FEMA would operate up to 100 federally run mass vaccination sites under Biden plan

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A draft document envisions different models for sites, with the largest capable of handling 6,000 doses a day

Up to 100 sites run by the Federal Emergency Management Agency could begin offering coronavirus vaccine within the next month, part of a strategy that would dramatically expand the federal government’s role in the effort to corral the pandemic.

The plan, which was announced by President Biden on his first day in office, is already taking shape in the form of a draft “Concept of Operations,” which was obtained by The Washington Post. The document envisions FEMA, which previously had more of a piecemeal role in pandemic response, fully unleashed.

Its mission will be to “provide federal support to existing or new community vaccination centers and mobile clinics across the country.” Continue reading.

CDC, FEMA have created a plan to reopen America. Here’s what it says.

Washington Post logoDocument is part of White House plan being drafted to allow Trump to reopen parts of the country within weeks

A team of government officials — led by the Federal Emergency Management Agency and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention — has created a public health strategy to combat the novel coronavirus and reopen parts of the country.

Their strategy, obtained by The Washington Post, is part of a larger White House effort to draft a national plan to get Americans out of their homes and back to work. It gives guidance to state and local governments on how they can ease mitigation efforts, moving from drastic restrictions such as stay-at-home orders in a phased way to support a safe reopening.

CDC and FEMA officials have worked on the public health response for at least the past week, and the resulting document has been discussed at the White House, including by members of the coronavirus task force, according to two administration officials who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss internal deliberations.

The White House pushed FEMA to give its biggest coronavirus contract to a company that never even had to bid

AlterNet logoLast month, as a deadly new virus swept over the globe, one Canadian defense contractor predicted on an earnings call that it would lead to a big business opportunity in the U.S. Thanks to the White House, that bet paid off just a few weeks later in a $96 million no-bid deal.

In an unusual move, even in times of disaster, the White House stepped into the federal purchasing process, ordering the Federal Emergency Management Agency to award a contract to AirBoss of America. The Trump administration has rushed through hundreds of deals to address the pandemic without the usual oversight, more than $760 million reported as of this week, but the AirBoss transaction is the single largest no-bid purchase, a ProPublica analysis of federal purchasing data found.

While FEMA placed the order, it was directed to do so by the White House, ProPublica found. Continue reading.

ScoScoop: Trump expected to formally nominate Peter Gaynor as FEMA chief

Axios logoPresident Trump intends to tap deputy FEMA administrator Peter Gaynor as the agency’s permanent director, 2 sources familiar with Trump’s decision tell Axios.

Why it matters: The administration has been operating without a confirmed FEMA chief during an active hurricane season after the nomination of Jeffrey Byard stalled in the Senate.

The state of play: Byard’s nomination had not been withdrawn as of Wednesday evening, per one administration official.

  • But Trump has already made a decision to move forward with Gaynor, according to sources both inside and outside of the administration.
  • Gaynor has served as the agency’s acting administrator while Byard’s nomination stalled in the Senate. The president was impressed with the way Gaynor handled Hurricane Dorian.

Trump admin pulling millions from FEMA disaster relief to send to southern border

Combined with existing space, the funding would allow ICE to detain nearly 50,000 immigrants at one time.

WASHINGTON — The Trump administration is pulling $271 million in funding from the Department of Homeland Security, including the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s Disaster Relief Fund, to pay for immigration detention space and temporary hearing locations for asylum-seekers who have been forced to wait in Mexico, according to department officials and a letter sent to the agency by a California congresswoman.

To fund temporary locations for court hearings for asylum-seekers along the southern border, ICE would gain $155 million, all from FEMA’s Disaster Relief Fund, according to the letter from Rep. Lucille Roybal-Allard, D-Calif., which was seen by NBC News.

The allocations were sent to Congress as a notification rather than a request, because the administration believes it has the authority to repurpose these funds after Congress did not pass more funding for ICE detention beds as part of an emergency funding bill for the southwest border in June.

View the complete August 27 article by Julia Ainsley and Frank Thorp V on the NBS News website here.

Trump’s FEMA chief under investigation over use of official cars

The lead disaster official for Hurricane Florence recently clashed with his boss, Homeland Security secretary Kirstjen Nielsen, over travel home to North Carolina.

The actions by Brock Long, the US government’s lead disaster official as the country braces for Hurricane Florence, have been called into question by the inspector general over whether taxpayers have inappropriately footed the bill for his travel. Credit: Chip Somodevilla, Getty Images

Federal Emergency Management Agency Administrator Brock Long is the target of an ongoing Department of Homeland Security inspector general investigation into whether he misused government vehicles during his commutes to North Carolina from Washington, according to three people familiar with the matter, including current and former administration officials.

The actions by Long, the U.S. government’s lead disaster official as the country braces for Hurricane Florence, have been called into question by the inspector general over whether taxpayers have inappropriately footed the bill for his travel, an issue that has tripped up a number of current and former top Trump administration officials.

Long’s travel habits triggered a clash between him and his boss, Homeland Security Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen, in recent weeks, clouding their relationship just as senior aides close to President Donald Trump prepared for hurricane season — a task that’s attracted extra scrutiny in the wake of the disaster that befell Puerto Rico in the aftermath of last year’s Hurricane Maria.

View the complete September 13, 2018, article by Daniel Lippman and ELiana Johnson on the Politico website here.

Want to Know More About: The Trump FEMA Budget Funds Going to ICE

John Dickerson: “Newly Revealed Documents Show The Trump Administration Took Money Away From FEMA And Other Federal Agencies Apparently To Pay For Immigration Detention Centers.” JOHN DICKERSON: “Newly revealed documents show the Trump administration took money away from FEMA and other federal agencies apparently to pay for immigration detention centers. FEMA lost nearly $10 million out of its $15 billion budget.” [CBS This Morning, CBS, 9/12/18;Video]

Jeff Pegues: “The Document Says Mission Impact Is Minimized As FEMA Will Curtail Training, Travel, And Public Engagement. The 40-Page Report Also Says That Without The Transfer Of Funds, I.C.E. Will Not Be Able To Fulfill Its Adult Detention Requirements This Year.” JEFF PEGUES: “More than $4 million of the funds from FEMA are listed the as response and recovery or preparedness and protection, but the document says mission impact is minimized as FEMA will curtail training, travel, and public engagement. The 40-page report also says that without the transfer of funds, I.C.E. Will not be able to fulfill its adult detention requirements this year.” [CBS This Morning, CBS, 9/12/18; Video] Continue reading “Want to Know More About: The Trump FEMA Budget Funds Going to ICE”

Want to Know More About: Puerto Rico?

Major Garrett: “A Killer Storm Last Year Hurricane Maria Triggered Renewed Scrutiny. The President Praised The Federal Response In The Face Of Fresh Reports That 3,000 Died And Months Passed Before Electricity Was Restored To Populated Areas Of Puerto Rico.” MAJOR GARRETT: “But a killer storm last year hurricane Maria triggered renewed scrutiny. The President praised the federal response in the face of fresh reports that 3,000 died and months passed before electricity was restored to populated areas of Puerto Rico.” [CBS This Morning, CBS, 9/12/18; Video]

David Gregory: “We Know About This President Is That That Doesn’t Matter As Much As Taking On All Comers Who Would Criticize Him And To Project A Story That Is Belied By Facts On The Ground. The Notion He Would Take On The Local Mayor In Such A Fashion Is Not Surprising.” DAVID GREGORY: “It clearly was not a success. And any leader looking at that would try to learn from those lessons about federal response, about state and local response. But what we know about this president is that that doesn’t matter as much as taking on all comers who would criticize him and to project a story that is belied by facts on the ground. The notion he would take on the local mayor in such a fashion is not surprising. It just fits a pattern.” [New Day, CNN, 9/12/18; Video] Continue reading “Want to Know More About: Puerto Rico?”

In private FEMA remarks, Trump’s focus strays from hurricanes

The following article by Josh Dawsey was posted on the Washington Post website June 6, 2018:

First lady Melania Trump made her first public appearance in nearly a month on June 6, appearing alongside President Trump at the FEMA headquarters. (The Washington Post)

The meeting was supposed to be about hurricane preparedness, as disaster officials gathered at Federal Emergency Management Agency headquarters days after the start of the 2018 season.

But President Trump had a lot else on his mind, turning the closed-door discussion into soliloquies on his prowess in negotiating airplane deals, his popularity, the effectiveness of his political endorsements, the Republican Party’s fortunes, the vagaries of Defense Department purchasing guidelines, his dislike of magnetized launch equipment on aircraft carriers, his unending love of coal and his breezy optimism about his planned Singapore summit with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un. Continue reading “In private FEMA remarks, Trump’s focus strays from hurricanes”

FEMA Contract Called for 30 Million Meals for Puerto Ricans. 50,000 Were Delivered.

The following article by Patricia Mazzei and Agustin Armendariz was posted on the New York Times website February 6, 2018:

Residents of San Isidro, P.R., waited for food and water in October. Credit Erika P. Rodriguez for The New York Times

The mission for the Federal Emergency Management Agency was clear: Hurricane Maria had torn through Puerto Rico, and hungry people needed food. Thirty million meals needed to be delivered as soon as possible.

For this huge task, FEMA tapped Tiffany Brown, an Atlanta entrepreneur with no experience in large-scale disaster relief and at least five canceled government contracts in her past. FEMA awarded her $156 million for the job, and Ms. Brown, who is the sole owner and employee of her company, Tribute Contracting LLC, set out to find some help. Continue reading “FEMA Contract Called for 30 Million Meals for Puerto Ricans. 50,000 Were Delivered.”