David Richardson, who led FEMA in an acting capacity for six months, has submitted his resignation and will remain for two more weeks through the hurricane season. MS Now reporter Laura Barron-Lopez described his time at the agency as a "rocky tenure," saying many staff were unsupportive. Barron-Lopez noted an early all-hands meeting where Richardson asserted sole authority, but later staff perceived him as absent during crises like Texas floods. She also reported that President Trump and DHS head Kristi Noem have signaled plans to reshape FEMA.
Breaking: Trump's FEMA Acting Chief David Richardson Resigns After Six Months
David Richardson, who led FEMA in an acting capacity for six months, has submitted his resignation and will remain for two more weeks through the hurricane season. MS Now reporter Laura Barron-Lopez described his time at the agency as a "rocky tenure," saying many staff were unsupportive. Barron-Lopez noted an early all-hands meeting where Richardson asserted sole authority, but later staff perceived him as absent during crises like Texas floods. She also reported that President Trump and DHS head Kristi Noem have signaled plans to reshape FEMA.
06:06 AM, 11/18/2025Politics
David Richardson to Leave FEMA After Six Months
David Richardson, who has served as acting head of the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) for six months, has submitted his resignation, officials say. The Department of Homeland Security told CNN that Richardson gave two weeks' notice on Monday and will remain in the role through the end of hurricane season.
MS Now reporter Laura Barron-Lopez described Richardson's tenure as "rocky," citing low staff morale and mixed reactions from FEMA employees.
"FEMA employees have not necessarily been supportive of him atop the role as acting director of FEMA," Barron-Lopez said. She added that staff attitudes toward his leadership have been strained.
Barron-Lopez reported that early in his tenure Richardson convened an all-hands meeting in which he asserted that he alone spoke for FEMA and that staff should look to him directly. However, after responses to this summer's floods in Texas and other emergencies, many employees came to view him as an absent leader rather than the hands-on manager he had portrayed.
She also reported that President Donald Trump and Department of Homeland Security head Kristi Noem have publicly indicated intentions to dismantle or significantly reshape FEMA since taking office — a claim described in Barron-Lopez's reporting.
Sources: Department of Homeland Security (as reported to CNN), MS Now (Laura Barron-Lopez). This report first appeared on Mediaite.