David Richardson, who became the acting head of the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) last month, told FEMA employees on Monday that he did not know the United States had a hurricane season.
Yes Lynne. There are so many ways in which Trump is destroying the quality of life in the USA and this is one of them. Because Trump is a populist leader he says what people like but has no plans of his own. He is carrying out the plans of the Heritage Foundation as they have set them out in Project 2025. They are all Christian Nationalists, so they see weather as an act of God. They would rather pay to control women's bodies to be their property, and force them to have babies, than try to prevent people from being harmed by weather events, or toxic water, or dirty air, or toxins in foods, etc....
Is anyone running the idea by their state governments that if they are doing more of the work, they should get more of the taxes too, and we should not be paying taxes to a federal government that is providing us with no services. Instead we are paying to line the pockets of million and billionaires. It is crazy.
It is why I said everyone should have their red line and think of an out. I am working on mine right now.
A "joke" that two FEMA staffers couldn't be sure was a joke? Even if it was in jest, and I'm just spitballing here, maybe we shouldn't be joking about storms that destroy lives and cause millions of dollars in damage?
People keep asking (as I do) why tRUmp keeps destroying the Federal government. I realize that he’s a lying, bitter, soulless, psychopathic fraud, but I think he’s also a Russian asset with the mission to destroy our country. Incidentally, I worked over 40 years as a civil engineer with the US Army and deployed to assist FEMA once to the Loma Prieta earthquake and twice for Katrina. What is strange is that during the election he criticized FEMA as if they weren’t doing enough, and now he wants to eliminate it so it will do nothing!? tRUmp has no mandate to eliminate agencies, his job is to execute laws created by Congress, that’s why it’s called the Executive branch, and he can’t even do that. His 34 felonies are essentially for keeping 2 sets of accounting books . . . that’s probably what he is now doing with the tariffs collected by the CBP.
I hope some patriots in the FBI, CIA, or NSA reveal to the public what is going on in this ”administration,” what the real discussions and plans are. The Federal law enforcement must stop this coup before tRUmp starts a civil war.
Dave, I was in the very frightening Loma Prieta quake in 1989. It was just past 5pm…5:04 in fact. I worked at Union Bank back then. I always feel so grateful that there are people like you in the world who go in to help rescue people. We’ll always have great people like you. But rescuers need critical information for their own safety. It is beyond outrageous to watch what the Felon regime has done to impede everything people work for here.
I worked with the USACE in St.Louis. In 1989 I deployed to an HQ office in Santa Clara and worked in a FEMA Disaster Field Office in Mountain View. I set up computers for Corps employees and wrote a timekeeping “program” in an app called Q&A, and then was assigned to HQ USACE and developed a draft of the first Emergency Operations database. If i hadn’t been married I would have tried to stay in the SF area as I loved it so much. In 2014 I deployed as a DA civilian in uniform to Afghanistan and I designed and managed civil engineering projects at Bagram and Kandahar Air Fields. I loved my “career” with the Army but sadly no one above me ever really cared or appreciated my work as they only wanted to move up. It’s sad that I worked honestly and hard for the US for a lower-middle income yet Hannity makes $35 million a year for lying.
I worked in Palo Alto at that time, lived in Belmont..just south of SF. That was the most surreal experience I have ever had. It was a wonderful place to live and work. But it continues to decline because of terrible inequities in income/housing costs.
I agree with much of your assessment. I think the bigger pattern behind the chaos is intentionally disabling America's strengths to enable a take over.
He is owned by Russia, for whatever reasons we won't know in our lifetimes, but for sure he is selling out the United States to save his own miserable ass. And laughing all the way to the bank.
Thanks, Dave, for the question: why does Trump keep destroying the Federal government. (Sometimes I think that i'm the only one who has asked and received an answer to this question.) You say, " but I think he’s also a Russian asset with the mission to destroy our country." I've known that he's a Russian asset with the mission to follow what Putin wants--As Putin said to Musk, Tell Trump he owes us. Why would that be the case? They made sure he was elected President, and Trump coud NOT have done that without the high tech manipulations that the brilliant Russian cyber criminals and whatever Musk could do with Starlink. (such as be the winner in all 7 swing states, and win more of the popular vote). So, they pulled it off, and now we're the stupid sitting ducks.
I'm hoping that possibly the agreement with Musk will be frayed enough to open this can of worms to reveal the truth.
Yes, the Russians were brilliant with their hack about 4 years ago related to Solar Winds whereby they got malware imbedded into Microsoft updates. The cleanup in DoD was extensive.
I imagine a continuum of how humans treat one another. On one end is someone like, say, Jesus of Nazareth or more timely, Mother Theresa, patron saint of Calcutta. These two gave over their lives to fight for and protect those who need it most. They taught kindness and charity by example. On the other end of the continuum and fighting for last place is Musk, Miller, Homan, Noam, Patel and Don Jr.. They fight like snakes to get the attention of their emeritus, Trump, who has reached a pinnacle of cruelty and keeps going. The continuum gets so heavy at this end that they all begin to push one another off. Who will be the victor? Stay tuned (until your devices go down in the extreme weather event you are experiencing).
None of us is equal to the challenge we face from MOTHER NATURE. A well run FEMA will remain our best possible organization to provide practical help and information so that we do not suffer unenduringly from hurricanes, floods, tornadoes, wild fires and all else that threatens our survival. Everything under Trump's leadership grows non-functional--he in no way cares about American citizens and wants to protect us. This is his job!
As if he cares what the path is. He accidentally included a state in the path when speaking so he doubled down and drew an extended path for the hurricane rather than admit a tiny error.
What was Trumps reason for all these cuts? Is there a purpose to eliminating & reducing so many agencies? Does he think they aren't necessary? Does he think it's a waste of money? Does he think it's not the federal governments responsibility? Seriously! Why is he doing all this?
The regime claims to be about eliminating “fraud and abuse” when they are the largest collection of fraudsters and abusers ever assembled in the US government.
tRUmp and his minions appropriated the standard phrase of “waste, fraud, and abuse” used in the Fed government to try and give their efforts some legitimacy. I think the main purpose of “DOGE” was for Eloon to steal information. They have IRS, USAJobs, Social Security, and other gov info on all if us now, and who knows who it has been shared with (Russia).
But is Trump saying that DEMA is fraudulent or abuses power? Its FEMA. His policies necessitate fema more than ever before so he eliminates it? Are reporters asking him about this stuff??
He had no reasons, just pretexts. What's really going on is that he wants to give his hyperwealthy friends a multi-trillion-dollar tax cut, and to do that without the bond markets going absolutely apeshit, he's going to have to cut government spending. The problem with that is that defense, Social Security, Medicare, and interest payments on the national debt are already baked in, so the only places left to cut are Medicaid and such general government services as NOAA.
Needless to say, many of the states most impacted by hurricanes are MAGAland… I’m sure the people there who unnecessarily lose houses and possibly loved ones because the forecasts are inadequate will swell with pride and at how great their losses are making America, again. And they definitely won’t ask Trump to step in to help, as that he needs money to feed those starving billionaires.
I know you're being sarcastic, and it makes sense to make fun of what's happening. The sad part is that it's all true! I guess that's sarcasm--making fun of what's awful staring right at us. I wonder when the cult will begin to melt away. Never?
A loss for words…this act will hurt those the most who voted for Don the Con …Judd keeps letting the light shine through the cracks of this abomination.
Trump voters in red states are going to be on their own when hurricanes, tornadoes, floods and fires, all made worse by the climate change they deny, come thru. Trump's already told NC, AR, and MO to go f'k themselves. FL, AL, MI, TX and others are next. And I have no sympathy, none. They voted for Trump and his MAGA thugs to hurt people, just not them. And now that they will be hurt more than the libs they revile, I look forward to watching them suffer. If only they would blame Trump, not Biden, gays, trans kids, and the libs. But they won't. The pull of the cult is too strong.
Check this interactive map for the fatal cost of Republicans gutting FEMA and NOAA as hurricane season approaches. It includes a real time weather map from NOAA overlaid with the Congressperson and Senator for that area. Did they vote to defund FEMA?
Most of the states that benefit from FEMA voted for Trump. Florida’s Lee County received over $3B after hurricane Ian in 2022. While Trump wants the states to pick up more responsibility, most won’t be able to….and people and property will be lost. If the policy is for states to pick up more responsibility, it will be a transition and not the slash and burn from DOGE and the Trump administration.
I live in Asheville, NC, and can testify that hurricanes are no joke. Recovery is slowly progressing, but without the aid that Trump promised on his two campaign photo ops here. Many people and businesses are struggling and are in dire need of more FEMA assistance.
What the hurricanes won’t destroy, Trump will. Despicable, deplorable, dangerous.
Destroying it so it can be privatized. Oligarchy here we come.
Yes Lynne. There are so many ways in which Trump is destroying the quality of life in the USA and this is one of them. Because Trump is a populist leader he says what people like but has no plans of his own. He is carrying out the plans of the Heritage Foundation as they have set them out in Project 2025. They are all Christian Nationalists, so they see weather as an act of God. They would rather pay to control women's bodies to be their property, and force them to have babies, than try to prevent people from being harmed by weather events, or toxic water, or dirty air, or toxins in foods, etc....
Is anyone running the idea by their state governments that if they are doing more of the work, they should get more of the taxes too, and we should not be paying taxes to a federal government that is providing us with no services. Instead we are paying to line the pockets of million and billionaires. It is crazy.
It is why I said everyone should have their red line and think of an out. I am working on mine right now.
https://lindaweide.substack.com/p/a-plan-b-for-catastrophe?r=f0qfn
A "joke" that two FEMA staffers couldn't be sure was a joke? Even if it was in jest, and I'm just spitballing here, maybe we shouldn't be joking about storms that destroy lives and cause millions of dollars in damage?
Dude wasn't joking. The new regime spits on expertise!
Thanks for bottom-lining it.
look at its new ex gardener, ex grocery clerk head of counterterrorism prevention.
We are not amused! 😒 😒😒
Maybe less joking during the first week of your tenure. Let the guys get to know you first before your rollicking sense of humor kicks in.
People keep asking (as I do) why tRUmp keeps destroying the Federal government. I realize that he’s a lying, bitter, soulless, psychopathic fraud, but I think he’s also a Russian asset with the mission to destroy our country. Incidentally, I worked over 40 years as a civil engineer with the US Army and deployed to assist FEMA once to the Loma Prieta earthquake and twice for Katrina. What is strange is that during the election he criticized FEMA as if they weren’t doing enough, and now he wants to eliminate it so it will do nothing!? tRUmp has no mandate to eliminate agencies, his job is to execute laws created by Congress, that’s why it’s called the Executive branch, and he can’t even do that. His 34 felonies are essentially for keeping 2 sets of accounting books . . . that’s probably what he is now doing with the tariffs collected by the CBP.
That’s the mystery. There is no logic here. What BS did Peter Thiel and Heritage Foundation feed him to make him think this is the right move?
I hope some patriots in the FBI, CIA, or NSA reveal to the public what is going on in this ”administration,” what the real discussions and plans are. The Federal law enforcement must stop this coup before tRUmp starts a civil war.
They’re well versed in this…I agree. They must take action to protect us from the enemy within.
The REAL enemy within!
Amen to that. We need their patriotism and strength more than ever
Dave, I was in the very frightening Loma Prieta quake in 1989. It was just past 5pm…5:04 in fact. I worked at Union Bank back then. I always feel so grateful that there are people like you in the world who go in to help rescue people. We’ll always have great people like you. But rescuers need critical information for their own safety. It is beyond outrageous to watch what the Felon regime has done to impede everything people work for here.
I worked with the USACE in St.Louis. In 1989 I deployed to an HQ office in Santa Clara and worked in a FEMA Disaster Field Office in Mountain View. I set up computers for Corps employees and wrote a timekeeping “program” in an app called Q&A, and then was assigned to HQ USACE and developed a draft of the first Emergency Operations database. If i hadn’t been married I would have tried to stay in the SF area as I loved it so much. In 2014 I deployed as a DA civilian in uniform to Afghanistan and I designed and managed civil engineering projects at Bagram and Kandahar Air Fields. I loved my “career” with the Army but sadly no one above me ever really cared or appreciated my work as they only wanted to move up. It’s sad that I worked honestly and hard for the US for a lower-middle income yet Hannity makes $35 million a year for lying.
I worked in Palo Alto at that time, lived in Belmont..just south of SF. That was the most surreal experience I have ever had. It was a wonderful place to live and work. But it continues to decline because of terrible inequities in income/housing costs.
I agree with much of your assessment. I think the bigger pattern behind the chaos is intentionally disabling America's strengths to enable a take over.
He is owned by Russia, for whatever reasons we won't know in our lifetimes, but for sure he is selling out the United States to save his own miserable ass. And laughing all the way to the bank.
Thanks, Dave, for the question: why does Trump keep destroying the Federal government. (Sometimes I think that i'm the only one who has asked and received an answer to this question.) You say, " but I think he’s also a Russian asset with the mission to destroy our country." I've known that he's a Russian asset with the mission to follow what Putin wants--As Putin said to Musk, Tell Trump he owes us. Why would that be the case? They made sure he was elected President, and Trump coud NOT have done that without the high tech manipulations that the brilliant Russian cyber criminals and whatever Musk could do with Starlink. (such as be the winner in all 7 swing states, and win more of the popular vote). So, they pulled it off, and now we're the stupid sitting ducks.
I'm hoping that possibly the agreement with Musk will be frayed enough to open this can of worms to reveal the truth.
Yes, the Russians were brilliant with their hack about 4 years ago related to Solar Winds whereby they got malware imbedded into Microsoft updates. The cleanup in DoD was extensive.
This is so unnecessary. People's lives at risk for nothing. Just a whim.
No one deserves this kind of cruelty.
It's one cruel thing after another with these awful people.
I imagine a continuum of how humans treat one another. On one end is someone like, say, Jesus of Nazareth or more timely, Mother Theresa, patron saint of Calcutta. These two gave over their lives to fight for and protect those who need it most. They taught kindness and charity by example. On the other end of the continuum and fighting for last place is Musk, Miller, Homan, Noam, Patel and Don Jr.. They fight like snakes to get the attention of their emeritus, Trump, who has reached a pinnacle of cruelty and keeps going. The continuum gets so heavy at this end that they all begin to push one another off. Who will be the victor? Stay tuned (until your devices go down in the extreme weather event you are experiencing).
Putin is the victor...of cruelty. And, he is Trump's mentor.
None of us is equal to the challenge we face from MOTHER NATURE. A well run FEMA will remain our best possible organization to provide practical help and information so that we do not suffer unenduringly from hurricanes, floods, tornadoes, wild fires and all else that threatens our survival. Everything under Trump's leadership grows non-functional--he in no way cares about American citizens and wants to protect us. This is his job!
Trump is of the belief that all you need to predict the path of a hurricane is a Sharpie.
As if he cares what the path is. He accidentally included a state in the path when speaking so he doubled down and drew an extended path for the hurricane rather than admit a tiny error.
What was Trumps reason for all these cuts? Is there a purpose to eliminating & reducing so many agencies? Does he think they aren't necessary? Does he think it's a waste of money? Does he think it's not the federal governments responsibility? Seriously! Why is he doing all this?
The regime claims to be about eliminating “fraud and abuse” when they are the largest collection of fraudsters and abusers ever assembled in the US government.
tRUmp and his minions appropriated the standard phrase of “waste, fraud, and abuse” used in the Fed government to try and give their efforts some legitimacy. I think the main purpose of “DOGE” was for Eloon to steal information. They have IRS, USAJobs, Social Security, and other gov info on all if us now, and who knows who it has been shared with (Russia).
Bingo
But is Trump saying that DEMA is fraudulent or abuses power? Its FEMA. His policies necessitate fema more than ever before so he eliminates it? Are reporters asking him about this stuff??
He had no reasons, just pretexts. What's really going on is that he wants to give his hyperwealthy friends a multi-trillion-dollar tax cut, and to do that without the bond markets going absolutely apeshit, he's going to have to cut government spending. The problem with that is that defense, Social Security, Medicare, and interest payments on the national debt are already baked in, so the only places left to cut are Medicaid and such general government services as NOAA.
Hi Trish, see my answer just written in response to Dave Kirkpatric (above).
Needless to say, many of the states most impacted by hurricanes are MAGAland… I’m sure the people there who unnecessarily lose houses and possibly loved ones because the forecasts are inadequate will swell with pride and at how great their losses are making America, again. And they definitely won’t ask Trump to step in to help, as that he needs money to feed those starving billionaires.
They won’t know of the mistakes because Fox won’t tell them.
Exactly right! You win the kewpie doll!
I know you're being sarcastic, and it makes sense to make fun of what's happening. The sad part is that it's all true! I guess that's sarcasm--making fun of what's awful staring right at us. I wonder when the cult will begin to melt away. Never?
A loss for words…this act will hurt those the most who voted for Don the Con …Judd keeps letting the light shine through the cracks of this abomination.
Oh, and obviously, you wouldn’t need a FEDERAL response to natural disasters because these events always restrict themselves to a single state…
And if they don't there is always another Sharpie!
He buys ‘em by the pallet at this point
Hahahahahahahahaha! Good un and likely true.
Trump voters in red states are going to be on their own when hurricanes, tornadoes, floods and fires, all made worse by the climate change they deny, come thru. Trump's already told NC, AR, and MO to go f'k themselves. FL, AL, MI, TX and others are next. And I have no sympathy, none. They voted for Trump and his MAGA thugs to hurt people, just not them. And now that they will be hurt more than the libs they revile, I look forward to watching them suffer. If only they would blame Trump, not Biden, gays, trans kids, and the libs. But they won't. The pull of the cult is too strong.
Check this interactive map for the fatal cost of Republicans gutting FEMA and NOAA as hurricane season approaches. It includes a real time weather map from NOAA overlaid with the Congressperson and Senator for that area. Did they vote to defund FEMA?
https://thedemlabs.org/2025/06/02/republicans-gut-fema-noaa-as-hurricanes-approach-mapping-the-cost/
Good Luck Florida, Texas and other hurricane prone states. Will you be happy with your decision to back Trump when you have nothing left?
Yes, even if destroyed by a hurricane if Fox tells them they are happy they will be happy, and will continue to vote GOP.
In the famous words of Elton John from the song Love Lies Bleeding, "I hope you're happy now!"
Idiots...
Most of the states that benefit from FEMA voted for Trump. Florida’s Lee County received over $3B after hurricane Ian in 2022. While Trump wants the states to pick up more responsibility, most won’t be able to….and people and property will be lost. If the policy is for states to pick up more responsibility, it will be a transition and not the slash and burn from DOGE and the Trump administration.
I live in Asheville, NC, and can testify that hurricanes are no joke. Recovery is slowly progressing, but without the aid that Trump promised on his two campaign photo ops here. Many people and businesses are struggling and are in dire need of more FEMA assistance.