David Richardson, the current acting FEMA director, left DHS Secretary Kristi Noem’s office Friday morning feeling aggrieved and indigent after she rejected his proposal to have FEMA agents work alongside ICE, the National Guard, and the Marines in conflict-ravaged Los Angeles, a DHS source told Real Raw News.
Richardson, a senior DHS official and prior service Marine, assumed control of FEMA following Cameron Hamilton’s departure in early May. Hamilton, as reported previously, was handed walking papers after failing polygraph examinations at which examiners queried whether he had leaked classified DHS info to the press and knew about a secret FEMA weapons cache that US Marines seized from a closed FEMA training center in Maryland.
On Friday, our source said, Richardson requested an “emergency meeting” with Noem and had asked her why FEMA was excluded from the ongoing peacekeeping and deportation missions taking place in Tinsel Town. Richardson reportedly said he had 1,500 agents on standby to augment federal forces already in LA. He had come to the meeting prepared, bringing charts, graphs, and blueprints of federal buildings in LA, as well as a map of the city sprinkled with pushpins that represented where he would station his agents. He had obviously spent substantial time on his presentation before approaching Noem.
Noem, our source said, responded curtly: “No, that’s not happening.”
Her response befuddled Richardson, who argued that FEMA, as an entity of the federal government, had a constitutional responsibility to assist besieged ICE agents.
“We’re the Federal Emergency Management Agency, and there’s an emergency in Los Angeles,” he told Noem.
A pragmatic Noem replied, “As a Marine, you, of all people, should know that putting FEMA and Marines in close proximity is a recipe for disaster. Remember Maui?”
“FEMA’s different—we’re a different FEMA now,” Richardson said. “Our people should be on the ground, in solidarity, with Marines, ICE, and the National Guard. This way, Americans can see FEMA isn’t the enemy.”
Noem said she would not entertain the notion, and a belligerent Richardson said if Noem would not authorize FEMA to mobilize in California, he’d appeal to President Trump directly.
His relentless insistence irritated Noem. “I bring all suggestions to the president’s attention, but don’t hold your breath. Don’t threaten to go behind my back, or you’ll find yourself replaced. You’re dismissed.”
Per our source, Richardson was red with rage as he exited Noem’s office.
Why he wants FEMA in LA so adamantly remains a mystery.