Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:00):
Diana first got Roth, director of the Center for Energy
and Environment and the Air at Each Foundation. We're looking
at this story that appeared in tom Hall about the
Department of Homeland securities report that FEMA workers improperly tracked
politics of disaster victims. Why would they want to know
how you're going to vote in the next election before
they give.
Speaker 2 (00:18):
You a Diana, Well, thank you for letting me be
on your show. I think that I think that when
there's limited resources and people feel very polarized about one party,
then they're going to go for the Kamala Harris voters
rather than the Trump vote, especially since there are signs
(00:38):
in front of houses, and especially since we know which
districts tend to vote Democrat, which districts tend to vote Republican.
And this is a very sad statement, but the report
that was published by town Hall indicates that this might
(00:59):
have happened, or that this did happen, And it's a
really sad state on our disaster preparedness. We need to
make sure that no politics gets into any kind of
disaster relief.
Speaker 1 (01:13):
Well, here's what I have to wonder is where did
the orders for this originate? Did they did the orders
originate within FEMA, Did they originate somewhere else in the
previous administration? Who laid down the groundwork for this type
of policy.
Speaker 2 (01:29):
Well, there's a number of possibilities that it could have
come just not from the top, but from individuals. You
have to realize that about ninety six percent of government
workers are registered Democrats, and so it could be that
some people lower down they were not given instructions from
(01:49):
the top, they decided to behave this way themselves. Anyone
who had control over rolling out these resources. And there
are so many resources that people at the bottom could
have too. It's just a matter of saying, well, let's
hit this neighborhood first, and we'll get to that one
when we finished, knowing that there's a whole list of neighborhoods,
and you're likely to get to the one you don't
(02:11):
like or you don't agree with only in.
Speaker 3 (02:15):
Several days or sometimes several weeks.
Speaker 2 (02:17):
If you look at what happened in North Carolina right
before the last election.
Speaker 1 (02:23):
Right then what happened there. Of course, part of what
happened there is they were looking for campaign signs. If
they saw that you, if you had a Republican campaign
sign your yard, they skipped your house.
Speaker 3 (02:33):
Yeah, exactly so.
Speaker 2 (02:35):
And it's not necessarily that there was an order from the.
Speaker 3 (02:38):
Head of Schema to do that.
Speaker 2 (02:39):
It's very unlikely that that was, but people at the
local level decided they were going to prioritize their frank right.
Speaker 1 (02:45):
And it shows how it shows how far the rock
can go in government, doesn't it. When you've got it's
not the people who are making the decisions at the
top all the time that are having the real impact
on how these departments operate. It's the people in the field.
Speaker 3 (03:01):
Well, exactly.
Speaker 2 (03:01):
And it also shows how polarized our society has gotten.
And I think the age of the internet has not
helped because there could be someone you disagree with and
you wouldn't use bad language in front of their face,
But if it's a tweet in the middle of the night, you're.
Speaker 3 (03:16):
More likely to do that and say something very negative. Yeah.
Speaker 1 (03:19):
Do you see this as a fixable problem?
Speaker 3 (03:21):
Difficult? Do I see there's a fixable problem?
Speaker 1 (03:24):
Yes?
Speaker 3 (03:25):
Well, let me put it this way.
Speaker 2 (03:29):
There was a lot of polarization right after Bush versus Gore,
but then when nine to eleven happened, everybody got together.
Everybody everybody got together and we all and we all
fought against those people who had crashed the planes into
the World Trade Center and into the Pentgon and had
that plane come down in Shanksville, Pennsylvania. There was a
(03:52):
moment of national unity. I think it's sad to say,
but these moments of very difficult in the United States.
When someone attacks us, that brings people together, and it's
very possible that there will be an occasion like that
that will bring people together.
Speaker 1 (04:10):
Well, let's hope it doesn't tell I don't.
Speaker 2 (04:12):
See it as impossible, but basically, in the basic run
of how it's going now, I think it's very unification.
Speaker 3 (04:18):
It's very difficult.
Speaker 1 (04:19):
I think you're probably right. Thank you very much for
your time this morning. Appreciate it. Ianda forgot Wroth, Director
of Center for Energy and Environment at the Heritage Foundation's
five fifty seven
Diana first got Roth, director of the Center for Energy
and Environment and the Air at Each Foundation. We're looking
at this story that appeared in tom Hall about the
Department of Homeland securities report that FEMA workers improperly tracked
politics of disaster victims. Why would they want to know
how you're going to vote in the next election before
they give.
Speaker 2 (00:18):
You a Diana, Well, thank you for letting me be
on your show. I think that I think that when
there's limited resources and people feel very polarized about one party,
then they're going to go for the Kamala Harris voters
rather than the Trump vote, especially since there are signs
(00:38):
in front of houses, and especially since we know which
districts tend to vote Democrat, which districts tend to vote Republican.
And this is a very sad statement, but the report
that was published by town Hall indicates that this might
(00:59):
have happened, or that this did happen, And it's a
really sad state on our disaster preparedness. We need to
make sure that no politics gets into any kind of
disaster relief.
Speaker 1 (01:13):
Well, here's what I have to wonder is where did
the orders for this originate? Did they did the orders
originate within FEMA, Did they originate somewhere else in the
previous administration? Who laid down the groundwork for this type
of policy.
Speaker 2 (01:29):
Well, there's a number of possibilities that it could have
come just not from the top, but from individuals. You
have to realize that about ninety six percent of government
workers are registered Democrats, and so it could be that
some people lower down they were not given instructions from
(01:49):
the top, they decided to behave this way themselves. Anyone
who had control over rolling out these resources. And there
are so many resources that people at the bottom could
have too. It's just a matter of saying, well, let's
hit this neighborhood first, and we'll get to that one
when we finished, knowing that there's a whole list of neighborhoods,
and you're likely to get to the one you don't
(02:11):
like or you don't agree with only in.
Speaker 3 (02:15):
Several days or sometimes several weeks.
Speaker 2 (02:17):
If you look at what happened in North Carolina right
before the last election.
Speaker 1 (02:23):
Right then what happened there. Of course, part of what
happened there is they were looking for campaign signs. If
they saw that you, if you had a Republican campaign
sign your yard, they skipped your house.
Speaker 3 (02:33):
Yeah, exactly so.
Speaker 2 (02:35):
And it's not necessarily that there was an order from the.
Speaker 3 (02:38):
Head of Schema to do that.
Speaker 2 (02:39):
It's very unlikely that that was, but people at the
local level decided they were going to prioritize their frank right.
Speaker 1 (02:45):
And it shows how it shows how far the rock
can go in government, doesn't it. When you've got it's
not the people who are making the decisions at the
top all the time that are having the real impact
on how these departments operate. It's the people in the field.
Speaker 3 (03:01):
Well, exactly.
Speaker 2 (03:01):
And it also shows how polarized our society has gotten.
And I think the age of the internet has not
helped because there could be someone you disagree with and
you wouldn't use bad language in front of their face,
But if it's a tweet in the middle of the night, you're.
Speaker 3 (03:16):
More likely to do that and say something very negative. Yeah.
Speaker 1 (03:19):
Do you see this as a fixable problem?
Speaker 3 (03:21):
Difficult? Do I see there's a fixable problem?
Speaker 1 (03:24):
Yes?
Speaker 3 (03:25):
Well, let me put it this way.
Speaker 2 (03:29):
There was a lot of polarization right after Bush versus Gore,
but then when nine to eleven happened, everybody got together.
Everybody everybody got together and we all and we all
fought against those people who had crashed the planes into
the World Trade Center and into the Pentgon and had
that plane come down in Shanksville, Pennsylvania. There was a
(03:52):
moment of national unity. I think it's sad to say,
but these moments of very difficult in the United States.
When someone attacks us, that brings people together, and it's
very possible that there will be an occasion like that
that will bring people together.
Speaker 1 (04:10):
Well, let's hope it doesn't tell I don't.
Speaker 2 (04:12):
See it as impossible, but basically, in the basic run
of how it's going now, I think it's very unification.
Speaker 3 (04:18):
It's very difficult.
Speaker 1 (04:19):
I think you're probably right. Thank you very much for
your time this morning. Appreciate it. Ianda forgot Wroth, Director
of Center for Energy and Environment at the Heritage Foundation's
five fifty seven
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