An official with the Federal Emergency Management Agency ordered relief workers helping those devastated by Hurricane Milton in Florida to bypass homes with Trump signs.
According to internal messages obtained by The Daily Wire, a FEMA supervisor told workers to ‘avoid homes advertising Trump’ as they worked around Lake Placid.
Supervisor Marn’i Washington had relayed the message in a group chat and verbally, according to employees who spoke with the outlet.
They said that they skipped over at least 20 houses with signage indicating their support for the President-elect due to the guidance passed down by Washington.
The text message says to ‘implement best practices’ which included the directive ‘avoid home advertising Trump’. It also advised workers to drink coconut water to replenish electrolytes.
A home destroyed by a tornado spawned by Hurricane Milton, October 12, 2024 in Fort Pierce, Florida
The text message says: ‘Implement best practices: avoid home advertising Trump’, it also advises workers to drink water and coconut water to replenish electrolytes
According to The Daily Wire, the workers had been part of a Department of Homeland Security team that was made up of volunteers from other agencies.
One of the workers said: ‘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.’
The person added that it was wrong to discriminate against Trump supporters when they were their ‘most vulnerable’.
They added: ‘I volunteered to help disaster victims, not discriminate against them. It didn’t matter if people were black, white, Hispanic, for Trump, for Harris. Everyone deserves the same amount of help.’
Images also obtained by the outlet of the system used to document what homes they visited show notes being left that said: ‘Trump sign, no contact per leadership’.
A FEMA spokesperson said: ‘While we believe this is an isolated incident, we have taken measures to remove the employee from their role and are investigating the matter to prevent this from happening ever again.
‘The employee who issued this guidance had no authority and was given no direction to tell teams to avoid these homes and we are reaching out to the people who may have not been reached as a result of this incident.’
Images also obtained by the outlet of the system used to document what homes they visited show notes being left that said: ‘Trump sign, no contact per leadership’
FEMA officials talk to residents displaced out of their apartment complex during Hurricane Milton, Friday, Oct. 11, 2024, in Clearwater, Florida
The statement continued: ‘This is a matter that we take extremely seriously and we are doing everything we can to make sure all survivors receive support from FEMA.
‘We are horrified that this took place and therefore have taken extreme actions to correct this situation and have ensured that the matter was addressed at all levels.
‘Helping people is what we do best and our workforce across the agency will continue to serve survivors for as long as it takes.’
The Trump-related remarks were subsequently deleted from the group chat a few days after she posted them.
Florida Governor Ron DeSantis has since said he has ordered an investigation into the messages made by Washington.
Homes along the Gulf of Mexico are seen after they were destroyed when Hurricane Milton passed through the area on October 12, 2024, in Manasota Key, Florida
He said: ‘The blatant weaponization of government by partisan activists in the federal bureaucracy is yet another reason why the Biden-Harris administration is in its final days.
‘At my direction, the Division of Emergency Management is launching an investigation into the federal government’s targeted discrimination of Floridians who support Donald Trump.
‘New leadership is on the way in DC, and I’m optimistic that these partisan bureaucrats will be fired.’
Over 30 people died after the storm wrecked catastrophe on communities, with homes left ruined.
