(NewsNation) — Congress will hear from the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) Tuesday, following reports that the agency withheld hurricane recovery aid from supporters of President-elect Donald Trump.
The Subcommittee on Economic Development, Public Buildings, and Emergency Management will hold a hearing at 9 a.m. ET with FEMA Administrator Deanne Criswell. Questions will focus on the agency’s preparedness and response to recent disasters, including Hurricanes Helene and Milton.
NewsNation will stream the event live here.
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A FEMA worker was fired earlier this month after she directed others helping hurricane survivors not to go to homes with yard signs supporting President-elect Donald Trump, according to the agency’s leader.
“This is a clear violation of FEMA’s core values and principles to help people regardless of their political affiliation,” Criswell said in a statement at the time. “This was reprehensible.”
The fired employee, Marn’i Washington, is accused of telling her survivor assistance team not to go to Florida homes with pro-Trump yard signs. Washington told NewsNation she believes she’s being used as a scapegoat for a common agency practice.
The instruction to avoid certain houses with certain campaign signs came from her direct superior based on previous team encounters, Washington said, adding that “safety precautions are not politically driven.”
Several recent hostile encounters happened at homes with Trump campaign signs, she said.
“I’m being framed. There’s no violation of the Hatch Act,” Washington said. “I was simply following orders.”
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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