U.S. Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem speaks during a press conference to discuss the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA)'s "National Farm Security Action Plan", outside the USDA in Washington, D.C., U.S., July 8, 2025. REUTERS/Umit Bektas
ABC News, on Tuesday, July 15, reported that the official death toll from the catastrophic floods that battered Central Texas over the 4th of July Weekend had reached 134. That number may increase, however: ABC News also reported that "the number of missing persons" was 101 and that "search operations are ongoing" in Kerr County, Texas.
The Central Texas disaster has been a public relations nightmare for the Trump Administration and Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem. The National Weather Service (NWS) has experienced major downsizing during Donald Trump's second presidency, and both Noem and Trump have proposed abolishing the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) altogether.
In an article published on July 17, The Hill's Saul Elbein emphasizes that intense criticism of Noem isn't letting up.
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"Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem is under fire amid reports of a botched disaster response effort in Texas — one that the editorial board of the state's biggest newspaper is comparing to the debacle that followed Hurricane Katrina," Elbein reports. "'Heck of a job, Secretary Noem,' The Houston Chronicle's editorial board wrote on Monday, (July 14), riffing on former President George W. Bush's notorious praise of then-Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) Director Michael Brown as New Orleans flooded."
Elbein adds, "The editors joined Democratic members of Congress — including Sens. Ruben Gallego (Ariz.), Chris Murphy (Md.) and Ed Markey (Mass), as well as Texas Reps. Greg Casar and Jasmine Crockett — in calling for investigations into Noem's handling of FEMA, an agency both she and President Trump have previously talked about closing, amid reports of poor response times and local volunteers filling in for federal responders. On Tuesday, Markey called for Noem's resignation, describing her handling of the floods as 'an absolute disgrace.'"
According to Rafael Lemaitre — who served as FEMA's director of public affairs under former President Barack Obama — the Trump Administration "is in denial about the role of FEMA" and the "improvements that FEMA has made since Hurricane Katrina" in 2005.
Lemaitre told The Hill, "If there ever was a federal agency built not to tell states how to handle things but to support them when needed, it's FEMA, which only kicks in when a state's capacity is exceeded, whether in response, recovery, mitigation, or preparedness. Governors, red or blue, are in charge. They ask for what they need, and we provide it."
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Lemaitre said of the Trump Administration, "They try to equate FEMA with red tape, but that's a red herring, because that's not how the disaster response system has been set up, particularly since Katrina."
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Read Saul Elbein's full article for The Hill at this link.