The Daily Signal - Biden's FEMA Director Referred to DOJ, J.B. Pritzker's Anti-ICE Commission | Oct. 24, 2025

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Starting point is 00:00:25 We'd love to talk. Business. Former President Joe Biden's FEMA director is referred to the Department of Justice for Criminal Prosecution in a major scandal. Democrats in the Senate rage over President Trump's narco-terrorism policies, and Democrat Illinois Governor J.B. Pritzker announces a special commission to prosecute federal law enforcement for upholding federal law. I'm Tony Kennett, host of the Daily Signals Tony Kennedcast, syndicated nationally at 7 p.m. Eastern. It is Friday, October 24th, 2025.

Starting point is 00:01:00 This is the Daily Signals. Top News in 10. In a 22-page report, the Department of Homeland Security has now confirmed that President Biden's Federal Emergency Management Agency staff recorded disaster victims

Starting point is 00:01:18 political beliefs and skipped over their homes if they were supporting Republicans, Second Amendment rights, First Amendment rights, if they suggested they were against President Joe Biden, perhaps,

Starting point is 00:01:30 with a let's-go Brandon flag in the yard, if they had Christian imagery in their yard, or anything else that might suggest they have something to do with the right moderates or right-leaning independence in the United States. As a reminder, when accusations were made that the Federal Emergency Management Agency or FEMA was politically selective in how they distributed aid in the aftermath of the mid-to-late 24 hurricanes on the East Coast, President Biden's FEMA director, Deanne Criswell, said assuredly on several media outlets that criticizing the agency was dangerous. Here she was on ABC. So much is going viral online as well. One user suggested yesterday that a militia should go against

Starting point is 00:02:15 FEMA. Got more than half a million views. What kind of impact has this had on the recovery effort? It has a tremendous impact on the comfort level of our own employees to be able to go out there, but it's also demoralizing to all of the first responders that have been out there in their communities, helping people, FEMA staff, volunteers, the private sector that are working side by side with local officials to go out and help people. I need to make sure I can get the resources to where they needed. And when you have this dangerous rhetoric like you're hearing, it creates fear in our own employees. We need to make sure we're getting help to the people who need it. Priswell also called the idea of politically selective aid misinformation, weaponized by citizens and foreign adversaries.

Starting point is 00:03:06 Then after the presidential election, Criswell then told Congress in November of 2024 under oath that she was unaware of any political bias in the organization and that by then, the incident of the FEMA official selectively delivering political aid based on whether or not there were Trump signs in an individual's yard was just some kind of one-off issue. I greatly appreciate the voices from members of Congress from across both sides of the aisle who was attested to the work that FEMA was doing on the ground. So I was very concerned when I learned that a FEMA employee had given direction to her disaster survivor assistance team, that were completely at odds with FEMA's mission. A critical function of these teams is to go door to door, meet with survivors, meet them where they are, make them aware of available FEMA resources, and help them register for assistance. This employee wrote to about 11 staffers under her supervision that they should, quote,

Starting point is 00:04:13 avoid homes advertising Trump, end quote. My senior leadership team provided me with this visual evidence that the employee had in fact issued this statement, these instructions, and they recommended that this employee be terminated. I concurred and directed the termination and the employee was fired. I released a statement that day and I will repeat what I said to all of my employees and the American people. This type of behavior and action will not be tolerated at fee. FEMA, and we will hold people accountable if they violate our standards of conduct. I do not believe that this employee's actions are indicative of any widespread cultural problems at FEMA.

Starting point is 00:05:01 FEMA, however, has taken appropriate action to ensure that this matter is fully investigated, and I am committed to ensuring that nothing like this ever happens again. In the meantime, we have sent a different team to the feel to contact all of the homes that had been skipped over at this one employee's direction. And that work has been completed. Now, I know that this incident is on the minds of many members of this committee, and I will be happy to answer all of your questions about it. However, I hope that we will also have a chance to discuss the great work of our workforce

Starting point is 00:05:40 and responses to both Hurricanes Helene and Milton, as well as the important challenges that lie ahead in the recovery effort across these states. Thank you again for the opportunity to testify today, and I look forward to your questions. Did the amount of weaponized disinformation after Helene and Milton surprised you? It did. I mean, I'm always expecting some type of misinformation. We saw it in Maui. We've seen it in other events. There's always been some information out there about FEMA in some way, shape, or form.

Starting point is 00:06:15 But the volume that we saw during Hurricanes Helene and Milton was something that I have never seen before. And being able to get out there and give the right information became even more critical. And how do we get trusted voices into communities so they know what's real, what's not real, and what people should be eligible for? Now, according to the Department of Homeland Security's 22-page report on the series of political actions by the fact Federal Emergency Management Agency, stretching from Hurricane Milton to the hurricanes that continually rocked western North Carolina, as well as the eastern seaboard, FEMA routinely encouraged its agents across all states that was delivering aid to, to, quote, avoid hostile homes, and quote, which could be marked by having American flags, supporting the Second Amendment,

Starting point is 00:07:11 or perhaps flying the Gadsden flag, as well as flying. anti-Biden flags or having pro-Trump signs in the yard, perhaps Christian agency, perhaps pro-Christian or Jewish materials in their yards. As a result, the Department of Homeland Security and other Trump officials have now referred Deanne Criswell to the Department of Justice for prosecution. And Democrats in the Senate continue to rage over the President of the United States Donald Trump's policy to continue kinetic strikes against narco-terrorism boats in the South Caribbean. Here's Senator Cory Booker of New Jersey. When we took the extrajudicial step to blow up speedboats, there has been no oversight into that

Starting point is 00:08:02 claimed attack on people that were allegedly smuggling drugs. We are constantly not doing our job, which is not a partisan one, it is to hold this president in check that no one operates without accountability and without transparency because power is corrupting. And when you let someone do what they want to do, when they want to do it, without a check or a balance, it is corrupt. In contrast with Senator Booker's allegations, the Daily Signal spoke to one staffer in the House Oversight Committee, which informed thus that the Department of War had been regularly updating members of the Oversight Committees on their actions in the South Caribbean and has not withheld any information requested by Congress. Even so, the Department of War would have between 60 and 90

Starting point is 00:08:52 days to deliver information on kinetic strikes against direct national security threats like narco-terrorism in the South Caribbean to the rest of Congress. And lastly, Democrat Governor of Illinois J.B. Pritzker has announced a special commission to prosecute federal law enforcement like Immigration Customs Enforcement, U.S. Border Patrol, and the U.S. Marshals over upholding federal law regarding immigration and the arrest of those committing federal crimes in the state of Illinois. To reiterate, the governor of Illinois has created a commission to investigate, docks, and prosecute federal law enforcement for upholding federal law. Here was the governor.

Starting point is 00:09:35 Reveal to the public. In Chicago, the state of Illinois, across the nation, and around the world, the facts on the ground about what is happening here. We intend to create a detailed record of the truth. And once this all ends, people of good faith will review what this commission has gathered and will demand accountability. Indeed, people are demanding that accountability. You all share a commitment to justice, transparency, and the rule of law. news, Brett Baer, later pressed Governor Pritzker. On these policies in the commission, here was Pritzker's response.

Starting point is 00:10:10 No one in Washington, no one above them, no supervisor, no inspector general is holding anybody accountable. There literally haven't been any suspensions or firings for the terrible things that they've done, literally grabbing people tackling them when they're U.S. citizens and have done zero. You've referred to ICE as Christie Nome's thugs. Would you be willing to do a ride along with ICE in Chicago to get a better understanding about what they do and what they deal with. I can see what they do on the streets of Chicago. Are there any ice agents that are good? There are any ice agents that are good? Of course. The

Starting point is 00:10:43 problem is who's holding the bad ones accountable? Because the bad ones, frankly, are the ones that we're seeing all the time. And then you have Bovino on Fox News saying, oh, they're very professional. They're doing everything by the book. Before you go, head down to the description and make sure you're subscribed to the Tony Kinnettcast. And join us tonight at 7 p.m. Eastern for a roundup of the day's news and nonsense. I'm Tony Kinnett, and this has been The Daily Signal's top news in 10. Take care.

The Daily Signal - Biden's FEMA Director Referred to DOJ, J.B. Pritzker's Anti-ICE Commission | Oct. 24, 2025

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