ICYMI: Records Show Kristi Noem Expedited Millions in Disaster Relief Within Weeks of Campaign Donor Request While Other Communities Face Delays
FLORIDA — While disaster-stricken communities across America wait months for critical FEMA assistance, Secretary Kristi Noem reportedly fast-tracked $11 million to rebuild a Naples pier within just two weeks after her campaign donor personally intervened. The revelation exposes how disaster relief under the Trump administration has been corrupted into a pay-to-play system where political connections, not urgent need, determine who receives federal aid.
Records obtained by ProPublica reveal the stark inequality: frustrated Naples officials had struggled for months to secure disaster assistance for the tourist attraction damaged by 2022’s Hurricane Ian, but achieved “warp speed” approval after wealthy donor Sinan Gursoy contacted Noem directly. Meanwhile, communities in Democratic-led states face systematic delays and denials, with Trump rejecting 6 of 10 major disaster requests from Democratic governors while approving 14 of 15 requests from Republican governors since February.
“This is textbook corruption in disaster relief – communities in crisis get ignored while wealthy donors get VIP treatment with a single phone call,” said Florida State Representative and Sabotaging Our Safety Advisory Council Member Angie Nixon. “Kristi Noem has turned FEMA into a personal favor network for her rich friends. As we head deeper into hurricane season, Florida families can’t afford this kind of pay-for-play disaster response. Donald Trump and his cronies’ corrupt mismanagement of disaster relief puts lives at risk when Americans need help most.”
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But records obtained by ProPublica show how one locality found a way to get FEMA aid more quickly: It asked one of Noem’s political donors for help.
The records show that Noem quickly expedited more than $11 million of federal money to rebuild a historic pier in Naples, Florida, after she was contacted by a major financial supporter last month. The pier is a tourist attraction in the wealthy Gulf Coast enclave and was badly damaged by Hurricane Ian in 2022.
Frustrated city officials had been laboring for months, without success, to get disaster assistance. But just two weeks after the donor stepped in, they were celebrating their sudden change of fortune. “We are now at warp speed with FEMA,” one city official wrote in an email. A FEMA representative wrote: “Per leadership instruction, pushing project immediately.”
The Independent: Kristi Noem accused of directing FEMA funds to restore pier in Florida enclave after donor’s plea
Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem reportedly fast-tracked more than $11 million in federal funds to fix a Florida pier located near the reported home of a top adviser, after a wealthy past political donor reached out to her for help.
The allegations come amid complaints the Federal Emergency Management Agency has been slow to respond to recent disasters like flooding in central Texas, thanks in part to reported policies like Noem personally needing to sign off on expenses over $100,000.
Nonetheless, Noem reportedly leapt to intervene and fix a historic pier in Naples, Florida, a scenic and wealthy enclave on the Gulf Coast, that has been damaged since 2022’s Hurricane Ian.
The New Republic: Kristi Noem Rushed Millions in FEMA Aid After GOP Donor Called Her Up
Naples, Florida, has discovered one easy trick to bypass the bureaucratic delays Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem has created at the Federal Emergency Management Agency: Get a wealthy friend and supporter of Noem to reach out to her.
Until August, the city had been exasperatedly waiting on relief to rebuild the Naples Pier, which was damaged by Hurricane Ian in 2022. According to a new ProPublica report, FEMA only finally responded—providing $11 million for reconstruction—once a deep-pocketed friend and supporter of Noem, named Sinan Gursoy, stepped in.
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