Harris-Biden Admin Turned FEMA Into a DEI Experiment – and Hurricane Victims Are Suffering for It – RedState

If ever there was an ironclad example of the failures of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) practices in Kamala Harris’ America, the devastating government response to Hurricane Helene should leave no doubt. And it’s about to grow ever more apparent.

The Federal Emergency Management Agency’s (FEMA) focus has shifted towards emphasizing DEI over immediate disaster response efficiency under the Harris-Biden administration.

Hurricane Helene victims are suffering because of it. Hurricane Milton victims are about to as well.

The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) as a whole has endured stunning ineptitude through the DEI-fueled hiring of Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas.

Mayorkas has been, in an understatement, a complete and utter disaster. Under his watch, the door to the southern border has swung wide open — over 10 million illegal immigrants have entered the country, including 1.8 million known “gotaways” who slipped past Border Patrol. 

He also had his hand in the multiple security failures involved in the assassination attempts against Donald Trump, reportedly ignoring “repeated requests” for stronger Secret Service protection for the former president.

It should come as no surprise. These are the kinds of things that tend to happen when hiring based on which demographic boxes an individual checks off instead of their capability or knowledge. Upon his hiring, Mayorkas was heralded first and foremost for being “the first Latino and immigrant” to serve in the role of DHS Secretary.

Every other aspect of his resume came as an afterthought and was not thoroughly scrutinized.

This man’s incompetence knows no bounds and has now stretched into FEMA’s territory. The agency falls under Mayorkas’ DHS jurisdiction.

Helene, a formidable Category 4 storm when it made landfall in Florida’s Big Bend region, wound up leaving a path of destruction stretching through Georgia, the Carolinas, and points elsewhere. The hurricane’s aftermath created flooded streets, destroyed homes and entire towns, and left numerous communities cut off from essential services.

The government response has been an unmitigated disaster.

At least 227 people have died. It will no doubt go much higher, with one writer with roots in the Western Carolinas indicating they are “still finding dead neighbors” nearly 12 days after Helene first made landfall.

NASCAR legends and country stars have both tried to provide aid, comfort, and rescue operations where the feds have failed — and they have failed to an immeasurable extent. How much worse would things be if not for the actions of these heroes?

Some of these communities will take months, if not years, to recover and rebuild.

The Harris administration and Mayorkas’ department were behind the eight ball from the start in coordinating a response. Why? The agency’s Shelter and Services Program – a program providing grants to communities to deal with the rapid influx of illegals – ballooned from $363.8 million in 2023 to $650 million the following year.

That revelation yielded a stark admission from Mayorkas — that FEMA does not have the funding to deal with disasters going forward.

“We are meeting the immediate needs with the money that we have. We are expecting another hurricane hitting,” Mayorkas said. “FEMA does not have the funds to make it through the season.”

Peak hurricane season runs until late October and overall does not conclude until November 30th. Hurricane Milton, a monster of a storm perhaps never seen before in size and strength combined, is bearing down on the Tampa Bay area as we speak.

With funds drying up, the federal government response going forward is primed to be equally as disastrous as what you saw with Helene, if not more so. 

This is what happens when a man whose top credential is his ethnic background and immigration status as opposed to what he can do to effectively run the DHS. Funds go to pet projects that help aid illegal aliens first, while disaster victims become an afterthought.

And while FEMA allocated over $1 billion in funding to provide housing to illegal migrants, Harris — chosen herself by Biden almost exclusively based on gender and skin color — was announcing that the agency was accepting applications for a small stipend to victims of Helene in Georgia.

“The federal relief and assistance that we have been providing has included FEMA providing $750 for folks who need immediate needs being met, such as food, baby formula, and the like,” she declared. “And you can apply now.”

FEMA, in a recent press release, revealed that the agency had disbursed roughly $10 million in “flexible and upfront” assistance as a consolation prize for Helene victims. Since then, they have spent roughly $137 million for the recovery effort. That represents just a tick over 13 percent of the budget allocated for the Shelter and Services Program for illegals.

Victims are 13 percent as important in the eyes of the administration. And the plebians can happily accept their $750 stipends when illegals get their rent paid for up to a year.

Georgians and North Carolinians surely recognize where Harris’s priorities would lie over the next four years. 

FEMA, under her and Biden’s purview, has morphed into a DEI experiment gone wrong. And they’ve been bragging about it to the public for years.

During a press conference on September 16, 2022, White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre (you’ll never guess why she was hired; hint – gender, skin color, sexual orientation) admitted that FEMA funding was being doled out “to eligible local governments and not-for-profit organizations upon request to support humanitarian relief for migrants.”

Jean-Pierre, with the help of the leftist legacy media, tried to deny that any funding had been diverted, but as most people know, if she’s denying it, it is assuredly true. Her own words betray her.

FEMA bowing down to DEI practices hasn’t just been limited to using up funding to aid illegals. A disaster preparedness meeting in March of 2023 saw the agency “focusing efforts on LGBTQIA+” victims.

The Daily Mail reported that FEMA was “prioritizing LGBTQ people” because they are “already disadvantaged.”

The following month saw the organization of a second webinar, which concentrated on addressing “Response and Recovery Considerations” tailored for the LGBT community affected by disasters.

Just a month after Jean-Pierre’s reveal that illegal aliens were receiving funds from the agency, Harris herself pulled the curtain back when revealing how the administration was prioritizing disaster funds in the wake of Hurricane Ian.

“It is our lowest-income communities and our communities of color that are most impacted by these extreme conditions,” she claimed while speaking at the Democratic National Committee’s Women’s Leadership Forum.

“We have to address this in a way that is about giving resources based on equity, understanding that we fight for equality, but we also need to fight for equity,” added Harris.

Where disaster aid must be prioritized based on greatest need, Harris wants it prioritized by race.

Prior to this administration, there were laws against such obvious discrimination. Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 prohibits discrimination on the basis of race, color, or national origin in programs or activities receiving federal financial assistance.

Now, such discrimination is openly celebrated. People are dying because of it. And Kamala Harris will only amplify the DEI disaster enveloping this nation if she wins in November.