Former President Donald Trump and other Republicans are spreading lies about an alleged lack of FEMA aid during Hurricane Helene and Hurricane Milton, notes MSNBC.
Trump and his fellow liars falsely claimed FEMA money was spent on immigrants leaving Americans with no aid, which was debunked by NPR:
The claims have become so widespread that FEMA set up a response page to debunk many falsehoods around how disaster funding works and what the agency’s response has been.
As of Sunday, FEMA says it has provided more than $137 million in assistance to six states in the southeast, including 7,000 federal personnel, nearly 15 million meals, 14 million liters of water, 157 generators and more than half a million tarps…
Another popular refrain that has gained traction on the right in recent days is the claim that FEMA has no money for hurricane recovery because of money spent on migrants, something that is not true.
The money used in the aftermath of Helene and other major disasters is not part of FEMA’s operating budget, but instead comes from the Disaster Relief Fund, which is appropriated by Congress.
Last week, Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas reportedly said the agency “does not have the funds to make it through” the rest of hurricane season.
FEMA is required to share monthly status reports on the DRF, and before the end of the fiscal year the agency had to implement “Immediate Needs Funding” that puts a pause on some of the agency’s spending that is not tied to lifesaving and life-sustaining efforts when the needs of the DRF could be more than the remaining balance.
The most recent report that runs through August showed a projected deficit by the end of September — and that’s before Helene made landfall.
October is the start of the federal government’s fiscal year, and a stopgap spending measure approved by lawmakers last month replenished the DRF at last year’s baseline level of $20 billion, though some of that money is reserved for ongoing recovery efforts from previous disasters and projects to mitigate future impacts.
The White House, in a release on Monday afternoon, said FEMA “has sufficient funding to both support the response to Hurricane Milton and continue to support the response to Hurricane Helene -– including funding to support first responders and provide immediate assistance to disaster survivors.”
Newsweek reported on the Republicans who voted against $20 billion in FEMA aid in the “stopgap spending bill on September 25 to keep government agencies funded into December.”
Newsweek also noted more lies by Trump:
Another prominent claim, mentioned by Trump at his Saturday rally in Pennsylvania, was that storm victims were only being offered $750.
While residents do have access to the money, called Serious Needs Assistance, it is just one part of the many federal relief programs.
During a visit to Georgia, Vice President Kamala Harris said: “And the federal relief and assistance that we have been providing has included FEMA providing $750 for folks who need immediate needs being met, such as food, baby formula, and the like. And you can apply now.”
She also went on to outline additional, longer-term emergency funding. “FEMA is also providing tens of thousands more dollars for folks to help them be able to deal with home repair, to be able to cover a deductible when and if they have insurance, and also hotel costs,” she said.
(Sources: MSNBC/YouTube, NPR, Newsweek)