A Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) supervisor who was fired by FEMA claims that FEMA is making her a scapegoat. Marni Washington was fired for instructing the agency's rescue workers not to assist a Florida homeowner who had posted a sign of President Trump outside his home.
Washington told “Fox News@Night” on Wednesday that authorities were throwing her under the bus for avoiding President Trump's supporters, but that this was a policy from her higher-ups. she insists.
“Why is this happening to me? I am the one who wrote down the memo from my boss and my notation.” [Microsoft] Teams chats were exposed by the search capabilities team,” Washington said.
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Fired FEMA Supervisor Marni Washington told Fox News Channel this week that she is scapegoating FEMA because of the agency's policy of avoiding homes in Florida that display President-elect Trump's signs. claimed that it had been done. (Fox News Channel)
Washington's anger over FEMA's decision to direct disaster relief workers who were rallying in Lake Placid, Florida, after Hurricane Milton to “avoid homes promoting President Trump” was fired by.
The Daily Wire first reported the story based on internal messages sent to subordinates obtained from Washington. The media said government officials spoke of at least 20 homes. with Mr. Trump Signs and flags were diverted from late October to November following “best practice” guidance from authorities.
FEMA Administrator of Employee Misconduct Deanne Criswell confirmed to Fox News Digital over the weekend that the supervisor had been fired and that her actions were “reprehensible.”
Another FEMA spokesperson told Fox that Washington's actions were an “isolated incident.”
But Washington insisted that was not true. In response to Fox News host Trace Gallagher's question, “So are these orders coming from someone above you?” she replied, “Yes.”
A former FEMA official claimed that the Florida team was already avoiding the homes of President Trump voters before they started work. “This was the culture. They were already avoiding these houses based on community trends due to hostile political contacts. It had nothing to do with campaign signs. It just happened to be part of community trends. It was just a department,” Washington explained.
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Mr. Gallagher then asked why Washington was a “scapegoat,” to which she replied that it was simply because she had been caught and that the scandal could be pinned on her.
“And it's easy to say, 'Oh yeah, haha! That's her name. That's her writing. Hold her accountable.'” It's just running. ”
The host then asked if the former FEMA official had come up with a list of “best practices” he gave to his subordinates that included a memo to avoid houses with President Trump signs.
Washington denied that she did so. Asked how she planned to prove that the directive was part of the agency's broader policy, she urged other FEMA employees to “come forward and discuss our avoidance and de-escalation policies.” He said he called.
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She further said that these policies are not about specifically avoiding Trump supporters, but rather about avoiding any situation that FEMA employees might find unsafe or “uncomfortable.”
“I know the highlight here is the Trump campaign sign, but if someone lives in another place, like an urban community, and it's a different culture and someone feels uncomfortable. , we can't go into that house. If we have a free-ranging dog and someone is out, the team was used to the dog, but the other person was not. I can't go to that house for security reasons.”
Fox News Digital's Michael Dorgan, Sarah Rumpf-Whitten and Peter Pinedo contributed to this report.
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