“decoding =”async “fetchpriority = “high”>,
” >, <, p>, Federal Emergency Management Agency ( FEMA ) administrator Deanne Criswel <, span class =”redactor-invisible-space “>, ( Photo: Reuters ) <, /span>, <, br>, <, /p>,
US President Joe Biden‘s leadership is retaliating against former US President Donald Trump‘s false assertions about the wind restoration efforts as the national response to Hurricane Helene becomes a focal point in the last bend of the presidential campaign, according to USA Today.
Federal Emergency Management Agency ( FEMA ) administrator Deanne Criswell, appearing on ABC’s” This Week” on Sunday, assured that FEMA has all the necessary resources to respond to Helene, which has severely impacted parts of Florida, Georgia, North Carolina, and other states. The political repercussions of the restoration efforts have grown because North Carolina and Georgia are significant swing states.
Criswell refuted Trump’s claims that help was being withheld from Republican areas and that hazard reduction funds were being redirected to help illegal immigrants. She described these charges as “frankly absurd and utterly fake.”
” This kind of language is not good to people”, Criswell said. ” It’s really a shame that we’re putting politics ahead of helping people”.
Trump, who has regularly criticised the reply, made a series of notes during recent common performances. At a rally in Michigan next month, he claimed,” Kamala spent all her FEMA income, billions of dollars, on cover for unlawful immigrants”, alleging that this left FEMA with no tools for wind recovery. Trump went on to say,” They stole the FEMA money, just like they stole it from a bank, so they could give it to their illegal immigrants”.
The Shelter and Services Program at FEMA provides$ 650 million for humanitarian assistance to noncitizens detained after they are released, but this is independent of disaster relief funding. No funds are being diverted from the needs of disaster response. None”, clarified a White House statement.
Alejandro Mayorkas, the secretary of the Department of Homeland Security, claimed that FEMA has sufficient funds for the country’s immediate needs but that it may struggle if additional storms strike. Mayorkas stated,” We are using the money we have to meet the immediate needs,” adding that a full recovery would require additional funds.
Although Biden has stated that additional funding will be required to deal with upcoming storms, Congress recently approved$ 20 billion for disaster relief.
Meanwhile, Trump stepped up his criticism during a rally in Pennsylvania, focusing on the$ 750 payment FEMA offers to disaster victims to cover essential items. ” Remember,$ 750 to people whose homes have been washed away, and yet we send tens of millions of dollars to foreign countries”, Trump said.
The Biden administration defended this initial payment, explaining that it is meant to cover urgent needs like food, water, and medication, with additional assistance potentially available after further assessment.