(The Center Square) – Promising to bring congressional fiscal help and hammering away at FEMA, second-term Republican President Donald Trump’s first domestic trip led off Friday talking to residents in western North Carolina.
Recovery from Hurricane Helene, entering its 18th week, has been a slow slog. The storm killed 104 in the state, 233 total in seven, and caused an estimated $53 billion in damage according to a funding request from the last gubernatorial administration.
Trump to Hurricane Helene Victims: “You Are Not Forgotten Any Longer” in North Carolina on 1/24/25.
“It’s a massive amount of damage,” Trump said in a meeting with government leaders at Asheville Regional Airport immediately upon landing. “FEMA has really let us down, let the country down. And I don’t know if that’s Biden’s fault or whose fault it is, but we’re going to take over, and we’re going to do a good job.”
Included is the president’s suggestion of eliminating the Federal Emergency Management Agency that is within the U.S. Department of Homeland Security.
Michael Whatley, the former leader of the state Republican Party and now chairman of the Republican National Committee, was tapped by Trump to coordinate recovery efforts. Trump said he would be “very much in charge.”
He’ll have several helping arms to coordinate. There’s Congress, from whom Trump said money would come; FEMA, should it survive; the Small Business Administration within the U.S. Department of Commerce; the Recovery Office for Western North Carolina, known as GROW NC and Democratic Gov. Josh Stein’s creation; and the General Assembly of North Carolina.
“We’re going to supply the money – we’ll supply a lot of the money,” Trump said. “Maybe you have to chip in something – you’ll chip in a little something like maybe 25% or whatever.”
His comment was directed to Stein, who responded, “We will.”
Speaking more of FEMA, Trump said, “To have a group of people come in from an area that don’t even know where they’re going in order to solve immediately a problem is something that never worked for me. But this is probably one of the best examples of it not working.”
Among several joining Trump and Stein around a table for discussion were U.S. Reps. Chuck Edwards and Virginia Foxx of the districts that border Tennessee and were most impacted; U.S. Rep. Pat Harrigan; state House Speaker Destin Hall, R-Caldwell; and state House Majority Leader Brendan Jones, R-Columbus. Coming on Air Force One were Edwards, Foxx, and U.S. Reps. Dr. Greg Murphy, Addison McDowell, Tim Moore, Mark Harris, Pat Harrigan and Brad Knott, all Republicans from the state.
“By making this the first official trip of his presidency, President Trump is keeping his promise to the people of western North Carolina that we are not forgotten,” Edwards said.
President Donald Trump, flanked by Rev. Franklin Graham (left) and his wife Melania, visited western North Carolina on Friday, Jan. 24, 2025, to talk with residents, political representatives and see damage from Hurricane Helene.
Moore, the former record-setting speaker of the state House, on social media thanked the president for his “commitment to rebuilding our state.”
“It was encouraging to see that western North Carolina and disaster relief efforts were top of mind for President Trump and the first lady, because the commitment of federal resources will be critical for recovery and rebuilding,” Agriculture Commissioner Steve Troxler said in an afternoon statement. “Our farmers are hurting along with many others across the country, and the disasters in 2024 only added to the intense pressure they are under. Farmers urgently need Congress to pass a Farm Bill that includes meaningful disaster assistance.”
Asked before leaving Washington if there would be an executive order related to FEMA, Trump tongue-in-cheek said, “FEMA has been a very big disappointment. They cost a great deal of money, it’s very bureaucratic, it’s very slow. Other than that, we’re very happy with it.”
FEMA distribution is at $319 million to residents and rising. A release Monday said nearly 13,000 survivor households have used the temporary sheltering assistance program.
In addition to FEMA money at work, Congress appropriated about $9 billion to the state from within its $110 billion package in its December overnight decision that also included a bill to keep the government running. North Carolina lawmakers, each chamber with a Republican majority, have appropriated just more than $1.1 billion in three packages each said to be an installment with more to come.
“We’re putting America first,” Trump said. “We’re putting, in this case, North Carolina and California — we’re going to do a good job in California.”
The storm made landfall as a Category 4 hurricane in Dekle Beach, Fla., on Sept. 26. It dissipated over the mountains of the state and Tennessee, dropping more than 30 inches in some places and over 24 consistently across more.
Trump was headed to California next on Friday, with a rally planned in Nevada on Saturday.
President Donald Trump talks with press just before boarding Marine One on Friday, Jan. 24, 2025. The president was on the way to North Carolina and California to see damage from Hurricane Helene and wildfires, respectively.
