FEMA Chief to Cantor: Whatever

Plus, Conn. guv to Ron Paul: You're an 'idiot'
By Evann Gastaldo,  Newser Staff
Posted Aug 31, 2011 11:08 AM CDT
FEMA Chief to Cantor: Whatever
Federal Emergency Management Agency(FEMA) Director Craig Fugate speaks during a briefing August 29, 2011 at the Brady Briefing Room of the White House in Washington, DC.   (Getty Images)

Eric Cantor may want budget cuts to offset any federal aid for Hurricane Irene, but FEMA director Craig Fugate says “psssh” to that. “In this country, Americans have always come to the aid of other Americans in a crisis and disaster,” Fugate said on NBC’s Today. He did acknowledge disasters are “hard to budget for,” but on CBS’ Early Show, he added that “we have funds to continue response, rescue operations, and immediate needs,” and that whatever happens in Congress “will not change anything that FEMA is doing,” Politico reports.

Meanwhile, Cantor is coming under scrutiny for a past position of his that looks a bit hypocritical in retrospect: After Tropical Storm Gaston in 2004, Cantor was one of the leaders in securing nearly $20 million in federal assistance for his constituents and home state of Virginia, and he was more than happy to see the aid arrive, The Hill notes. Meanwhile, Ron Paul also made headlines recently for arguing that FEMA wastes money, and this morning on CNN, Connecticut Gov. Dannel Malloy offered up a simple retort: “I think he’s an idiot. … I really don’t understand what he is talking about and I’m not sure he does.” (More Eric Cantor stories.)

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