(ThyBlackMan.com) Republican lawmakers cannot have it both ways. They cannot continue to push for tax cuts for the wealthy and not have it catch up with them and the country. They cannot push for tax cuts for the wealthy, and when the time comes for the federal government to fulfill its rightful role, it is unable or unwilling to do so. The governmental structure in our nation is simple. We have separate governments on three levels: local, state, and federal. There are times when the local government must rely on the state, and there are times when both the local and state governments must rely on the federal government as a last resort.
The federal government is key because it has the resources and expertise to provide oversight in areas where it is uniquely positioned to do so. When the federal government fails to provide support in certain areas, states and localities will bear the burden. In some cases, the burden will have a human toll, placing lives at risk. We currently have an executive branch within our federal government that promotes a domestic policy aimed at shifting the role of the federal government in specific areas, thereby transferring much of its responsibility to local and state levels. We currently have a Republican-led legislative branch at the federal level that has rubber-stamped that policy, knowing that their constituents back home will bear burdens they are unequipped to handle. In other words, our Republican-led federal government is failing our states and localities, including those within “Trump Country.”
Whenever the day comes when there are no longer droughts, heatwaves, floods, tornadoes, hurricanes, or wildfires, it will be the day the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) will no longer be needed and it can forever close its doors. FEMA’s main function is to coordinate the federal government’s response to disasters that overwhelm state and local resources. FEMA helps people before, during, and after disasters by providing support to individuals, communities, and first responders. Based on the 2024 billion-dollar disaster analysis data from the National Centers for Environmental Information, a total of 27 weather and climate disasters resulted in at least $1 billion in damages.
This follows the record number of 28 disasters in 2023. These disasters caused at least 568 direct or indirect fatalities. This current trend indicates that disasters are not only intensifying, but it also means there will be a greater reliance on FEMA in the future to save lives, protect property, and assist communities with recovery efforts. As the leading agency for disaster response, an underfunded FEMA will only compound the human suffering toll, resulting from unpredictable weather and climate disasters.
It is the magnitude of the human toll in emergency situations that should never be forgotten. The human toll must be acknowledged by true public servants with sensitivity, rather than being downplayed or ignored by self-serving, cold-hearted lawmakers. It means caring about the significant impact these disasters have on people’s lives, both in terms of loss of life and suffering. This acknowledgement should always be consistent and transcend politics by choosing the welfare of everyday citizens over the greed of billionaires.
In past years, while FEMA’s disaster fund has been depleted by major hurricanes and wildfires, some congressional Republicans have advocated that any increase in FEMA funding be paired with spending cuts elsewhere in the federal budget. Their argument suggests that these additional expenditures, which are intended to address unpredictable emergencies, should not contribute to the national debt. While Democrats and some Republicans have previously pushed for so-called “emergency” expenditures that are not subject to budgetary trade-offs, key Republicans such as Sen. Tom Coburn of Oklahoma have made it a priority to require “offsets” for disaster relief funding.
This insistence on offsets has at times resulted in delays or failures of disaster aid bills when offsets were not found or agreed upon. The Republicans are correct that fiscal responsibility requires us not to increase the national debt. Therefore, the “offsets” should not be achieved by cutting programs in the budget, but rather by denying tax cuts to billionaires.
We are already seeing the frustration on the state and local levels as the shift in governmental responsibility becomes more evident. Since the early part of this year, the Trump administration has increased denials of FEMA aid requests, affecting both Democratic and Republican regions. Arkansas, Kentucky, and rural Maryland experienced denials despite severe disasters. The residents of Westernport, Maryland, who overwhelmingly voted for Trump, are frustrated that the Trump administration denied the state’s $15.8 million FEMA request to aid communities hit by devastating floodwaters seeping through the small town of about 1,800 residents. Federal funds from FEMA would have helped to pay for repairs to critical infrastructure.
The decision came as a shock to local leaders in Western Maryland, considering the county and state still met the threshold to qualify for assistance. “We met the criteria,” Westernport Mayor Judy Hamilton said. “So, we’re confused, and we don’t understand why we were not given the FEMA assistance.”
Many people feel that the FEMA denial was politically motivated because Maryland is a Democratic-run state. Maryland’s application was denied while neighboring West Virginia, which encountered the same degree of damage, had its application approved. “Even though Maryland is a Democratic state, up here they’re not. They voted red. And I think that’s where the frustration for the residents is,” Hamilton said. “Now they feel like the president has turned his back on them.” Republican leaders on the local level must not be confused. This is exactly what they voted for: a domestic policy that places local communities in “Trump Country” at risk.
Written by David W. Marshall
Official website; https://davidwmarshallauthor.com/
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