The Federal Emergency Management Administration (FEMA) official fired for ordering workers to avoid homes with Trump signs in hurricane-stricken areas has admitted that workers did exactly that, but only because Trump supporters were “hostile.”
Speaking to podcaster Roland Martin on Monday, Marn’i Washington also claimed that the “avoidance” was “not isolated,” and workers refused to help Trump supporters in the “Carolinas.”
But she also said workers didn’t avoid the pro-Trump homes because they were pro-Trump. Rather, the pro-Trump residents were “hostile” and verbally abusive.
The Firing
The trouble for Washington began when The Daily Wire published text messages that said “avoid homes advertising Trump” during disaster aid efforts after Hurricane Milton.
Multiple government employees told The Daily Wire they received the message in writing and verbally:
The government employees told The Daily Wire that at least 20 homes with Trump signs or flags were skipped from the end of October and into November due to the guidance, meaning they were not given the opportunity to qualify for FEMA assistance. Images shared with The Daily Wire show that houses were skipped over by the workers, who wrote in the government system messages such as: “Trump sign no entry per leadership.”
Skipping the pro-Trump homes upset some employees, the website reported. “I volunteered to help disaster victims, not discriminate against them,” an employee told the website. “It didn’t matter if people were black, white, Hispanic, for Trump, for Harris. Everyone deserves the same amount of help.”
FEMA Director Deanne Criswell said the agency was unaware of Washington’s diktat and quickly fired her. “This is a clear violation of FEMA’s core values and principles to help people regardless of their political affiliation,” she said. “This was reprehensible.”
News of the scandal inspired Florida and Tennessee to investigate.
“The blatant weaponization of government by partisan activists in the federal bureaucracy is yet another reason why the Biden-Harris administration is in its final days,” GOP Florida Governor Ron DeSantis wrote on X. The state’s Emergency Management Division will probe the discrimination.
Republican Tennessee Governor Bill Lee said the federal government is “weaponized” against Americans.
U.S. House Oversight Committee Chairman James Comer (R-Ky.) asked Criswell to testify about the scandal yesterday on November 12, but moved the hearing to November 19.
“Not only are these actions by a FEMA employee completely unacceptable, but the Committee remains deeply concerned that this is not an isolated incident at the agency,” Comer said in scheduling the testimony.
Washington: Higher-ups Knew
But now Washington says that her supervisors knew what she was doing. And she had to avoid pro-Trump homes because they were “politically hostile” and heaped “verbal abuse” on FEMA workers.
“They all alleged that these actions were made on my own recognizance, and that it was for my own political advances,” Washington told Martin:
However, if you look at the record, there is what we call a “community trend,” and unfortunately, it just so happened that the political hostility that was encountered by my team — and I was on two different teams during this deployment — they just so happen[ed] to have the Trump campaign signage.
FEMA always preaches avoidance first, and then de-escalation. So this is not isolated. This is a colossal event of avoidance, not just in the state of Florida, but you will find avoidance in the Carolinas.
“Senior leadership” knew about the “avoidance,” Washington told Martin, and “incident reports” will back her claims.
“FEMA’s very well aware of the incidents that take place, not just with my crew, but with all the crews in the states,” Washington said. “We omitted these homes for safety precautions, not because of political play.”
She also said FEMA will “canvass” communities that “do not have the community trend” of Trump signage. If residents with Trump signs say, “Hey I want to register” for help, FEMA will welcome them.
“But we will not subject our people to continuous verbal abuse or hostile encounters,” Washington said.
She didn’t offer examples of the “verbal abuse” — whether residents were cursing or hurling racial epithets at them — or whether “hostile encounters” included threats of physical violence. Martin didn’t ask for examples, but he did highlight abusive notes sent to Washington. Washington claimed that threats have forced to leave her home.
Who’s Lying?
If what Washington alleges is true, she must explain why the FEMA employees who spoke to The Daily Wire didn’t mention this farrago of “verbal abuse” and “political hostility.” She must also explain why Criswell didn’t support her and simply release the “incident reports” of “verbal abuse” and “political hostility.”
Criswell, again, is scheduled for testimony on November 19. If what Washington says is true, the FEMA director will have two choices when she testifies. One, she can admit that FEMA officials knew that FEMA workers avoided “hostile” Trump supporters, which means she lied in her public statement after The Daily Wire story published. Or two, she can deny that they knew about avoiding Trump supporters, which would be perjury.
Committee members might also ask Criswell to produce the “incident reports” that Washington says will explain why FEMA workers avoided helping homes with Trump signs.
Getting to the truth would then require calling in Washington and other FEMA workers to testify under oath.
As it is, only one of them can be telling the truth.
