IG Report On Funds Released

Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas is at it again—claiming FEMA is out of money right when the agency’s own Inspector General says they’re sitting on a whopping $8.3 billion in unspent funds.

Yes, you read that right: Mayorkas is out here ringing alarm bells about how FEMA supposedly can’t make it through hurricane season while a report shows billions of dollars sitting untouched. And this latest mess is coming at the worst possible time, with Hurricane Milton now a Category 5 storm and Florida bracing for impact. Meanwhile, much of the Southeast is still reeling from the devastation of Hurricane Helene, with entire towns wiped out and over 600 people still unaccounted for.

Let’s recap what Mayorkas said on October 2nd: “We are expecting another hurricane hitting. We do not have the funds. FEMA does not have the funds to make it through the season and what is imminent.” But hold up—how does that square with the IG report that says FEMA’s been hoarding $8.3 billion from past crises? It turns out that there’s money stashed away that could potentially help people struggling to survive right now, but instead, the funds are gathering dust in government coffers. And the explanation? FEMA claims that the funds can’t be tapped because they’re tied to long-ago disasters, with bureaucratic red tape keeping them out of reach.

The report from Homeland Security’s Inspector General reveals that more than $7 billion in these unspent funds could be returned to the Disaster Relief Fund. That’s right: money that could help folks in Florida and the rest of the Southeast recover from Helene and prepare for Milton is just sitting there. Yet, here we are, listening to Mayorkas cry poor. And don’t forget—FEMA’s got $4.5 billion still frozen for Superstorm Sandy, which hit over a decade ago in 2012. What’s the holdup, you ask? Well, FEMA has a habit of extending deadlines on these funds, sometimes by as much as 16 years, without much of an explanation. Meanwhile, they’re pleading poverty in front of the cameras.

And the situation gets worse when you consider that FEMA has been busy shelling out $1.1 billion to shelter illegal migrants. Congressional Republicans, led by Rep. Nancy Mace of South Carolina, are calling out this insanity, and Mace has even introduced a bill to cut off these funds. Because, let’s face it, when the federal government is using money that should be going to American disaster victims to instead manage their self-made border crisis, something’s gone seriously wrong.

This whole situation leaves us with a burning question: is the Biden-Harris administration’s decision to use FEMA as an extension of their border disaster a quiet admission that they’ve turned the southern border into a full-blown catastrophe? FEMA was supposed to be about helping Americans recover from natural disasters, not managing the fallout from a border crisis that’s gotten out of control on their watch. But here we are, with hundreds of Americans still missing after Hurricane Helene and another deadly storm on the way, while Washington is focused on “disaster relief” for migrants who crossed the border illegally.

And let’s not forget how this is all playing out against a backdrop of record-breaking storms. The U.S. faced 28 storms causing over $1 billion in damages last year, and we’re already at 19 such disasters in 2024. Yet, somehow, the Biden administration still finds the time—and the money—to prioritize other agendas. It’s almost as if helping American citizens is an afterthought.

It’s no wonder the Biden administration’s response to Hurricane Helene is under fire. With millions of dollars diverted from disaster relief to the border and a stash of unspent funds collecting dust, it’s a slap in the face to the Americans struggling to rebuild their lives after these hurricanes. And now, with Hurricane Milton bearing down, Florida and the Southeast could use a little less spin and a lot more action. But instead, we get more excuses, more bureaucratic foot-dragging, and yet another lecture from Mayorkas.

One thing’s for sure: Americans deserve better. It’s time for a little accountability and maybe, just maybe, a government that remembers what FEMA is actually supposed to be doing.