Trump administration suspends FEMA employees who warned about disaster response
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Summary
A group of at least 30 employees from the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) have been suspended after warning that the agency was ill-prepared for natural disasters due to spending limits, staffing cuts and gaps in leadership.
The employees were placed on administrative leave following the submission of a letter warning that the agency would be unable to deal with a major disaster, such as another Hurricane Katrina.
The letter called on Congress to intervene to prevent the “dismantling” of the agency, noting that its leadership was more concerned with cost-cutting than serving communities as required by their oath.
It is the latest in a series of crackdowns by the Trump administration against federal employees who have raised concerns about their agencies’ ability to fulfil their missions.
The EPA placed 144 employees on administrative leave after they criticised the agency for failing to protect communities from hazardous chemicals and unsafe drinking water.