Breaking news: David Richardson resigned as acting head of FEMA.
Richardson was known for frequently being inaccessible, including during the early hours of the flood disaster in Texas over the Fourth of July weekend.— The Washington Post (@washingtonpost.com) November 17, 2025 at 12:58 PM
Unlike most Trump subordinates, he doesn’t seem to have wanted the job in the first place, but he’s not gonna be missed now that he’s (officially) gone. Per the Washington Post, “FEMA head resigns. Richardson had been hard to reach during Texas floods” [gift link]:
David Richardson on Monday resigned as acting head of the Federal Emergency Management Agency, ending a brief tenure leading an agency that the Trump administration has publicly expressed a desire to dismantle.
Richardson, who spent about six months as the acting head of the nation’s disaster response agency, has kept a low profile and is known for often being inaccessible, including during the early hours of the flood disaster in Texas over the Fourth of July weekend.
In recent months, five current agency employees said Richardson spent little time in daily operations meetings and shrank away from the role — one that typically demands the administrator be easily reachable. The staffers, like others interviewed for this story and previous coverage, spoke on the condition of anonymity out of fear of retaliation.
After The Washington Post and other outlets reported Richardson’s resignation Monday, Department of Homeland Security assistant secretary for public affairs Tricia McLaughlin said in a statement that FEMA’s current chief of staff, Karen Evans, will “step into this important role” at the beginning of December. DHS oversees the emergency management agency…
The latest departure comes as FEMA faces an uncertain future, and could face a significant overhaul. The administration is waiting for guidance from a review council, commissioned by President Donald Trump and headed by DHS Secretary Kristi L. Noem, working on a report of how disaster response can be improved in the United States. The council could recommend ways to reform or perhaps further shrink the agency…
Since Trump took office, FEMA has lost as much as a quarter of its workforce, according to multiple officials within the agency. Amid recent changes, dozens of employees in August signed their names to a public letter criticizing the agency’s leadership and warned that it had been operating under leaders who lack the qualifications and authority to manage FEMA’s operations.
Employees also said leadership had eroded the agency’s ability to effectively manage emergencies and other operations, including national security work, pointing specifically to stringent new rules and budget restrictions imposed by Noem, which require her approval for any expenditure over $100,000…
Richardson, a former Marine Corps artillery officer who was leading the Countering Weapons of Mass Destruction office, took over for Cameron Hamilton in May, after Noem ousted Hamilton for publicly contradicting the administration’s desired aim to eliminate FEMA as it exists today.
Hamilton, who now consults on disaster response and recovery operations, has spoken out about his concerns over FEMA’s direction and the kind of leadership the agency and the country need.
“Right now unfortunately we have a FEMA that is not as well equipped and prepared as they have been before,” Hamilton said in an interview. “Instead of the rhetoric of abolish and dismantling, we should be seeing this agency as a tremendous asset. They are some of the best public servants I have ever worked with, because they maintain a survivor centric focus.”
He said of Richardson’s resignation, “I wish Dave well, but he never should’ve been there to begin with.”…
During his first day at FEMA, Richardson held an all-hands meeting that quickly made headlines.
He told thousands of staff members listening in: “Don’t get in my way.”
He was there to “achieve the president’s intent for FEMA,” which would probably transform the agency.
“What it’s going to look like in the end, we’ll find out,” he said, and then added: “I and I alone speak for FEMA.”
I can’t find the photos of Richardson wandering around his headquarters in a vacation polo & cargo shorts a week after the Texas floods in July, but it was pretty clear at the time that he would not depart trailing clouds of glory. His acting replacement, Karen Evans, is a cybersecurity expert who doesn’t intend to stick around, either.
Permanent replacement now being touted is Nim Kidd. Per the Texas Tribune, “Trump administration considers moving FEMA to Texas and tapping state’s top emergency official, report says”:
… In February, Trump interviewed Nim Kidd, head of the Texas Division of Emergency Management, to run FEMA. Kidd later acknowledged the interview but declined the position, writing on LinkedIn that he is “committed to serving Texas first.”
Kidd sits on a 13-member FEMA review council that Trump appointed. Politico reported that the panel is expected to recommend FEMA’s move to Texas. The outlet said that would accommodate Kidd’s wish to remain in Texas.
Kidd could not be immediately reached for comment Monday. Gov. Greg Abbott also sits on the review council and could not be immediately reached. The Politico report did not say what city could be under consideration for a potential FEMA relocation.
U.S. Sen. John Cornyn of Texas called Kidd “the GOAT,” Monday on X, an acronym for “greatest of all time.”
Kidd began his career 33 years ago as a volunteer firefighter in La Vernia. He has overseen the state’s response to several large and deadly disasters, including this year’s Hill Country floods and last year’s Panhandle wildfires…
Moving the agency about 1,500 miles from Washington to Texas could create “huge challenges” by separating the headquarters from its overseeing agency, one former FEMA official told Politico.
Demanding FEMA’s remaining employees relocate to some unknown Texas location for what is being broadcast as temporary positions would certainly be one way to further reduce headcount. It’s not as though there were any indications that FEMA might need resources in the immediate future, after all…
"After Melissa, how much stronger will future hurricanes be?" by Thais Lopez Vogel for @theinvadingsea.bsky.social: www.theinvadingsea.com/2025/11/10/h…
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