As Hurricane Milton crashes across Florida, Americans hope the Federal Emergency Management Agency is “tremendously prepared,” just as Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas promised it would be in July, at the start of hurricane season. But top officials in the Biden administration seem more interested in preparing for the presidential election than in providing disaster relief.
More than 200 people died in the recent Hurricane Helene, and many are still missing. Helene destroyed roads and homes and leveled entire towns such as Chimney Rock, North Carolina, which must completely rebuild its main street. Many towns still lack power and cell service.
The U.S. had several days to prepare before Hurricane Helene hit Florida on Sept. 27 — enough time for the government to have aided evacuations and gathered emergency supplies. Instead, President Joe Biden vacationed at his beach house, and Vice President Kamala Harris attended fundraisers in California.
Meanwhile, in a White House press briefing on Oct. 1, Mayorkas said, “FEMA does not have the funds to make it through the [hurricane] season.”
No one knows exactly what happened to FEMA’s disaster relief money. But over the past two years, Congress has separately allocated more than $1 billion to FEMA for housing and services for illegal immigrants, and the U.S. has spent billions in foreign aid.
American citizens who lost homes, families, and livelihoods to Helene will receive a $750 check.
It’s important to support foreign allies and help American cities manage migrants. But if the federal government can spend billions on illegal immigrants and wars, it should find the cash to help its own citizens.
FEMA defenders say the check is just the first step in relief to cover food and first aid until Congress approves additional funds and insurance reimbursements arrive. But many Appalachians on X say FEMA is denying them aid, in some cases because they already have home insurance.
On Oct. 4, Secretary of State Antony Blinken said the federal government is “committed to supporting those in need and delivering essential aid to displaced civilians,” and announced $157 million in humanitarian aid for Lebanon. At the same time, Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg announced $2 million to fix roads and bridges in South Carolina.
The administration has since approved $32 million for Tennessee and $100 million for North Carolina. But the problems go beyond money.
FEMA workers arrived in disaster areas in North Carolina a week after the hurricane with no plan for helping victims. They recommended survivors use an app to access FEMA’s system, watch the news to find FEMA assistance locations, and use their cars to charge phones and listen to the radio.
Never mind that many of the survivors don’t have internet access, TVs, or cars.
And the administration isn’t content to botch its own aid. Elon Musk tried to deliver Starlink satellite devices to help rural areas get internet connection — and then the government limited the use of private helicopters and planes in the airspace above disaster areas, crippling aid from Musk and other private citizens. (Musk later reported he had worked out a solution with Buttigieg, but only after the situation caused widespread outrage on X.)
Conspiracy theories abound, of course. Some conservatives on X say the media will spin the hurricane as an election-altering event to prevent Republicans from voting. Others suggest the Biden administration didn’t help because it wants to suppress Trump voters.
All of that is speculation. But what is undeniable is the federal government has failed its people.
As Hurricane Milton blows toward Florida, the federal government has a chance to do better. Troops should be on standby to assist. FEMA should be ready to send aid and workers once the storm is over and approve aid requests (and perhaps give Americans more than $750).
It won’t repair the administration’s image. But Americans deserve a government that at least tries to care.
Catherine Maxwell is a junior studying history and an Assistant Editor.
