1. United States
2. Texas
3. Letter

More than 100 people are dead, and more than 160 are still missing, in the Central Texas floods, making it one of the deadliest natural disasters in U.S. history. This catastrophe could have been avoided. It should have been avoided. This Republican administration’s cuts in staffing and funding NOAA and the National Weather Service proved deadly. Now cuts, and ineptitude, are slowing FEMA’s response for survivors. There was no response from FEMA for 72 hours after the tragedy. We rely on the Federal Emergency Management Agency to coordinate aid and help ensure local communities get the assistance they need. FEMA is precisely what government is for—helping people after a disaster. Cuts to those agencies were ostensibly to make them more efficient and to save money. How efficient did those cuts prove to be? Given the current devastation in the Hill Country, how much money was actually saved? My wife and I urge you to demand this administration restore funding and staffing to these vital, life-saving organizations.