The Storm Is Coming. FEMA Isn’t.

Defunding Disaster Response Is Defunding Homeland Security.

I’ve worked firsthand with FEMA during some of the most devastating natural disasters to hit our country. I’ve sat in Homeland Security briefings when lives were on the line, when every hour mattered, and when we relied on every ounce of preparation and foresight the federal government could offer. What’s happening now, the systematic erosion of our nation’s disaster preparedness infrastructure, is not just bureaucratic negligence. It’s a slow-moving domestic threat with real-world consequences.

The federal government's capacity to respond to disasters has always been a lifeline for millions of Americans, especially those in vulnerable, underserved, and often forgotten communities. But in Donald Trump's second term, FEMA is being gutted, NOAA is being hollowed out, and hurricane season will soon be barreling toward us. The warning signs couldn't be more obvious or more alarming.

On May 1, NPR reported that the Trump administration quietly canceled billions of dollars in FEMA's Building Resilient Infrastructure and Communities (BRIC) program, funds specifically designed to help communities better prepare for disasters BEFORE they happen. These grants were already allocated. Local governments had invested time, planning, and hope into projects that would make their communities safer, from wildfire buffers to stormwater upgrades and hurricane shelters. Now, those communities are left empty-handed, many of them in rural and red-leaning regions that overwhelmingly voted for Trump, trusting he would protect them.

And it's not just about what's been cut. FEMA's Disaster Relief Fund, the pot of money that helps communities recover after disaster strikes, was already running at a dangerously low level during the last hurricane season. Then-Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas warned that FEMA could be tapped out before the worst of the storms even arrived. That warning came in late summer of 2024, and it turned out to be true, FEMA barely had enough resources to respond to overlapping disasters. Now, Mayorkas is gone. Kristi Noem is in charge. And we're in an even tougher spot. With funding gutted, grants canceled, and the agency increasingly sidelined under Project 2025 (see page 153), FEMA is no longer the robust federal backstop it once was. The next major storm or wildfire could hit while the federal government stands empty-handed and unapologetic.

As someone who's been in the room when disasters unfold, I can tell you that response is already stretched to its limits on a good day. We rely on prepositioned resources, expert logistics teams, and highly trained emergency responders. Every dollar lost and every program canceled slows the response. That lag can be the difference between survival and tragedy.

I know what that looks like on the ground. During my time in government, I strongly encouraged the people who worked for me to deploy with FEMA whenever they had the chance. I spent several months in Louisiana working on the Hurricane Katrina recovery effort in 2005, and it remains one of the most rewarding and heartbreaking experiences of my career. There's nothing like standing in the aftermath of a disaster, working side by side with communities struggling to rebuild. It gives you perspective. It reminds you that this work is about more than policy; it's about people. It's about showing up and helping your fellow Americans when they need it most.

At the same time, FEMA is being defunded and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA)—the agency that tracks hurricanes, issues weather forecasts, and provides early warnings—is being gutted from within. A May 2 report in The New York Times outlined massive staffing cuts to NOAA and the National Weather Service (NWS) just as the 2025 hurricane season is about to begin on June 1. More than 880 employees have already been laid off, and resignations and buyouts are rising. Offices in key regions like Houston are operating without permanent leadership. The Lake Charles, Louisiana office, critical for hurricane response in the Gulf, is reducing public service hours due to a lack of personnel.

Accurate, timely forecasting is the difference between a safe evacuation and a death toll. It's how local leaders decide when to sound the alarm. It's how families know when to leave their homes. These aren't just scientists and meteorologists; they are the frontlines of early warning. Undermining NOAA isn't just reckless. It's sabotage. Even the elite "Hurricane Hunters," pilots and crew who fly directly into storms to gather life-saving data, are under-resourced. Without them, forecasting becomes more uncertain, and so does the public's safety.

Dismantling FEMA and NOAA by Design

What's unfolding now isn't just neglect; it's intentional.

Project 2025 proposes radical structural changes to both FEMA and NOAA, changes that the Trump administration is now beginning to implement in real-time. These plans reflect a sweeping ideological shift from federal disaster response and climate science leadership toward privatization, decentralization, and eliminating what Project 2025's authors call "alarmism" or "overreach."

Project 2025’s vision for FEMA is clear: scale it back until it's barely functional. Under this blueprint:

• Only “large-scale” disasters would qualify for federal support. Most emergencies, especially those in rural areas, would fall entirely on state and local governments.

• Preparedness grants, including over $56 billion in funding that has historically supported everything from cybersecurity to local emergency planning and law enforcement coordination, would be eliminated.

• Flood insurance would be privatized, increasing costs for homeowners and putting entire coastal communities at risk.

• Key leadership roles would be stripped, weakening FEMA’s coordination authority in a crisis.

In practical terms? Communities would be left on their own in the face of wildfires, floods, and hurricanes unless their suffering meets new, arbitrary federal "thresholds." That isn't policy. That's cruelty.

Climate Science Under Siege

Project 2025 treats NOAA not as a scientific institution, but as a political target. Their goal is to break it up and silence it.

• NOAA’s core offices, including the National Weather Service, would be dismantled or transferred out of federal hands.

• Public forecasts would end, replaced by data sales to private companies. Imagine relying on a weather subscription app during a hurricane.

• Climate research funding would disappear, cutting off vital university partnerships and long-range risk modeling.

• Worst of all, scientists would be ordered to present "neutral" data, which is code for minimizing or censoring the real risks of climate change. This is part of the broader strategy of denial that I've written about in more detail here.

This would cripple our ability to track storms, forecast extreme weather, and prepare communities. It's not just dangerous; it's governance by denial and design.

Even Trump’s Allies Are Left Behind

Perhaps the most telling and damning example of this administration's disregard for disaster-stricken Americans is what just happened in Arkansas. Governor Sarah Huckabee Sanders, one of Trump's most loyal allies, recently pleaded for federal assistance after tornadoes killed dozens and destroyed entire communities in her state. Despite the devastation and despite her unwavering political support, Trump said no. The aid was denied. Sanders had to appeal publicly just to get her administration to acknowledge her people's suffering.

If even Trump's closest confidantes can't get help when their constituents are dying, what does that say for the rest of us?

I've said it before and I’ll say it again: we are not protecting the homeland. As someone who has dedicated my career to national security, that's an indictment I don't offer lightly.

Project 2025 lays out a blueprint to shrink FEMA's role until it's barely functional. It's the transformation of FEMA and NOAA from lifelines into shadows of their former selves, subordinated to political aims rather than public safety. These changes aren't theoretical. They're happening quietly, deliberately, and in real-time. The human cost will show up not just in data points but in lives lost, homes leveled, and communities left to shoulder the burden alone. 

Because when the winds rise and the waters surge, Mother Nature doesn't check party registration. She doesn't care who you voted for. And when the very systems built to protect us are dismantled, we are all left more vulnerable. This is not just a policy fight. It's a fight for survival, for decency, and for the fundamental promise that in a moment of crisis, your government will show up.

What Can You Do?

This isn't just a federal failure. It's a test of leadership at every level of government. If the federal government is pulling back, then our state and local leaders must step up. And if they're not already raising hell about it with the White House, they need to be.

Ask Your Governor and Local Leaders One Simple Question: If FEMA doesn't come, what's your plan? That's the question every constituent should be asking right now. Email it, call it in, ask it at town halls, or post it on social media. Because if they haven't started planning for a world where federal aid is delayed or denied, they're failing the people they were elected to protect.

Demand Bipartisan Pressure on the White House: This cannot be a partisan issue. Disasters don't care whether you're in a red or blue state. Every elected official, from state representatives to mayors to governors, should demand that the White House reverse these cuts. If your state legislators or your governor are staying silent, call them out. Hold them accountable. Tell them to fight for your safety.

Support Local Emergency Preparedness: If funding is being stripped at the federal level, ask how your local emergency management office is compensating. Are they conducting drills? Do they have adequate supplies? Are their communications systems resilient? Transparency is key. So is pressure.

Share the Facts:  Project 2025 and these sweeping cuts are not getting enough coverage. Talk about them. Share this information with your neighbors, community boards, school districts, and friends. Awareness drives action, and silence ensures disaster.

You don't have to be in government to lead. You just have to refuse to look away. Because no one, regardless of where they live or who they voted for, should be left behind when the storm hits.

Until next time,

Olivia