Trump expected to nominate ousted FEMA chief to lead agency again

Trump administrationTrump expected to nominate ousted FEMA chief to lead agency againHamilton previously served as FEMA's acting head last year, but was removed after he testified before Congress against eliminating the agency.Listen to this article with a free account00:0000:00Cameron Hamilton was fired from his role as acting FEMA administrator in May 2025 after he testified before Congress that he didn't believe the agency should be eliminated. Amanda Andrade-Rhoades for The Washington Post via Getty Images fileShareAdd NBC News to GoogleApril 17, 2026, 11:13 AM EDTBy Rebecca Shabad, Laura Strickler and Monica AlbaPresident Donald Trump is expected to nominate Cameron Hamilton to serve as administrator of the Federal Emergency Management Agency, nearly a year after he was removed as its acting head following testimony to Congress in which he defended the agency's existence.Subscribe to read this story ad-free Get unlimited access to ad-free articles and exclusive content.Hamilton went to the White House on Wednesday with Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin for a meeting with Trump to discuss FEMA opportunities, according to an administration official. But, the Department of Homeland Security told NBC News it has "no personnel announcements to make at this time.”The White House declined to comment and Hamilton did not respond to a request for comment.Hamilton, a former Navy SEAL and former combat medic, served as the senior official performing the duties of FEMA administrator during the first five months of Trump's second term. In May 2025, he testified to a House committee that he didn't believe FEMA should be eliminated, contradicting previous statements by Trump who had made clear that he wanted to dismantle the agency. A day later, he was removed from the job. Tricia McLaughlin, then a DHS spokesperson, told NBC News at the time that the move was not a response to his testimony.White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt, however, suggested...