A newly surfaced clip from a FEMA disaster preparedness meeting has sparked fresh outrage, shedding light on the Biden-Harris administration’s politically motivated handling of disaster response efforts. The footage, recorded in March 2023, shows FEMA Emergency Management Specialist Tyler Atkins prioritizing the needs of LGBTQIA+ communities over broader disaster relief efforts.

The clip resurfaced in the wake of Hurricane Helene, which struck the Southeast and caused widespread devastation in late September. The timing has only intensified backlash on FEMA’s response, with people now accusing the agency of diverting attention from its primary mission to score political points. In the leaked virtual meeting, Atkins, who uses he/they pronouns, is heard saying the agency is prioritizing LGBTQ people because they are “already disadvantaged.”

Atkins added, “They already have their own things to deal with. So you add a disaster on top of that, it’s just compounding on itself.” The remarks have raised concerns that FEMA is focusing on so-called “disaster equity” at the expense of a more traditional approach of helping all victims equally and efficiently.

“The shift that we’re seeing right now is a shift in emergency management from utilitarian principles, where everything is designed for the greatest good for the greatest amount of people, to disaster equity,” another FEMA worker explained. However, the shift is not sitting well with some officials and politicians, who claim it is a misguided departure from FEMA’s core mission.

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The controversy comes as the death toll from Hurricane Helene continues to rise. According to the Associated Press, as of Saturday, 227 people have been confirmed dead, making it the deadliest storm to hit the mainland U.S. since Hurricane Katrina in 2005. The hurricane, which came ashore as a Category 4, tore through Florida, Georgia, South Carolina, and North Carolina, destroying homes, roads, and infrastructure.

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Despite the massive loss of life and the destruction left in Helene’s wake, many have argued that FEMA has been slow to respond. Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas, who oversees the agency, is facing renewed criticism. His remarks that FEMA is out of disaster funds have been contradicted by a report from the DHS Inspector General’s office, which claims the agency is sitting on over $8.3 billion in unspent funds. This has fueled accusations that FEMA is either mismanaging its resources or deliberately withholding them.

Former President Donald Trump and Senator JD Vance (R-OH) have both seized on the opportunity to criticize the administration. Trump reiterated his claims that FEMA funds are being diverted to support illegal immigrants rather than American disaster survivors at campaign stops over the weekend. “They’re offering them $750 to people whose homes have been washed away,” Trump said on Saturday in Butler, Pennsylvania. “Yet we send tens of billions of dollars to foreign countries that most people have never heard of. They’re offering them $750. They’ve been destroyed. These people have been destroyed.”

Again on Monday, Trump wrote on Truth Social: “THE RESPONSE TO THE HURRICANE BY LYIN’ KAMALA HARRIS IS NOW RATED THE WORST STORM RESPONSE IN HISTORY. NORTH CAROLINA, GEORGIA, FLORIDA, SOUTH CAROLINA, TENNESSEE, ALABAMA, and others, will respond by VOTING FOR “TRUMP.” We will, MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN!”

(FREE RED HAT: “Impeached. Arrested. Convicted. Shot. Still Standing”)