In an appearance on MSNBC’s Morning Joe Monday, FEMA Administrator Deanne Criswell slammed politicians who were “having a hard time telling the difference between fact and fiction” and impeding the agency’s ability “to actually get people the help they need.”
Show hosts Joe Scarborough and Mika Brzezinski played clips from Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee and Sen. Thom Tillis (R-NC) — both conservative Republicans — thanking FEMA for their assistance and cooperation with local and state officials.
Brzezinski introduced Criswell and asked her for an update on Hurricane Helene recovery efforts. “Are state and local officials across the board getting what they need?” she asked.
“Absolutely, Mika,” replied Criswell. “We have over 4,500 people on the ground that have been here since before the storm made landfall, working side by side with our state counterparts, in the communities with our local officials, and all I hear on the ground is gratefulness and compassion and a level of unity, to make sure that we’re getting people what they need.”
She then turned to the harm caused by politicians spreading misinformation.
“It’s frankly disappointing that we’re having to deal with this narrative,” she said. “And the fact there are a few leaders that are having a hard time telling the difference between fact and fiction, is creating an impedence to our ability to actually get people the help they need.”
Scarborough mentioned that Gov. Lee had said that some of the misinformation “may be driven by foreign powers” and called it “discouraging” how “presidential candidates are picking that up,” presumably referring to former President Donald Trump.
As a Florida resident, Scarborough had “been through far too many hurricanes,” he added, but regarding these recent storms, he had “never seen this before in my life,” such “destruction” in western North Carolina.
Criswell agreed that the damage caused by Helene was “certainly one of the most complex incidents” she had seen, due to “all these valleys and topography that generates flash floods that come so fast,” the “roads that have been cut off,” and people who “live up in the hills that now have limited access.” She spoke a bit about how FEMA was helping deliver food, water, and other supplies, coordinate debris removal, and assist with getting infrastructure operational again “so people can get back to normalcy.”
The FEMA administrator then addressed how the agency was preparing for Hurricane Milton, which is bearing down on Florida — seemingly an effort to cut off misinformation before it could start. She emphasized that FEMA already had resources in place assisting with recovery from Helene and preparing for Milton in advance of the storm (now Category 4 and still strengthening) making landfall.
Criswell had spoken with Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R-FL), she said, and “assured” him “we were moving in resources to pre-stage them, to be available,” including search and rescue efforts, getting the army corps of engineers ready with generators to be installed, etc.
“We also have a lot of people on the ground already,” said Criswell. “We have a full staff there supporting the response to Hurricane Helene. We also have a full staff that’s in place supporting the recovery from the previous storms. Florida has been hit the last three years in a row with major hurricanes. We’ve already had staff on the ground, and they’ll reposition themselves to support this. I’m going down to Tampa this afternoon to meet with the mayor so I can better understand what her needs are as this storm comes in.”
She concluded by urging Floridians to “listen to their local officials” and be very wary about storm surge dangers.
“They need to evacuate if they’re told to do so, because these storms are bringing more water than they ever have,” she said. “While we have the wind risk, it’s the water that’s killing people. Please listen to your local officials. Seek safety.”
Watch the clip above via MSNBC.
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Sarah Rumpf joined Mediaite in 2020 and is a Contributing Editor focusing on politics, law, and the media. A native Floridian, Sarah attended the University of Florida, graduating with a double major in Political Science and German, and earned her Juris Doctor, cum laude, from the UF College of Law. Sarah's writing has been featured at National Review, The Daily Beast, Reason, Law & Crime, Independent Journal Review, Texas Monthly, The Capitolist, Breitbart Texas, Townhall, RedState, The Orlando Sentinel, and the Austin-American Statesman, and her political commentary has led to appearances on the BBC, MSNBC, NewsNation, Fox 35 Orlando, Fox 7 Austin, The Young Turks, The Dean Obeidallah Show, and other television, radio, and podcast programs across the globe.
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