Page 250 – Texas Weekly Online

Why did Ratan Tata never marry? Legendary industrialist once revealed…

Ratan Tata relationship fell apart when he moved back to India, and he never married anyone.

Texas overrides local lawsuits to negotiate smaller settlements with polluters, Harris County officials claim

A 2017 law lets the state block local governments, individuals and nonprofits from suing polluters and pursue the cases itself.

Fight over West Texas nuclear waste plan to hit U.S. Supreme Court

A company has long pursued the plan to move “high-level” nuclear waste from power plants across the nation to a storage facility in Andrews County.

Afghan national charged with Election Day terror plot reignites vetting concerns: ‘Glaring alarms’

The arrest of an Afghan national now accused of plotting an Election Day terror attack on behalf of ISIS, and who entered the United States shortly after the chaotic withdrawal from Afghanistan, is reigniting long-standing questions and concerns from Republicans about the vetting of those who came to the U.S. at that time. Nasir Ahmad Tawhedi is said to have obtained firearms and ammunition to conduct a violent attack on U.S. soil and took steps to prepare for the plot. Tawhedi, who was arrested on Monday, is charged with conspiring and attempting to provide material support to ISIS and receiving a firearm to be used to commit a felony or a federal crime of terrorism. Authorities say he liquidated his family’s assets to finance his plan, including purchasing rifles and one-way tickets for his wife and child back to Afghanistan. “This defendant, motivated by ISIS, allegedly conspired to commit a violent attack, on election day, here on our homeland,” said FBI Director Christopher Wray in a statement. “I am proud of the men and women of the FBI who uncovered and stopped the plot before anyone was harmed. Terrorism is still the FBI’s number one priority, and we will use every resource to protect the American people.” AFGHAN MAN IN OKLAHOMA PLOTTED ELECTION DAY TERROR ATTACK IN US ON BEHALF OF ISIS, JUSTICE DEPT SAYS Authorities said Tawhedi entered the United States on Sept. 9, 2021, on a Special Immigrant Visa and is currently on parole status pending adjudication of his immigration proceedings. His alleged co-conspirator is a green card holder who arrived in the U.S. on a Special Immigrant Visa in 2018. Special Immigrant Visas (SIV), made available first during the Bush administration, allowed those who worked with the U.S. armed forces as a translator or interpreter in Afghanistan or Iraq to obtain a visa. The number of SIV applicants increased sharply amid the 2021 withdrawal. But Tawhedi entered shortly after the withdrawal from Afghanistan, a time that saw planes full of Afghans being quickly evacuated from Kabul’s airport and tens of thousands of Afghans brought to the U.S. The U.S. would go on to admit more than 97,000 evacuees, of which about 77,000 were admitted via humanitarian parole, through a program called Operation Allies Welcome. It is unclear how Tawhedi entered the U.S. and also why he would have moved from a SIV to a parole status. But Republicans and watchdog officials have long expressed concern about the vetting of those who came in during that period. Those concerns have been renewed in the case of Tawhedi. “When tens of thousands of insufficiently vetted individuals are let into the interior, this is the inevitable result,” House Homeland Security Committee Chair Mark Green, R-Tenn., said in a statement. “This Committee has repeatedly warned of the terror threats stemming from the Biden-Harris administration’s failed leadership and disastrous border security policies. DHS OIG FAULTS AFGHAN VETTING, WARNS NATIONAL SECURITY THREATS MAY HAVE ENTERED US “Unfortunately, our calls for transparency regarding the inadequate vetting and screening following the catastrophic withdrawal from Afghanistan continue to go unanswered – and, here, Americans almost paid the price,” he said. In the Senate, Sen. Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, said he had been vocal about the need to thoroughly vet SIV applicants but that the Biden administration had been “quick to dismiss those glaring alarms.” “The number one job of our government is to protect its citizens. By hiding behind clerical excuses, refusing to take accountability and neglecting to address known vulnerabilities in vetting and resettlement processes, the Biden-Harris administration failed to prioritize Americans’ safety and, once again, projected weakness on the global stage,” Grassley said in a statement. House Republican Conference Chair Elise Stefanik of New York also blamed the administration. “Nasir Ahmad Tawhedi was flown into the U.S. by Joe Biden and Kamala Harris. Their catastrophic America Last foreign policy has made America less safe,” she said in a statement. Concerns about vetting have been voiced by the Department of Homeland Security’s (DHS) internal watchdog. In 2022, the DHS Office of Inspector General released a report in which it said it found that officials “did not always have critical data to properly screen, vet, or inspect the evacuees.” DHS ANNOUNCES TERROR BAR EXEMPTIONS FOR AFGHAN EVACUEES WHO WORKED FOR TALIBAN-ERA CIVIL SERVICE “As a result, DHS may have admitted or paroled individuals into the United States who pose a risk to national security and the safety of local communities,” the report said. A Pentagon inspector general report the same year revealed that at least 50 evacuees were brought to the U.S. whose information indicated “potentially serious security concerns” and that officials were unable to locate dozens with derogatory information. A 2024 report found “vulnerabilities” in the processes of two DHS agencies for resolving derogatory information. It also found that DHS did not have a process for monitoring the expiration of the two-year parole period and guidelines for determining “re-parole” for parolees are “undefined.” But the Biden administration has repeatedly defended the vetting process, arguing that there is a multilayered process that includes classified and unclassified vetting, including against Pentagon and FBI databases as well as Interpol notices and other information. It previously pushed back against the 2022 IG report, saying it failed to acknowledge an “unprecedented whole of government effort” and for seeing only one part of the screening process. “Afghan evacuees who sought to enter the United States were subject to multi layered screening and vetting against intelligence, law enforcement, and counterterrorism information,” a DHS spokesperson said on Wednesday. “If new information emerges after arrival, appropriate action is taken.” Officials have noted that vetting is a “point-in-time” check of current information. It is still not clear if there was any derogatory information on Tawhedi before he arrived. The arrest comes among broader concerns about the potential for terrorism in the U.S. by foreign nationals. Fox News Digital reported on Tuesday that authorities have started deporting eight Tajik nationals who came to the U.S. at the southern border

Colorado Supreme Court dismisses lawsuit against Christian baker who refused to bake trans cake

The Colorado Supreme Court dismissed yet another case Tuesday against Masterpiece Cakeshop owner Jack Phillips, a Christian baker who has been the target of several lawsuits over the last 12 years. The latest lawsuit accused Phillips of discriminating against a transgender attorney for refusing to bake a custom cake celebrating their gender transition. Alliance Defending Freedom (ADF), the lawyer group representing Phillips, first defended Phillips in 2012 when he was sued for refusing to bake a custom cake celebrating a same-sex wedding because it violated his religious convictions. “Enough is enough. Jack has been dragged through courts for over a decade. It’s time to leave him alone,” Jake Warner, ADF senior counsel, said in a statement. BIDEN OFFICIALS PUSHED TO DROP AGE LIMIT ON TRANS SURGERIES FOR MINORS: REPORT “Free speech is for everyone. As the U.S. Supreme Court held in 303 Creative, the government cannot force artists to express messages they don’t believe. In this case, an attorney demanded that Jack create a custom cake that would celebrate and symbolize a transition from male to female. Because that cake admittedly expresses a message, and because Jack cannot express that message for anyone, the government cannot punish Jack for declining to express it. The First Amendment protects that decision.” While the state court did not issue an opinion regarding Phillips’ First Amendment rights, it was dismissed on the grounds of violating a technicality, stating that plaintiff Autumn Scardina, a man identifying as a woman, did not properly file the lawsuit in Colorado. “We granted review to determine, among other issues, whether [the attorney] properly filed [this] case,” the Colorado Supreme Court wrote in its opinion in Masterpiece Cakeshop v. Scardina. “We conclude that [the attorney] did not.” OVER 5,700 CHILDREN IN 5-YEAR PERIOD HAD GENDER SURGERIES, MOST FROM 5 LIBERAL STATES: WATCHDOG “The underlying constitutional question this case raises has become the focus of intense public debate: How should governments balance the rights of transgender individuals to be free from discrimination in places of public accommodation with the rights of religious business owners when they are operating in the public market?” Justice Melissa Hart wrote in the Colorado Supreme Court’s majority opinion. “We cannot answer that question.” On the same day the U.S. Supreme Court revealed it would hear Phillips’ initial case — which he won in 2018 after Colorado tried to force him to make a custom cake for a same-sex wedding — the transgender attorney contacted Phillips’ shop for a custom order to celebrate a gender transition. Phillips’ declined. COLORADO STATE WINS IN STRAIGHT SETS AFTER DECIDING TO PLAY AGAINST TEAM MIRED IN TRANS PLAYER CONTROVERSY The attorney called again later to request a second cake, this one featuring Satan smoking marijuana, to “correct the errors of [Phillips’] thinking,” according to the ADF news release. “Phillips politely declined both requests because the cakes express messages that violate his core beliefs,” ADF stated. “The attorney then filed the most recent lawsuit, threatening to continue harassing Phillips until he is punished. Phillips serves people from all backgrounds. Like many artists, he decides to create custom cakes based on what they will express, not who requests them.”

Ohio Lt. Gov. encourages support for Trump’s ‘swamp the vote’ strategy as key state’s early voting opens

COLUMBUS – Early voting in the former battleground state of Ohio began on Tuesday and Fox News Digital spoke to the state’s GOP lieutenant governor, who explained why Republicans are encouraging voters to vote early. “I want to do what President Trump’s asking us to do, to swamp your vote, because we want everybody across the country and in the state of Ohio to get out there and vote early so that their voices, their votes are locked in, then the campaign can then move on to make sure that they’re focusing resources on people who may not have gotten out and voted,” Ohio Lt. Gov. Jon Husted told Fox News Digital at the Franklin County Board of Elections on Tuesday as he voted on the first day of early voting. “It’s a really important part of the campaign strategy.” The former president’s 2024 campaign and the Republican National Committee (RNC) announced earlier this year the launch of what they call their “Swamp the Vote USA” effort, which was a shift from 2020, when Trump spoke in opposition to early-in-person voting and mail-in ballots. OHIO GOP SENATE CANDIDATE MORENO HITS BROWN ON INFLATION REDUCTION ACT VOTE IN AD THAT’S PART OF $25M BUY “Whether you vote absentee, by mail, early in person, or on Election Day—We will Secure Your Vote,” Trump posted online at the time. “JUST VOTE! They are all good options. The way to win is to Swamp Them with Votes!” Republican voters are typically known for voting on Election Day, while Democrats often have the advantage when it comes to early voting efforts. Husted told Fox News Digital that people should vote in whatever way they are most comfortable, but encouraged early voting. “If you want to vote on Election Day, that’s fine,” Husted said. “But we’re encouraging those who are willing to vote early because once the campaigns know you voted, they can devote their resources to turning out people who haven’t voted. The system of elections here in Ohio is a place where we make it easy to vote and hard to cheat and when you get that done early, you can know that the system is working for you and that you can encourage your friends and neighbors to go out and get it done.” Husted continued, “I think it’s really important that Republicans don’t let Democrats get the lead through early voting. Think about this. If you vote early, then if something comes up on Election Day, there’s a hurricane that hits you, a storm that happens, something might get in the way of you getting to the polls. When you do it early, you ensure that your vote happens, that it’s going to be there, it’s going to get counted, and something doesn’t get in the way between now and Election Day.” NRA TARGETS SEN SHERROD BROWN IN 7-FIGURE AD BUY IN OHIO: ‘VOTE LIKE YOUR LIFE DEPENDS ON IT’ Although Ohio is no longer viewed as the battleground state it was for many years for presidential elections, the Buckeye State is home to several critical House races and a Senate race that could potentially shift the balance of power in Congress. Cleveland businessman Bernie Moreno, running as a Republican in that Senate race against incumbent Democrat Sen. Sherrod Brown, rallied supporters outside the Franklin County Board of Elections on Tuesday and also pushed Trump’s “Swamp the Vote” plan. A spokesperson for the Franklin County Board of Elections told Fox News Digital that over 4,000 Ohioans voted early at the Columbus voting site on Tuesday. “The election is down to the hands of the voters and regardless if you want to support me or my opponent, President Trump or Kamala Harris, it’s your civic duty to show up and vote,” Moreno said. “Our elections in Ohio are secure. They’re safe. On Nov. 5, we’ll have an outcome and everybody will agree on that outcome. I encourage everybody to vote early. Bank that vote. Get your vote in there.” Moreno continued, “It’s a beautiful day today, but we have no idea what Nov. 5 will look like. If you’re not voting, you’re part of the problem. We’ve got to make sure that you have your voice heard. Look, the earlier you can vote, it’s better for us as Republicans because we get to take you off the list. We don’t have to text you, email you, knock on your door – if that alone doesn’t motivate you. But look, at the end of the day, here’s a very simple equation where we’re at right now. You vote for me, for Bernie Moreno, for the United States Senate, and your vote for me is a vote to fire Sherrod Brown. The first thing I’m going to do as senator, what we get to do when we get down there, we fire Chuck Schumer.” Fox News Digital’s Paul Steinhauser contributed to this report

Trump vs Harris Round 2? Voters in key GA county reveal if they want second debate

MARIETTA, Ga. – Americans living in the Atlanta suburbs appear to have little appetite for another primetime match-up between former President Trump and Vice President Kamala Harris. “If you don’t know them by now, there ain’t no hope,” one man who declined to give his name told Fox News Digital in Acworth, Georgia, last week. There is less than a month left until Election Day, and Georgia residents are bracing for early voting to begin in their state next week. The Peach State is in play this election after President Biden flipped it blue for the first time in years during the 2020 race, winning over Trump by less than 1%. GEORGIA GOP CHAIR SHARES 2-PRONGED ELECTION STRATEGY AS TRUMP WORKS TO WIN BACK PEACH STATE A not insignificant amount of that support came from Cobb County, Georgia, where Biden won by an even wider margin than he did statewide. And like Biden and Trump in 2020, the ex-president and Harris have only had one debate. Trump has refused to participate in a second one, while Harris and her allies are eager for another head-to-head. But people in Cobb County who spoke with Fox News Digital seemed unenthusiastic about the prospect of a second debate. “I really don’t think so,” Howard Segan, who spoke with Fox News Digital outside of a Marietta Whole Foods, answered when asked if Americans needed another debate. “I don’t think Trump is a very good debater at all. And I think [Harris is] an empty suit.” Another man who identified himself as Scott noted his grandfather was involved in politics and suggested he himself was disenchanted with its pageantry at an early age. SPEAKER JOHNSON RIPS ‘LACK OF LEADERSHIP’ IN BIDEN ADMIN’S HELENE RESPONSE: ‘ALARMED AND DISAPPOINTED’ “I realized most of it is staged anyway, so I really don’t care about the debates,” Scott said. A woman named Deb who is opposed to Harris said, “She says nothing, it’s word salad. So what’s there to debate? She can’t even answer questions.” Meanwhile, a man in Marietta named Toli said he “honestly” would like to see another debate but saw little value in the exercise. “It doesn’t really matter at this point, because people are going to have their own views, no matter what they do,” Toli said. “Maybe 20 years ago we had debates where people watched, they were riveted to the screen trying to figure out what their opinions are. But now it’s so polarized. Because of social media and everything else, people get their opinion of the candidate… every day.” Sandy, one of the few people who spoke with Fox News Digital who did want a second debate, suggested she was not excited about either of its would-be participants. FORMER REPUBLICAN US SENATOR ENDORSES KAMALA HARRIS, SAYS ELECTION OFFERS ‘STARK CHOICE’ “I just think a lot of people have questions,” Sandy explained. “I mean, [Harris has] just touched the surface, and if she wants the votes, she needs to come forth with what she’s going to do, actually do. And also with Trump, I mean, he doesn’t put out any information other than hate.” A recent Fox News poll taken late last month found Harris with a slim three-point lead over Trump in Georgia. Peach State residents are heading to the polls for early voting from Oct. 15 through Nov. 1.

Another Trump vs Harris debate? Voters in key Georgia county say ‘no thanks’

Michigan Senate candidates clash on national security, immigration and abortion

Democratic Rep. Elissa Slotkin and Republican former Congressman Mike Rogers clashed over national security, immigration and abortion at a debate Tuesday as each candidate vies to be the next U.S. senator from Michigan. Retiring Sen. Debbie Stabenow, D-Mich., has endorsed Slotkin, a three-term lawmaker who currently represents Michigan’s 7th Congressional District, to fill her seat. Rogers served in the House from 2001-2015, was chairman of the House Intelligence Committee and has been endorsed by former President Trump. This race in battleground Michigan is close, though Slotkin has enjoyed an average 5 percentage point lead in public opinion polls. The victor could very well determine which major party gains control of the Senate next year. Fox News’ Power Rankings list the Michigan Senate race as Lean D. The hour-long debate hosted by NBC affiliate WOOD TV was mostly polite and issues-focused. However, there were several times when the candidates accused each other of lying or twisting the facts of their records. FOX NEWS POWER RANKINGS: HARRIS TICKS UP AND SENATE REPUBLICANS TAKE CHARGE “Dishonest and deceptive,” Rogers fumed after Slotkin insisted he repeatedly voted to “privatize or cut Medicare and Social Security” while he was a member of Congress. “I’m not even sure she could pass the polygraph test in the CIA anymore,” he said, referring to Slotkin’s former career as a CIA analyst. Slotkin hit back later after Rogers said she was “huffing at the microphone” during a discussion about nuclear power and competition with China. “It’s just sad that a guy who considers himself a national security guy can’t see that we need to work together on this issue, not lie repeatedly,” she said. Early voting is underway in swing state Michigan and both candidates pitched themselves as willing to work with the other side. Each attacked the other as a partisan. “We’re a very purple state. Lots of Democrats, lots of Republicans,” Slotkin acknowledged. “I was voted the 14th most bipartisan member of Congress out of 435.” She noted that Rogers served as deputy whip in the House, “the guy who got everyone to vote with the Republicans.” MICHIGAN DEM LAUNCHES ANTI-EV AD IN BID FOR SENATE RACE AFTER VOTING AGAINST A BIPARTISAN PUSHBACK ON MANDATES Rogers in turn said Slotkin contributed to high gas prices, inflated grocery bills and increasing crime by “voting 100% with the Biden-Harris agenda.” He said that if elected to the Senate, he “will look for every opportunity to be bipartisan.” The candidates appeared deeply divided on issues of foreign policy, national security, immigration and abortion. Slotkin framed electric vehicle production in Michigan as a national security issue. “I don’t care what kind of car you want to drive,” she said, before adding that it will either be “us or China” that builds the next generation of vehicles. “China is eating our lunch on these types of vehicles,” Slotkin continued, warning that Michigan’s auto industry may repeat a historic mistake by “ceding ground” to a foreign competitor if America does not invest in EVs. Rogers accused Slotkin of supporting EV mandates and pointed out, “85% of everything processed in electric vehicles has to go through China.” “Why in God’s green earth we would cede that auto market to the Communist Party of China is beyond me,” he said. “My opponent has multiple times supported EV mandates, trying to pick the cars that our companies have to build and the cars that you’re going to have to buy. And by the way, that got us 2,400 layoffs at Stellantis, a thousand layoffs at General Motors. Ford is talking about closing two lines. The CEO of Ford came out and said this is unworkable. It won’t work for America.” The debate became heated as each candidate tried to accuse the other of having a close relationship with China. Rogers repeated allegations he’s made on the campaign trail that Slotkin signed a non-disclosure agreement with Gotion, a Chinese-linked company that has received $175 million in taxpayer money to build a battery plant in Big Rapids. Slotkin said her opponent’s claims were “offensive” and shot back that Rogers was chief security officer of AT&T “when they were actively working to get Chinese companies into our telecoms.” Rogers denied the charge. In another exchange on the Middle East, Rogers jabbed at “my opponent’s notion that their somehow serving in Iraq gives permission to be wrong in the entire effort toward Iran.” Slotkin accompanied troops as a CIA analyst during three tours in Iraq. THE BIDEN-HARRIS EV MANDATES WILL HURT WORKERS IN STATES LIKE MICHIGAN: TUDOR DIXON When the topic turned to abortion, Rogers said the choice to terminate a pregnancy is “the most heart-wrenching decision a woman will ever have to make.” Acknowledging that the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade in 2022, permitting states to regulate abortion, Rogers said, “The people of Michigan voted overwhelmingly to make abortion legal in a part of the state constitution of Michigan. I will do nothing when I go back to Washington, D.C., to do anything that would change what the Michigan Constitution, voted on by the people of Michigan, have given us that guidance to go back.” Slotkin said she would vote for a bill to codify Roe – thereby erasing state restrictions on abortion – and said Rogers could not be trusted on the issue. “He voted for every single ban, every restriction, every bill that came across his desk to make it harder for a woman and to ban, in some cases, a woman and her right to choose 56 times in total.” “He voted and sponsored bills that would make it impossible to have IVF and contraception,” she asserted. “If he does not trust us to protect our own rights, do not trust him.” “Deceive and deception,” retorted Rogers. “I have come out and talked about making sure that IVF is available for families so they can grow their families. It’s a very personal thing for these families, and I support it 100%.” Slotkin also framed

FEMA reports it has under 10% of front-line staff available ahead of Hurricane Milton

The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) has less than 10% of front-line staff available for deployment amid preparations for the second major hurricane to hit the Southeast this month, according to the agency’s daily operations briefing. FEMA released a daily briefing on Wednesday revealing the agency had only 8%, or 1,115, FEMA staff members currently available as preparations continue for Hurricane Milton, which is expected to hit Florida in the coming days. This number represents a significant drop in availability from a year prior, after an operations briefing from late September 2023 showed the agency had 20% of the same staff available for deployment. A FEMA spokesperson indicated to Fox News Digital that the availability numbers released by the agency are only in reference to the cadre of staffers who are part of FEMA’s incident management core capacity. They are the first line of FEMA staffers to deploy in any disaster. Meanwhile, the FEMA spokesperson pointed out the agency has a total workforce of 22,000 staffers it can tap, as well as resources from other agencies such as the Department of Homeland Security. The fear of front-line FEMA staffing comes amid other concerns about FEMA’s response to Hurricanes Helene and Milton, including claims that the agency spent its money on housing for migrants and is blocking private relief distributors from entering areas in North Carolina impacted by Helene. FEMA HEAD DENIES AGENCY IS SHORT ON MONEY FOR DISASTER RELIEF BECAUSE FUNDS WENT TO ILLEGAL IMMIGRANTS In May 2023, the Government Accountability Office (GAO) published a report indicating that, as of the start of Fiscal Year 2022, FEMA was understaffed by 35% with an overall staffing gap of approximately 6,200 employees. FEMA officials attributed the shortage to “responsibilities due to COVID-19 and managing the rising disaster activity during the year, which increased burnout and employee attrition,” according to the GAO. With Hurricane Helene making a destructive and deadly sweep across the south, FEMA has been under high pressure to deliver aid to those in need. In the latest update on FEMA worker numbers, the agency indicated more than 5,600 personnel from across the federal workforce have been deployed, including more than 1,500 from FEMA. Additionally, the agency noted it has shipped more than 11.5 million meals, more than 12.6 million liters of water, 150 generators and more than 400,000 tarps to the region, while also helping thousands of Helene survivors with more than $45 million in “flexible, upfront” funding. Despite the current staffing shortage, Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorks insisted during an interview with MSNBC that Americans “should rest confident that FEMA has the resources” necessary to recover from Helene and prepare for Milton. “We have search and rescue teams. The Army Corps of Engineers are there. We are ready,” Mayorkas said of Florida, in reference to the federal government’s preparation for Milton. “FEMA likes to say it is, ‘FEMA-flexible.’ We can respond to multiple events at a single time.” VIDEO RESURFACES SHOWING FEMA PRIORITIZING EQUITY OVER HELPING GREATEST NUMBER OF PEOPLE IN DISASTER RELIEF However, despite the optimistic response to concerns about FEMA resources, Mayorkas did say last week during a formal press conference that “FEMA does not have the funds to make it through the [hurricane] season.” Questions about FEMA funding have been exacerbated by suggestions that the agency was giving disaster relief money to migrants. FEMA has sent aid to migrants, but the money was part of the Shelter and Services Program, which remains separate from disaster relief funds. House Speaker Mike Johnson, R–La., acknowledged that the funds were part of a separate program unrelated to disaster relief, but noted that he didn’t think the agency should be involved in the migrant crisis. SPEAKER JOHNSON ADDRESSES CLAIMS FEMA DIVERTED FUNDS TO IMMIGRATION EFFORTS: ‘AMERICAN PEOPLE ARE DISGUSTED’ “The streams of funding are different, that is not an untrue statement, of course,” Johnson told Fox News’ Shannon Bream. “But the problem is with the American people, see, and what they’re frustrated by, is that FEMA should be involved.” Concerns that private relief distributors are being blocked from entering parts of North Carolina that were impacted have also circulated. “Some of the reports that I’ve received through some of my contacts who are trying to provide assistance… they’re being told that they need special requirements from FEMA in order to enter these certain areas,” said Joe Rieck, vice president of My Patriot Supply, an emergency preparedness company. Before Helene made landfall, Congress passed a stopgap spending bill that included money for FEMA’s Disaster Relief Fund, but excluded billions in additionally requested supplemental disaster funding. On Friday, President Biden wrote a letter to Congress urging them to provide additional funding because “while FEMA’s Disaster Relief Fund has the resources it requires right now to meet immediate needs, the fund does face a shortfall at the end of the year,” he said. “Without additional funding, FEMA would be required to forego longer-term recovery activities in favor of meeting urgent needs,” Biden added. “The Congress should provide FEMA additional resources to avoid forcing that kind of unnecessary trade-off and to give the communities we serve the certainty of knowing that help will be ongoing, both for the short- and long-term.” When pressed about reconvening the House for a special session to approve additional funding, Johnson suggested FEMA has the funds it needs right now and, in order to approve additional funding, Congress needs requests from individual states to tabulate how much to provide. “The way the process works is the states, local authorities, they band together, they assess the damages, they send that to the federal authorities and it’s all worked through in that manner,” Johnson responded when pressed about whether he had plans to reconvene Congress for the matter. “It will take some time to tabulate this storm – it’s one of the biggest in our history – so a lot of that work is being done immediately. I think the timing of that will probably correspond when Congress is

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