Disaster response in the US has just gotten a little bit more complex. President Trump is reportedly planning to “phase out” FEMA after the 2025 hurricane season.
The hurricane season is scheduled to officially end on Nov. 30, 2025. CNN reports that the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration expects this year’s hurricane season to potentially be even deadlier by their estimates. So the Trump administration is thought to be trying to just make it through that season, and from then on, it’s going to be everyone on their own.
Trump claims FEMA is unnecessary and ineffective. At the White House, the president said, “We want to wean off of FEMA and we want to bring it down to the state level.” He then added, “And frankly, if they can’t handle it, the aftermath, then maybe they shouldn’t be governor.”
The president’s binary of seeing leadership as weak and strong is certainly not novel material. But now this new path starts to create a more understandable reason to justify his controversial hirings at FEMA. Just like he did with the Department of Education, it seems that the more incompetent the forward-facing occupant of a government agency in Trump’s administration, the more likely he’s actually planning to eventually gut it.
Kristi Noem took a break from executive producing her upcoming reality TV show and gave her two cents on this matter as well. As the DHS, the Federal Emergency Management Agency falls squarely on Noem’s docket, and she too said she’s of the belief that the agency has failed “thousands if not millions of people.” Noem added that she also believes they should be abolished.
This means there will be less aid overall for recovery efforts during national calamities such as hurricanes. However, if there are catastrophic situations, funding will come directly from the president’s office, bypassing the normal channels FEMA has established. Given Trump’s recent back-and-forth with Governor Newsom, there have already been people online wondering if this will create an opportunity for Trump to play favorites.
A user on X was irate about Trump’s plans to give less money in a bid to shift blame for disaster relief on Democratic governors.
The Trump administration’s plan for FEMA is to fuck over the states and then blame Democratic governors pic.twitter.com/lJGphDLcZK
— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) June 10, 2025
Trump says his plan for FEMA is to give out less money and make the relief decisions himself pic.twitter.com/cO7VcDhp09
— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) June 10, 2025
There’s a lot of internal chaos within FEMA, with work morale significantly affected by the announcements. There are work reductions now, with key staff members reportedly losing their jobs as we head into the hurricane season. Reportedly, 10% of the staff have left their positions, and there are estimates that the number will rise to 30% by the end of the year. Considering how staffing shortages have affected airports across the country — more so Newark — this news is extremely concerning.
Professionals are questioning the assertion by the Trump administration on whether states, even with coordinated efforts, can actually replace the effectiveness of FEMA. The core concern is that most states just don’t have the finances or the personnel to handle all the potential emergencies. FEMA officials believe the federal government, in its current form, doesn’t understand their true role in disaster management.
This is quite a departure in the efficiency Trump claimed he’d bring in and puts into question if this is truly “America First” philosophy.
