Murray Grills Kristi Noem on Frozen Disaster Relief, Slams Trump’s Lawless, Inhumane Immigration Policy
ICYMI: In Senate Floor Speech, Senator Murray Calls Out Trump’s Staggeringly Lawless and Inhumane Immigration Policy
WATCH: Senator Murray’s remarks and questioning
Washington, D.C. — Today, at a Senate Appropriations Homeland Security Subcommittee hearing on the FY26 budget for the Department of Homeland Security, U.S. Senator Patty Murray (D-WA), Vice Chair of the Senate Appropriations Committee, blasted the Trump administration’s lawless and inhumane immigration policies and grilled Secretary Kristi Noem on her Department’s sweeping funding freeze, including Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) disaster relief and public safety grants, and its plans to weaken FEMA and recent denials of disaster declarations.
In opening comments, Vice Chair Murray said:
“As Senator Murphy mentioned in his opening statement, Secretary Noem, under your leadership, we have seen you ignore our appropriations laws, our constitution, common sense, and even basic humanity.
“Like a lot of Americans, I really have been horrified by the lawlessness, incompetence, and cruelty we have all witnessed.
“And for all the talk about going after criminals—you have sidetracked DHS staff who are investigating drug dealers, terrorists, human traffickers.
“And rather than photo ops, we need more of your focus on providing basic diligence, because your crackdown has roped in American citizens and people who are here legally, with no criminal record.
“Now, I’m not going to ask you whether that was right or wrong—I know it’s wrong. The world knows it’s wrong.
“And I think the first thing history is going to say about your leadership is that you were responsible for so many of these travesties, so I’m deeply concerned.
“You have deported a four-year-old U.S. citizen with cancer, you’ve disappeared people to a notorious prison in El Salvador, and you have spent $100 million in taxpayer dollars to air TV ads thanking President Trump.
“That is really reckless, it’s unacceptable, and in my opinion, cannot continue. The American people are paying for this with our taxpayer dollars—and with their most basic rights.”
[DEVASTATING FEMA FUNDING FREEZE]
Senator Murray began her questioning by detailing how Secretary Noem and the Trump administration have so far frozen or cancelled over $100 billion in FEMA disaster relief and grants approved by Congress, stating: “We are talking about everything from disaster relief to grants that keep people safe. But when my staff has requested information on the status of this unacceptable hold-up, the Department failed to provide any acceptable justification. This illegal freeze—and it is illegal—is taking a real toll on communities who are waiting on the investments that Congress has delivered.” Senator Murray asked Secretary Noem, “Will you commit to immediately unpausing these funds?”
Secretary Noem dodged, stating: “Well, Senator, thank you for covering a lot of topics there. Let me touch on a few of those right away. What the Trump administration is doing, I know he's targeting the law for the first time…”
Senator Murray interjected: “I’m asking you about the funds that are out there.”
Secretary Noem again completely demurred: “Under the Biden administration, illegal aliens were prioritized over American citizens. Now the scales of justice have been leveled, citizens are treated the same.”
Senator Murray continued to push, “Madam Chair, I am going to reclaim my time, because I asked you a specific question. Madam Secretary, I know your answer—I heard it previously. I’m asking you a specific question.”
“The grants that you are referencing have been paused and reevaluated to make sure that they are truly being spent in the way to which they were appropriated,” replied Secretary Noem. “Many of these grants were being diverted—"
Senator Murray interjected, “Madam Secretary, these funds were passed on a bipartisan basis by members in this Congress.”
Secretary Noem continued to refuse to answer the question directly, and Senator Murray responded: “Madam Chair, we are talking about $100 billion [in frozen FEMA funding and grants]. It is not credible that all the recipients—it is not credible that $100 billion is used to break the law—that just cannot be true.”
[OVERSPENDING AT DHS]
Senator Murray moved on, stating: “On the other hand, I am very concerned that DHS is now dramatically overspending funding that Congress has not provided. If you were a CEO doing that, I don't think you'd be in your job long. We need accountability, and we need answers. And that includes informative responses to oversight questions sent to the department over the last three months. I am ranking member on this committee. I have worked with every member of this committee. We take our responsibility seriously to fund your department and others. We need to have answers, we need to have accountability, and we need to make sure you're not overspending money that you were not allocated.”
Secretary Noem said, “Well, thank you for that question… I’ve worked many, many jobs in my life, but I also have been a CEO.”
“I’m not questioning your credentials, I’m questioning your spending,” Senator Murray responded.
Secretary Noem avoided answering the question directly, but conceded that as her Department spends at a rate beyond what Congress has appropriated, she is hopeful Republicans will provide new funding mid-way through the fiscal year through their partisan reconciliation process, stating: “We are prioritizing where our security needs are in this country, and we are hoping that this body will agree that reconciliation is necessary to address the things that have been neglected in this country for too long, that we have the technology upgrades, the manpower upgrades that are necessary. So, the $170 billion request for the Department of Homeland Security is incredibly important to make sure we have the tools that we need.”
“The fact is that you've not been given this funding. Saying that it's going to come in reconciliation that has not passed is not an acceptable answer,” replied Senator Murray.
[DISASTER RELIEF]
Senator Murray turned to discussing FEMA and disaster relief, stating: “A lot of disaster relief has been politicized. You've endorsed eliminating FEMA outright. We have seen an upheaval at FEMA that is going to put lives in jeopardy. One in five FEMA employees have been pushed out, taking this administration’s so-called buyout offer. We are losing indispensable staff just weeks away from fire and hurricane season, and over $100 billion in disaster relief and FEMA grants are still being held up. DHS is making it a lot harder to qualify for relief, something people in my home state of Washington are experiencing firsthand. Multiple requests from governors have been rejected in recent weeks, including a request from our state, and we haven't been given any response about this. And I'm watching this and I'm thinking: has President Trump directed you to prioritize funding for Republican states?”
“Absolutely not,” said Secretary Noem.
“Have you directed your staff to prioritize funding to Republican led states over Democratic states?” Senator Murray asked.
“Absolutely not. Under this administration, there will not be any politicization of support, relief, FEMA assistance, or grants given based on politics. Every single person will be treated the same,” committed Secretary Noem, in part.
“Madam Secretary, there is a clear trend of Republican led states getting very fast responses and funding. Democrat led states are being forced to wait. We have never treated FEMA as a partisan issue in this country,” concluded Senator Murray.
Last month, Senator Murray took to the Senate floor to slam Trump’s lawless immigration policy, highlighting the absence of any semblance of due process, and demanding full details of the secret agreement with El Salvador and the names and status of all the individuals sent to El Salvador. In April, she also met with farmworkers, advocates, and community members in Washington state to listen to their concerns amid a recent spike in U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) activity—including large-scale raids and the detention of local activists and leaders. Senator Murray has championed comprehensive, humane, and fair immigration reform throughout her Senate career, repeatedly pushing for legislative solutions that would offer a fair pathway to citizenship for the more than 11 million undocumented immigrants living in America, including Dreamers, farmworkers, and those with Temporary Protected Status. During Trump’s first administration, Senator Murray helped lead the charge in pushing back against Trump’s appalling treatment of migrant children and families at the southern border—cosponsoring the Fair Day in Court for Kids Act, which would require unaccompanied children and vulnerable individuals to be provided with legal assistance during immigration court proceedings, the Stop Cruelty to Migrant Children Act to end family separations at the border, and legislation to prevent the separation of families at sensitive locations such as schools, religious institutions, and hospitals, among many other efforts.
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