In the mere six months that he led the Federal Emergency Management Agency under President Donald Trump, David Richardson, who resigned this week, demonstrated a profound unfitness for that essential public safety post. His term was a fiasco, and it’s nothing short of a miracle that more Americans weren’t imperiled as a result.
Richardson’s alarming failures cry out for a leader who exudes competence, boasts experience and stresses responsiveness. While the Trump administration has repeatedly advocated for FEMA’s downsizing, if not outright elimination, this is a chance for the White House to show it cares about storm-prone regions such as Hampton Roads, and elevate a proven professional to lead federal emergency management efforts.
Americans face more threats from extreme weather and other natural disasters than ever before. More people live in vulnerable areas, especially in coastal communities, where a changing climate is raising sea levels and creating ever-more powerful storms. Extreme weather — deep freezes in uncommon places, unbearable heat waves, unprecedented rainfall and prolonged drought — is happening more frequently.
When disaster strikes, local and state authorities lead the response. They live in the affected communities and serve the victims with genuine attention and care that neighbors show one another. But when those disasters are enormous, particularly severe or especially challenging, FEMA steps in to coordinate the response and ensure resources are applied to do the most good.
This is no easy charge. FEMA is routinely expected to forge cooperation among various local, state and federal law enforcement and emergency response agencies and to marshal, move and distribute extraordinary amounts of supplies — all as quickly as possible to ensure victims aren’t subjected to additional anguish.
That’s why Congress requires the FEMA administrator to have demonstrated experience in emergency management, including five years of leadership in executive roles. The position is not for the faint-hearted, and it’s certainly no place for neophytes.
Little wonder, then, that FEMA staff as well as members of the public expressed deep concern when Trump tapped Richardson for the job. He had no experience whatsoever in emergency management, and was selected for the role after his predecessor, Cameron Hamilton, was pushed out after telling Congress that FEMA was vital to communities “in their greatest times of need” and should not be eliminated, according to The New York Times.
That violated the First Commandment of the Trump administration: Thou shalt not contradict the president. Trump falsely alleged on the campaign trail that FEMA was failing victims of Hurricane Helene and repeatedly called for shifting emergency management responsibilities to the states, which are ill-equipped to handle billion-dollar disasters.
Richardson alarmed FEMA staff in his introductory meeting with them by expressing surprise that the United States had a hurricane season. The White House said he was joking, but it was no laughing matter when his ham-fisted response to July flash flooding in Texas abandoned victims and amplified their suffering. The Washington Post reported that Richardson was unreachable for hours after the storm, when rapid response could well have saved lives.
Richardson’s departure should prompt the Trump administration to rethink its approach to emergency management by selecting a qualified, experienced candidate to lead FEMA. It should also seize this opportunity to advance needed reforms, jettisoning the notion of the agency’s dismantling.
On Wednesday, The New York Times reported that a presidential task force charged with examining FEMA and proposing reforms echoed that sentiment, concluding that eliminating the agency would cause undue harm to affected communities. A full report is expected by year’s end.
A change in leadership could mean a fresh start for an agency that has served millions of Americans in their darkest, most desperate hours. It should also open the door to thoughtful reform to ensure that help will be available for vulnerable communities, including the cities and counties in Hampton Roads, in the months and years to come.
Lawmakers and other elected officials, especially those who serve Virginia, should be vocal advocates for that path forward and urge the Trump administration not to squander this opportunity to lead.
