I can't say that new approaches being taken by FEMA are all part of the grander Trump administration's realignment of alliances and how things will be done, but in the majority — that is the way it will look to many who are watching the Trump administration as a whole. People voted for change, but they didn't expect that "the change" would impact them in a way that they feel is negative. I guess you can say they they expected change to impact others — and not them. The ongoing tariff and talk of trade wars is a great example for farmers and bourbon distillers who were happy with international trade agreements as they were.
Which brings me to this article,
FEMA wants local governments to step up, and I would add "states" to the list of organizations that FEMA wants to take more responsibility. I expect a few contentious National Emergency Management Association (NEMA) meetings to be happening in the near term as the dialog on how this looks to state directors starts to sink in.
Implementation during a major disaster is going to be dicey for FEMA. I don't see a congressional delegation from a Red State being happy with this "change" in how services are delivered and who is responsible.
Claire Rubin shared the link above.
Eric Holdeman is a contributing writer for Emergency Management magazine and is the former director of the King County, Wash., Office of Emergency Management.
