WASHINGTON — The Federal Emergency Management Agency faced fresh upheaval Thursday just weeks before the start of hurricane season when the acting administrator was pushed out and replaced by another official from the Department of Homeland Security.
The abrupt change came the day after Cameron Hamilton, a former Navy SEAL who held the job for the last few months, testified on Capitol Hill that he did not agree with proposals to dismantle an organization that helps plan for natural disasters and distributes financial assistance.
“I do not believe it is in the best interest of the American people to eliminate the Federal Emergency Management Agency,” he said Wednesday.
President Donald Trump has suggested that individual states, not the federal government, should take the lead on hurricanes, tornadoes and other crises. He has been sharply critical of FEMA’s performance, particularly in North Carolina after Hurricane Helene.
David Richardson, a former Marine Corps officer who served in Afghanistan, Iraq and Africa, will run FEMA for the time being. He does not appear to have any experience in managing natural disasters. He currently serves as the Department of Homeland Security’s assistant secretary for countering weapons of mass destruction.
FEMA staff were notified of the change in leadership through a brief email.
Last month, Trump, a Republican, created a review council tasked with “reforming and streamlining the nation’s emergency management and disaster response system,” according to Homeland Security.
During Hamilton’s appearance before a House Appropriations subcommittee Wednesday, he shared concerns about how FEMA assistance is administered. He also said the agency had “evolved into an overextended federal bureaucracy, attempting to manage every type of emergency no matter how minor.”
But when Rep. Rosa DeLauro, a Connecticut Democrat, asked Hamilton how he felt about plans to eliminate FEMA, Hamilton said he did not believe the agency should be eliminated.
“Having said that,” Hamilton continued, “I’m not in a position to make decisions and impact outcomes on whether or not a determination such as consequential as that should be made. That is a conversation that should be had between the president of the United States and this governing body.”
In a statement Thursday afternoon, DeLauro expressed support for Hamilton and accused Trump of firing “anyone who is not blindly loyal to him.”
“The Trump administration must explain why he has been removed from this position,” said DeLauro. “Integrity and morality should not cost you your job.”