 A FEMA official in Florida overseeing damage assessments in the wake of Hurricane Milton reportedly instructed workers to avoid homes displaying Trump signs. Screenshots provided to The Daily Wire shows that FEMA volunteers tasked with visiting sites impacted by the storm – and informing residents of government benefits – bypassed homes because they displayed Trump campaign signs. According to screenshots of an internal FEMA chat, the supervisor in question stated that it would be “best practice” to “avoid homes advertising Trump.” At least one worker filed a whistleblower complaint, and FEMA has subsequently terminated the official responsible for the guidance. These actions of a federal agency in Florida present a clear case study on the First Amendment’s “viewpoint neutrality” mandate, which prohibits the federal government from discriminating based on private speech. It also reaffirms the limits of the speech rights of federal employees, who may engage in political speech in their private capacities – but not in the course of their official duties… and certainly not in the context of critical disaster recovery efforts. Should the Florida supervisor contest the termination, she might bring up the wild theories from some influencers that circulated in the wake of Hurricane Helene, another terrible storm that rocked the southeast just prior to Milton. In mid-October, a single armed man – potentially ginned up by conspiracy theories – was arrested in North Carolina for making threats against FEMA. There is still no rational argument that avoiding Trump-supporting households in Florida – part of a 74 million-vote majority – is a narrowly tailored solution aimed at achieving a compelling government interest. This story does not negate the good work FEMA has done in the wake of recent disasters, but it should serve as an instructive lesson to government employees tasked with upholding the Constitution. Comments are closed.
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