Why Trump’s FEMA Pick Raises Alarms: Politics, Protesters, and Potentially Weakened Disaster Response

President Donald Trump has nominated Gregg Phillips to lead FEMA’s Office of Response and Recovery, a move that has unsettled emergency-management professionals and disaster survivors alike. Phillips — known for promoting election-related conspiracy theories and for publicly criticizing FEMA — has no clear emergency-management credentials, and his public praise for faith-based volunteer groups over the federal agency has sparked concern about the future of impartial, large-scale disaster response.

Who Is Gregg Phillips?

According to reporting in The New York Times, Phillips will assume the post on Monday. He has denied the results of the 2020 election and questioned aspects of 2016, and in public posts he has celebrated Christian volunteer groups as superior disaster responders while accusing FEMA of taking credit and being "woke." The Washington Post cited a LinkedIn post in which Phillips wrote: "It is almost always true that those with a Christ centered approach show up first and leave last bringing hearts, hands and supplies when darkness hits."

Personal Experience: What Volunteers Can — And Cannot — Do

My own family received crucial help from a Christian volunteer group, "Hope Reigns," after an EF-4 tornado on December 23, 2015, carved a 75-mile path of destruction through north Mississippi and into southwest Tennessee. The volunteers offered comfort and hands-on help during a devastating time; we remain grateful. But volunteers are not a substitute for formal recovery resources: an insurance payout and coordinated federal aid mattered too. Federal estimates after the storm showed roughly $3.3 million in individual assistance was required in the area, plus about $5.2 million to repair utilities.

Historical And Recent Concerns About FEMA Leadership

Concerns about FEMA leadership are not new. The agency’s slow response after Hurricane Katrina in 2005 became a symbol of institutional failure; critics pointed to leadership choices at the time — including Michael Brown, a former commissioner of the International Arabian Horse Association who was elevated to a senior role — as reflecting a lack of relevant experience and commitment.

Advocates worry the current administration’s attitude toward FEMA risks repeating that pattern. President Trump has at times suggested cutting or even eliminating FEMA, and recent internal turnover has left the agency with acting directors. David Richardson, one of three acting FEMA directors this year, was reported to have been largely absent during deadly summer flash floods in Texas that killed more than 130 people. Richardson replaced an acting director who reportedly angered the White House by testifying that FEMA should not be dismantled.

Allegany County, Maryland: A Case Study In Political Suspicion

The New York Times reported that FEMA repeatedly denied a $16 million request for disaster aid from Allegany County, Maryland, after a damaging May flood. FEMA said the decision was "based on policy, not politics," but Maryland Governor Wes Moore told the paper he suspected politics played a role, noting that the state is generally Democratic even though Allegany County voted overwhelmingly for Trump in 2024. "I think they just said, 'It's Maryland, and therefore the answer is no,'" Moore said.

Why This Matters

Federal disaster response exists to provide large-scale, sustained, and impartial assistance — a complement, not a replacement, for faith-based and volunteer relief. Appointing a leader who publicly questions FEMA’s value and lacks emergency-management experience risks undermining that mission and eroding public trust in an agency designed to help people at their most vulnerable.

Note: This article originally appeared on MS NOW and draws on reporting from The New York Times and The Washington Post.