The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) supervisor accused of instructing disaster relief workers in Florida to "avoid homes" with signs endorsing President-elect Donald Trump broke her silence and said that it wasn't an "isolated" incident, the New York Post reported on Tuesday.
Marn'i Washington, who was dismissed last week over the episode, told YouTube podcaster Roland Martin that she has been hung out to dry, as she had been following a widespread FEMA policy of avoiding "politically hostile" homes.
"FEMA preaches avoidance first, and then de-escalation. This is not isolated. This is a colossal event of avoidance," said Washington. "Not just in the state of Florida. You will find avoidance in the Carolinas."
A former FEMA official lent support to Washington's claims, telling The New York Post that the pattern of skipping Trump-supporting houses has been an open secret at FEMA for years.
The FEMA official said her supervisor had approved the message — and that there were incident reports that would prove some residents had shown "political hostility" to workers in the area.
The official stressed: "Demand for FEMA to give you those incident reports, they will substantiate what is happening to us in the field."
FEMA employees received threats in the wake of Hurricanes Helene and Milton as a result of misinformation, and a sheriff in Tennessee reported that an armed group threatened aid workers.
Washington added that "FEMA's very well aware of the incidents that take place, not just with my crew, but with all the crews in the states."
She said there have been instances in the past where houses had been marked "politically hostile" when no Trump signs were present, saying that "we omitted these homes for safety precautions, not because of political play."
Florida GOP Rep. Carlos Gimenez told The New York Post that "the Biden administration weaponized FEMA to purposely deny Trump-supporting Americans critical aid and assistance during a natural disaster," calling the practice "reprehensible."
He added that "as a member of the Homeland Security Committee, overseeing FEMA, we must hold those responsible accountable & ensure those impacted receive the assistance they are rightfully entitled to."