New FEMA Nominee Will Carry Out Trump’s Agenda of Weakening Disaster Response

Cameron Hamilton admitted to wanting to “downsize” FEMA 

Washington, DC – Trump’s nominee for FEMA Administrator, Cameron Hamilton, will carry out Trump’s agenda to weaken disaster response and push the cost of recovery onto states. Hamilton admitted to wanting to “downsize” the agency. Since his first weeks in office, Trump has gutted FEMA — sowing chaos in the agency, delaying aid for devastated communities, and weakening our ability to respond to wildfires, hurricanes, and other extreme weather events.

Climate Power Senior Advisor Mia Logan issued the following statement: “During Hamilton’s first tenure as acting FEMA Administrator, Trump gutted the agency and weakened our disaster response. This time around, it’s going to be more of the same. Just last week, Trump’s FEMA Review Council recommended overhauling the agency and pushing the cost of disaster recovery onto states and communities that can’t afford it. Hamilton admitted to wanting to ‘downsize’ FEMA, but with only a few weeks until hurricane season, Trump’s cuts have put our disaster response at risk.” 

Trump has decimated FEMA, and new FEMA nominee will carry out Trump’s agenda to push the cost of recovery onto states: 

• Cameron Hamilton admitted to wanting to “downsize” FEMA.
• During his tenure as acting FEMA Administrator, Hamilton wrote a memo to the White House suggesting presidents approve fewer disaster requests and FEMA distribute less aid.
• Last week, Trump’s FEMA Review Council released its recommendations to overhaul the agency — pushing the financial and administrative burden of disaster recovery onto states and local communities, making it more expensive for people to rebuild.  
• Trump has undermined FEMA’s role in helping communities prepare for disasters. Trump’s FY’27 budget proposal included cutting $1.3 billion in FEMA funds for state and local emergency preparedness. 
• Trump has consistently politicized disaster aid. As of March 2026, it was three times harder for Democratic-led states to get Trump’s approval for federal disaster aid. Trump approved just 23% of disaster aid requests from Democratic-led states, compared to 89% for Republican-led states. 
• Trump has taken longer to approve or deny federal disaster aid than previous administrations, especially for states that did not vote for him. Trump has taken an average of 63 days to make decisions about Democratic states’ disaster assistance requests.
• Trump has cut key FEMA staff, delaying the distribution of critical disaster funding. In 2025, Trump’s Department of Homeland Security drafted plans to cut FEMA’s workforce by more than 50%, which would have resulted in the loss of more than 11,500 jobs.
• Trump has already been pushing the cost of recovery onto states. In the first year of his second term, Trump denied and delayed disaster aid for 18 states: Oregon, Maryland, Kansas, Missouri, West Virginia, Michigan, Kentucky, Oklahoma, New Mexico, Washington, Georgia, Arkansas, North Carolina, Illinois, Colorado, Vermont, Alaska, and Wisconsin.
• Under Trump, pending FEMA disaster applications have sat longer on average than at any other point in the previous 37 years.
• Trump stopped approving new allocations from FEMA’s Hazard Mitigation and Grant Program, becoming the first president in at least three decades to deny governors’ requests for funding that’s meant to protect people and property.