Latest / NO FILTER / Noem pushing to keep FEMA alive after saying White House would _eliminate_ it(MP3_160K)

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Noem pushing to keep FEMA alive after saying White House would _eliminate_ it(MP3_160K) · NO FILTER

• 0:00
  Speaker 1: Joining me now is Dian chris Well, former FEMA administrator.
• 0:03
  Speaker 1: It's really important to have someone with your expertise on
• 0:06
  Speaker 1: right now. Do you see if Christinoman is behind the
• 0:09
  Speaker 1: scenes and she's saying, we have to support the need
• 0:13
  Speaker 1: here is that assigned to you that without a plan
• 0:17
  Speaker 1: for how to reorient or eliminate FEMA, she at least
• 0:21
  Speaker 1: and a few others that were just named, realized it's
• 0:24
  Speaker 1: hard to see how the US could do without FEMA.
• 0:28
  Speaker 2: Yeah, Chris, I mean Christin Noahan was a governor of
• 0:31
  Speaker 2: South Dakota. I had an opportunity to meet with her
• 0:33
  Speaker 2: after some significant flooding that South Dakota experienced last year,
• 0:37
  Speaker 2: and I think she knows, you know, the role and
• 0:40
  Speaker 2: the needs that communities have and how FEMA comes in
• 0:43
  Speaker 2: to support those communities. I don't think anybody disagrees that
• 0:47
  Speaker 2: there are ways to improve the efficiency and get rid
• 0:49
  Speaker 2: of some of the bureaucracy in the way that FEMA
• 0:52
  Speaker 2: delivers programs. But it is a necessary function to be
• 0:56
  Speaker 2: able to assist these communities when they experience these really
• 0:59
  Speaker 2: catast traffic events, and it has to be done thoughtfully
• 1:03
  Speaker 2: and over time and in partnership with the states right,
• 1:06
  Speaker 2: so they can understand what's going to be expected of
• 1:08
  Speaker 2: them and they can plan appropriately ahead of time. If
• 1:11
  Speaker 2: you were to make massive changes right before hurricane season,
• 1:14
  Speaker 2: nobody would be prepared and they would be at greater
• 1:17
  Speaker 2: risk of having significant impacts to their communities.
• 1:21
  Speaker 1: They are local papers in Florida, for example, that are
• 1:23
  Speaker 1: reporting right now that they rely on THEMA, that localities
• 1:27
  Speaker 1: are relying on FEMA to remove storm debris to cover
• 1:31
  Speaker 1: overtime for first responders. You know, maybe at some point,
• 1:34
  Speaker 1: as you say, there's a longer term plan where states
• 1:38
  Speaker 1: or someone else picks up that expense. But right now,
• 1:43
  Speaker 1: given the budgets in place, walk us through what FEMA
• 1:46
  Speaker 1: does on the ground in the immediate aftermath and not
• 1:51
  Speaker 1: just of the storm, but then after all of the
• 1:53
  Speaker 1: news media goes away and people are left with things
• 1:56
  Speaker 1: like rebuilding and debris.
• 1:59
  Speaker 2: Well, it's a really good question, because I think that
• 2:01
  Speaker 2: there's always a lot of confusion as to what FEMA's
• 2:04
  Speaker 2: role really is. You know, FEMA doesn't replace those first responders. Know,
• 2:08
  Speaker 2: every disaster starts and ends at that local jurisdiction. The firefighters,
• 2:12
  Speaker 2: ems police officers, the National Guard. They are going in
• 2:16
  Speaker 2: there to do that immediate response to help those communities
• 2:19
  Speaker 2: as the storm passes and when it's safe for them
• 2:22
  Speaker 2: to do so. When it exceeds their capability, that's when
• 2:25
  Speaker 2: the state can ask FEMA to send in additional assistance.
• 2:29
  Speaker 2: And in the response phase, we can send in search
• 2:31
  Speaker 2: and rescue teams, we can pre stage commodities like food
• 2:34
  Speaker 2: and water so it can be readily available if needed,
• 2:37
  Speaker 2: and we only employ those resources when the state asks
• 2:41
  Speaker 2: for them. And so that's the role in the beginning,
• 2:43
  Speaker 2: and I think one of the biggest pieces of that
• 2:45
  Speaker 2: too is there's a team that's embedded with that state director,
• 2:49
  Speaker 2: so they're working side by side, and as that state
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  Speaker 2: director identifies a need, FEMA connect quickly to make sure
• 2:55
  Speaker 2: a resource is moving and can get to that community
• 2:57
  Speaker 2: as quickly as possible. But as you said, when the
• 3:00
  Speaker 2: cameras go away and all of the media goes away
• 3:03
  Speaker 2: and they're continuing their recovery, what FEMA is is a reimbursement.
• 3:07
  Speaker 2: The states always have the responsibility, they are always in
• 3:10
  Speaker 2: charge of their recovery. FEMA's role is to reimburse them
• 3:14
  Speaker 2: for some of the costs that they incur if they're
• 3:16
  Speaker 2: eligible under the different programs and we want to work
• 3:19
  Speaker 2: with them and provide them sometimes technical assistance if they
• 3:22
  Speaker 2: don't have the capacity to do it on their own.
• 3:25
  Speaker 2: And so it just not the reimbursement, but that technical
• 3:28
  Speaker 2: assistance is also so important. Just like you said with
• 3:30
  Speaker 2: debris removal, many states have really good contracts, but some don't,
• 3:35
  Speaker 2: and so that way we have an ability to tap
• 3:38
  Speaker 2: into the Army Corps of Engineers to come in and
• 3:40
  Speaker 2: assist them if they don't have the necessary means to
• 3:43
  Speaker 2: be able to bring in their own contractors to remove
• 3:45
  Speaker 2: that degree. It's really about a partnership and making sure
• 3:48
  Speaker 2: we're working together to achieve the governor's goals.
• 3:51
  Speaker 1: As we are just a couple of days away from
• 3:54
  Speaker 1: the start of what it's expected to be a bigger
• 3:56
  Speaker 1: than average hurricane season, your expertise is invaluable helping people
• 3:59
  Speaker 1: on her stand a role of femis So thanks for
• 4:01
  Speaker 1: coming on the show.
• 4:03
  Speaker 2: Thanks Chris,