Florida Republican Demands Hurricane Aid She Tried to Block

Republican Representative Anna Paulina Luna demanded more FEMA funding for Florida, just weeks after she voted against a bill that provided $20 billion for federal emergency funds.

As Hurricane Milton approaches the Florida coastline, Luna has waded into a growing spat between Vice President Kamala Harris and Florida Governor Ron DeSantis.

“We have a category 5 hurricane headed right to Pinellas, and @KamalaHarris is taking this time to attack @GovRonDeSantis?” Luna wrote Monday in a post on X.

“Cut the crap. We need FEMA DOLLARS FREE’D UP. ALL ASSETS. STOP ATTACKING RON AND DO YOUR JOB! @VP” she added.

But just last month, as Hurricane Helene approached the United States, Luna voted to shut down the federal government, vetoing a measure to extend FEMA funding by $20 billion. Luna was among 82 House Republicans who voted against the deal and one of 11 Florida lawmakers who cast dissenting votes.

Now, as Florida prepares to face a massive Category 5 storm that has prompted massive evacuations across the state, Luna is vying to get every cent she can.

When Luna failed to support FEMA funding, she faced strong criticism from Democratic candidate Whitney Fox, who is running to unseat her.

“As the worst storm in our lifetime was hours away, Luna couldn’t set aside her partisan games for even a moment,” Fox said . “She voted to delay critical FEMA aid and emergency support when we would need it most. This isn’t leadership—it’s a catastrophic failure.”

At the time, the White House warned that the stopgap bill, while necessary to pass, did not provide adequate funding to help communities recover from natural disasters.