American Emergency: The Movement to Kill FEMA

Just after Donald Trump's first term began, he announced that he was considering eliminating the Federal Emergency Management Agency — the agency that helps Americans amid unthinkable disasters. And just a month ago, Trump repeated his disdain for FEMA, declaring that he’s poised to make some big changes. 

On this week’s On the Media, we present the first installment in a four-part series called American Emergency: The Movement to Kill FEMA. In this episode, OTM co-host Micah Loewinger tells the origin story of FEMA — which initially focused less on disaster relief and more on plans to save the government from nuclear attack. The agency’s secrecy inspired wild conspiracy theories and paranoia among far-right groups, including the fear that FEMA is building camps to detain citizens and stifle political dissent. The episode culminates with a never-before-told story of a plot to stalk FEMA’s top brass in the nineties.

Further reading:

• Sound of Impact, by Adam Shaw
• Raven Rock: The Story of the U.S. Government's Secret Plan to Save Itself--While the Rest of Us Die, by Garrett M. Graff
• "FEMA and Disaster – a Look at What Worked and What Didn’t From a FEMA Insider," by Leo Bosner

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