Trump Expected to Nomsinate Fired FEMA Chief Cameron Hamilton for Top Role

Trump is preparing to nominate Cameron Hamilton as FEMA’s permanent administrator, bringing back the former acting chief he fired after Hamilton told Congress the United States should not eliminate the agency. The move would reinstall a figure who has already collided with the administration’s earlier drive to dismantle FEMA, even as the disaster agency heads toward hurricane season without a permanent leader.

Hamilton ran FEMA from January to May 2025. He was dismissed one day after testifying before the House Appropriations subcommittee on Homeland Security on May 7, 2025, that he did not believe it was in the American people’s best interest to eliminate FEMA. At the time, Hamilton said the agency needed major reforms, but he argued that preserving it was the better course.

His expected return underscores how unsettled FEMA remains inside Donald Trump’s second term. The agency has had no permanent administrator and has cycled through three temporary leaders, a pattern critics say has weakened its ability to plan, coordinate and reassure states ahead of disasters. That instability matters most to governors, county officials and local emergency managers, who depend on FEMA for fast federal coordination when storms overwhelm state resources.

The larger restructuring effort has not gone away. Trump established the FEMA Review Council by executive order on January 24, 2025, and the White House later extended it until May 29, 2026, or 10 days after its report is submitted, whichever comes first. A long-awaited report on FEMA reforms is still overdue, leaving open questions about the agency’s autonomy, its long-term role and the size of its future budget. Congress is also reviewing the administration’s proposal to cut FEMA’s non-disaster grants by $646 million in fiscal 2026.

Hamilton’s return would put those debates back in the center of the agency’s leadership fight. His nomination is likely to draw scrutiny in the Senate because he has never served as a state emergency management director, a background many lawmakers consider important for the post. It also lands after months of turmoil caused by sharp internal disagreements over FEMA’s fate.

Kristi Noem had publicly pushed to eliminate FEMA “the way it exists today,” a stance that fueled uncertainty across the department. Markwayne Mullin, by contrast, has signaled support for reforming FEMA rather than abolishing it. With the Atlantic hurricane season approaching, Hamilton’s possible confirmation would become more than a personnel decision. It would be a test of whether the administration intends to stabilize FEMA, remake it, or keep its future in flux when communities most need certainty.