U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Kristi Noem savaged a CNN report Thursday stating she delayed FEMA's response to the deadly Texas flooding from last weekend.
During a segment on "Fox & Friends," Noem responded to CNN's piece, which alleged that FEMA - an agency under DHS - ran into "bureaucratic obstacles" imposed by the secretary that slowed the agency in providing life-saving resources to the victims of the disaster in central Texas.
"Well, there you go. Fake News. CNN again. It's absolutely trash what they're doing by saying that," Noem told the Fox News Channel hosts.
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Over 100 people have died and over 150 others have gone missing due to flash flooding that devastated parts of central Texas near the Guadalupe River over the Fourth of July weekend.
A CNN article published Thursday claimed that Noem's recent order that every DHS "contract and grant over $100,000 now requires her personal sign-off before any funds can be released," slowed down FEMA's attempts to secure funds for disaster relief costs and contracts with on-the-ground crews.
"In essence, they say the order has stripped the agency of much of its autonomy at the very moment its help is needed most," the CNN article reported.
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A "longtime FEMA official" told the outlet, "We were operating under a clear set of guidance: lean forward, be prepared, anticipate what the state needs, and be ready to deliver it. That is not as clear of an intent for us at the moment."
"In the past, FEMA would have swiftly staged these teams, which are specifically trained for situations including catastrophic floods, closer to a disaster zone in anticipation of urgent requests, multiple agency sources told CNN," the piece said.
"Noem didn't authorize FEMA's deployment of Urban Search and Rescue teams until Monday, more than 72 hours after the flooding began, multiple sources told CNN," the report added.
While on "Fox & Friends," Noem countered the claims that she caused a delayed response, stating DHS teams were deployed to the disaster zone immediately.
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"Our Coast Guard, our Border Patrol BORTAC (Border Patrol Tactical Unit) teams were there immediately. Every single thing they asked for, we were there," the DHS head said. "The governor and the emergency management director, Nim Kidd, are fantastic and nobody there has said anything about that they didn't get everything that they wanted immediately or that they needed. And I'm proud of the work we've done to support that."
She continued, noting that her department is also responding to flooding in New Mexico and North Carolina and working with ground teams there.
Noem blasted CNN once more, saying, "The fact that CNN is continuing to be political and push out fake information and false information and lies is not shocking, but it's a disservice to the country. It's a real disservice to the country because people start to mistrust anything that comes out then over the news."
A CNN spokesperson said the network stood by its reporting.
