President Donald Trump on Monday appointed 13 people to review the Federal Emergency Management Agency, including several highly regarded emergency managers and five Republicans and two Democrats.
Trump created the council days after taking office as he suggested abolishing the nation’s disaster agency. The council was supposed to have held its first meeting on April 24, as outlined in Trump’s executive order.
Members include Republican Govs. Greg Abbott of Texas and Glenn Youngkin of Virginia, former Mississippi Gov. Phil Bryant (R) and Republican National Committee Chair Michael Whatley. Other members are Jane Castor, the Democratic mayor of Tampa, Florida, and Mark Cooper, who was chief of staff to former Louisiana Gov. John Bel Edwards, a Democrat.
Two well-known state emergency management leaders are on the council: Kevin Guthrie of Florida and Nim Kidd of Texas. Also named is Bob Fenton, a highly regarded FEMA veteran who oversees the agency’s regional office for Arizona, California, Hawaii, Nevada and Pacific U.S. territories.
