areas. They don’t understand what they’re doing”, Trump said.
” And I say, you don’t need FEMA. You need a great state govt. And when you have a difficulty in Los Angeles, or when you have a problem perhaps in the state of California, you have your own … FEMA, you fix it yourself. You don’t have anyone coming in from a position where they have no idea”, he continued, saying that people from Florida or Alaska haven’t been effectively familiar with the local circumstances.
FEMA, he declared, was a “very cheap” and “mostly failed position”.
The permitting method for rebuilding after the flames was a major critic. Mayor of Los Angeles Karen Bass pushed up on the claim that developers were considering an 18-month waiting period before they could start rebuilding.
After claiming she had signed executive orders to cut the red tape, Bass said,” That will not be the case.” ” So I want you to realize that we are expediting, that we definitely need your help. We need the national support”.
Trump also questioned the justification for halting reconstruction in order to remove toxic waste from the burned-out remains.
” Well, the hazardous waste, what’s hazardous waste”? Trump said to Bass. ” I mean, you’re gonna have to determine that. We’re gonna go through a complete series of questions on determining what’s risks well, well. I really believe you must permit the visitors to their website so that they can begin the process now.
There were also mentions of a water scarcity, with Trump promising to mark an “executive order to open up the pumps and valves in the northern,” allowing hundreds of millions of gallons of water to flow into Southwestern California.
Other recommendations made by roundtable members included avoiding tariffs on building materials and promoting successful forest control, which Rep. Brad Sherman (D-CA ) suggested. Trump responded saying,” We’ll take a look at that, really”.
Taxes have been one of Trump’s plan promises. He had promised to impose them on his first day in office, but he has since floated putting a 25 % tariff on goods coming from Canada and Mexico until Feb. 1.
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Trump’s vacation to Los Angeles, coming after a halt in North Carolina, represents his first trip as president.
According to Cal Fire, the fire covering the Los Angeles and San Diego regions have scorched over 55, 000 hectares, killed at least 28 people, destroyed over 16, 000 buildings, and required an crisis response of roughly 40, 000 employees.
