President Trump has denied disaster relief aid to Colorado following flooding and wildfires in the state, Gov. Jared Polis said.
Mr. Polis disclosed the administration’s rejection in a statement late Sunday, accusing the president of playing “political games” after he received two denial letters from the Federal Emergency Management Agency.
“Coloradans impacted by the Elk and Lee fires and the flooding in southwestern Colorado deserve better than the political games President Trump is playing,” Mr. Polis said in a statement.
“I call on the president’s better angels, and urge him to reconsider these requests. This is about the Coloradans who need this support and we won’t stop fighting for them to get what they deserve. Colorado will be appealing this decision,” he said.
The White House has pushed back on Mr. Polis’s claims, saying in a statement that “there is no politicization” in the decision to deny federal relief aid, noting that Mr. Trump ordered two firefighting airplanes to respond to the fires.
“The president responds to each request for federal assistance under the Stafford Act with great care and consideration, ensuring American tax dollars are used appropriately and efficiently by the states to supplement — not substitute — their obligation to respond and recover from disasters,” a spokesperson said in a statement.
Under the Stafford Act, a president can free up additional federal aid by declaring a major disaster.
Colorado’s two Democratic U.S. senators also blasted the Trump administration for the denial of aid.
“FEMA’s denial of Colorado’s request for federal disaster assistance is unacceptable,” Sen. Michael Bennet wrote on X. “Western Colorado communities need help recovering after the historic flooding and wildfires this year and federal assistance should be available to every state and county that needs it.I will take every available step to appeal this decision.”
Sen. John Hickenlooper wrote on social media: “This isn’t a game. These are people’s lives.”
“Coloradans are trying to rebuild their lives after fires and floods destroyed homes and communities across our state,” he said. “Trump’s decision to reject our disaster requests, and therefore withhold resources as our communities continue to recover, is unacceptable.”
Mr. Trump has been sparring with Mr. Polis over Tina Peters, the former Republican clerk of Mesa, Colorado. Ms. Peters was found guilty last year on state charges of participating in a scheme to breach voting systems that sought to prove Mr. Trump’s false claims of mass voter fraud in 2020. She was sentenced to nine years in prison and is serving her sentence at a women’s prison in Pueblo, Colorado.
The president last week announced he pardoned Ms. Peters, but that announcement has no legal impact on her conviction or incarceration. Ms. Peters was convicted on state charges, and presidential pardons only impact federal convictions.
Still, the Trump administration has been pressuring Colorado officials to set her free or move her into federal custody, where she would then be moved into a more comfortable facility.
Mr. Trump’s aid denial also comes as he has pushed to shrink federal disaster assistance and have states pick up the bulk of the costs. He has sought to downsize FEMA has denied requests for aid to other states.
FEMA has denied federal assistance for tornadoes in Arkansas, flooding in West Virginia, and a windstorm in Washington state. It has also refused North Carolina’s request for extended relief funding in the aftermath of Hurricane Helene.
