Texas Democrat: Government failed ‘at every level' amid deadly flooding
'There are families across the state in tears today, suffering so much loss, and this was totally unnecessary to have this big loss, so many lives, so many children's lives taken when we have the technological means to do something about it,' Doggett said during his Saturday morning appearance on MSNBC 'Velshi.'
'I believe there have been failures at every level of government, from the county to the state and the federal,' Doggett told anchor Ali Velshi.
Doggett mentioned President Trump bashing a Texas-based reporter on Friday, during his visit to the Lone Star State, who asked what his response would be to families who are upset about the alerts that did not go off in time before the floods.
'Well, I think everybody did an incredible job under the circumstances,' Trump responded on Friday, adding, 'I just have admiration for the job that everybody did. There's just admiration. The eh – only a bad person would ask a question like that, to be honest with you. I don't know who you are. But only a very evil person would ask a question like that.'
Doggett criticized the president's response to the local CBS reporter.
'Well, only a president who believes he should have no accountability at all, certainly not from the courts, not from the Congress, not from an inspector general, and in this case, continuing to attack the press when reporters point out that the National Weather Service, despite its dedication, had some problems,' the Texas Democrat said on Saturday.
'FEMA [Federal Emergency Management Agency] got its search and rescue teams there late and not as well trained because of the way things were run there at FEMA, one thing after another, at the federal level, contributed here, and this president refuses to accept any kind of accountability for what occurred,' Doggett added.
Doggett was one of the three Democrats who expressed concerns over whether National Weather Service staff cuts delayed warning about the floods.
CNN reported on Thursday that the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Kristi Noem recently introduced a new rule that any grant of contract over $100,000 would need her sign-off before funds could be dispatched.
Noem slammed CNN during her appearance on Fox News, calling the reporting 'fake news' and that it is 'absolutely trash what they're doing by saying that.'
Trump defended Noem during his interview with NBC News, saying he did not 'anything' about the rule.
'We were there — in fact, she was the first one I saw on television. She was there right from the beginning, and she would not have needed anything. She had the right to do it, but she was literally the first person I saw on television,' Trump said of Noem.
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And they're purchasing mobile command vehicles that will be pre-positioned around the country. But much of what the agency says it has done is about changing policies and procedures to address those July 13 lapses — things like revising their manual to 'advance procedures and communication practices' when it comes to coordinating with local law enforcement or clarifying who's responsible for events where protectees are appearing. They've updated their procedures about documenting line-of-sight concerns and how those concerns are going to be addressed. So far it doesn't appear that anyone has been or will be fired, although the agency's director at the time, Kim Cheatle, swiftly resigned. The agency said Thursday that six staffers have been disciplined with suspensions ranging from 10 to 42 days without pay; the six were placed on restricted duty or nonoperational positions. Their identities and positions were not released. In many ways Crooks and his motivations are still a mystery. 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