Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis is backing legal action taken by Florida Attorney General Ashley Moody’s office to investigate reports of a FEMA official directing disaster relief workers to ignore homes of Trump supporters in the Sunshine State.
“It’s unacceptable for the federal government to discriminate against Floridians who voted for Trump, and especially egregious in the aftermath of a hurricane,” DeSantis said on Thursday.
“I’m supportive of this legal action by the Attorney General’s Office, and I have instructed state agencies to likewise take any action necessary to investigate and ensure those who engaged in this behavior are held accountable,” he said, citing the recent announcement from Moody, who said she is “taking swift legal action to find out how far FEMA’s political discrimination reaches and to make sure ALL Americans who fall victim to devastating storms are served, regardless of their political affiliation.”
A press release of this announcement provides details of what led to this decision, pointing directly to the most recent FEMA scandal featuring Marn’i Washington, who reportedly “ordered disaster relief workers to bypass homes of Trump supporters as they surveyed damage caused by Hurricane Milton,” as Breitbart News detailed. And while Biden-Harris FEMA Administrator Deanne Criswell announced Washington’s firing last week, Washington suggested that such discrimination is not an isolated incident.
“According to whistleblower reports, FEMA workers in Lake Placid were directed to ignore storm victims in households that displayed Trump signs or flags,” Moody’s press release reads, detailing these damning claims:
In an interview following these damning revelations, fired FEMA supervisor Marn’i Washington claimed political discrimination by FEMA is not an isolated event and occurred across the country. To hold the agency accountable for violating the civil rights of Floridians, Attorney General Moody is taking legal action against Washington and FEMA Administrator Deanne Criswell, and seeking punitive damages in their individual capacities – as a tropical system develops south of Florida.
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The legal complaint outlines the terrible facts of the civil rights violations following the devastation caused by Hurricanes Helene and Milton. The complaint includes a message from Washington directing workers to “avoid homes advertising Trump.”
While FEMA fired Washington and called the behavior “reprehensible,” Washington insists that the agency is using her as a “scapegoat,” and stated that similar conduct occurred in North Carolina and throughout other areas affected by Helene and Milton. The complaint states: “While the facts will continue to come out over the weeks and months, it is already clear that Defendant Washington conspired with senior FEMA officials to violate the civil rights of Florida citizens.”
Criswell announced the firing on Saturday, asserting that, “More than 22,000 FEMA employees every day adhere to FEMA’s core values and are dedicated to helping people before, during and after disasters, often sacrificing time with their own families to help disaster survivors.”
“Recently, a FEMA employee departed from these values to advise her survivor assistance team to not go to homes with yard signs supporting President-elect Trump. This is a clear violation of FEMA’s core values & principles to help people regardless of their political affiliation,” she continued, deeming such action “reprehensible.”
“I want to be clear to all of my employees and the American people, this type of behavior and action will not be tolerated at FEMA and we will hold people accountable if they violate these standards of conduct,” she added.
This action comes as Florida braces for another potential storm, as a tropical system is developing near the Yucatan Peninsula. It is expected to make a sharp right turn towards Florida once high pressure lifts early next week.
