GOP Sen. Capito: My State Can’t Handle Disasters Without FEMA, Changes Haven’t Impacted Recent Response

On Tuesday’s broadcast of NewsNation’s “The Hill,” Sen. Shelley Moore Capito (R-WV) said that West Virginia doesn’t have the ability to handle regular disasters without FEMA, not just due to a lack of money, but due to a lack of skills but changes to FEMA haven’t impacted the response to recent disasters in the state.

Host Kellie Meyer asked, “So do you expect FEMA cuts and layoffs and the changes there to impact the recovery efforts in your state or are they already?”

Capito answered, “They are not impacting. I think FEMA is on the ground. If not now, they will be shortly. The elected officials, our governor’s been there. Rep. Moore (R-WV) has been up there to inspect that. So I think what we have to see here is FEMA has a vital role. There is no doubt about it. As I said in my testimony, a small state cannot handle these devastating occurrences on a regular basis. We don’t have the money. We don’t have the skillset. We don’t have the emergency sort of response that FEMA has. So, we need FEMA, but we need it to be that flawless, perfect entity that can help any state in any situation. So, I’m a supporter of FEMA, quite frankly, with reforms.”

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