A senior FEMA official is accused of instructing disaster relief teams to skip homes displaying pro-Trump signs while assessing damage from Hurricane Milton in Florida. According to internal communications obtained by The Daily Wire, Marn’i Washington, a FEMA supervisor, allegedly advised workers not to approach homes that displayed Trump signs as they canvassed Lake Placid, Florida, in late October. Multiple federal employees have since confirmed these allegations.
Washington reportedly communicated the instruction both verbally and in a group chat used by her team. Images of messages in the FEMA system show that employees marked homes as “not able to access” with reasons such as “Trump sign no entry per leadership” and “no stop Trump flag,” suggesting that these instructions were followed in the field. Washington allegedly described this approach as “best practice” to avoid homes supporting the former president, without providing a specific reason.
The reports indicate that approximately 20 homes with visible Trump support were bypassed by FEMA workers in late October and early November. As part of a Department of Homeland Security surge capacity force team, the FEMA agents were initially brought in to support an understaffed agency managing two major hurricanes within a short span.
One FEMA employee expressed disbelief, saying, “I thought we could go help and make a difference. When we got there, we were told to discriminate against people. It’s almost unbelievable to think that somebody in the federal government would think that’s okay.”
Another worker, who had volunteered specifically to support disaster victims, criticized the alleged guidance, stating, “It didn’t matter if people were black, white, Hispanic, for Trump, for Harris. Everyone deserves the same amount of help.”
FEMA has responded to the allegations, confirming they are investigating the matter. Chad Hershey, Washington’s FEMA supervisor, told The Daily Wire that the agency is “aware of it and taking action at this moment.” Hershey added that FEMA would provide a full statement, although none was available at the time of the initial report.
A FEMA spokesperson later issued a statement expressing the agency’s concern over the alleged actions, saying, “We are deeply disturbed and horrified by the actions of this employee. Measures have been taken to remove the employee from their role, and we are investigating to prevent this from happening again.”
The spokesperson further clarified that the guidance allegedly provided by Washington was unauthorized and that FEMA would reach out to any residents who may have missed assistance due to the incident.
The incident has amplified criticism of FEMA, which was already under scrutiny for its handling of Hurricane Helene. In Tennessee’s Carter County, residents reported that FEMA aid arrived nearly two weeks after the hurricane struck, with some locals attributing the delay to political biases.
FEMA operates in a politically sensitive environment, especially in areas like Highlands County, Florida, which supported Trump by a 70% margin in the recent election.