Department of Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas said Sunday that “misinformation” about FEMA’s response to Hurricanes Helene and Milton was “extremely pernicious.”
CBS News’s “Face the Nation” host Margaret Brennan said that “dangerous misinformation” related to the hurricanes was “amplified online” and asked Mayorkas if it was a “preview” of misinformation being weaponized in the U.S. election.
Mayorkas replied that he was “incredibly concerned” and that hurricane disinformation is “deliberately spread to impact people’s behavior and perceptions.”
“It is extremely pernicious,” he added. “We have individuals in need of assistance, who are entitled to assistance, who aren’t seeking it because of the false information.”
Mayorkas went on to call for government censorship of hurricane misinformation, saying “we need individuals, elected officials, people who have the platform to debunk this false information and we’re not seeing enough of that.”
“I find that to be incredibly irresponsible and irresponsible to the people who are survivors of these extreme weather events,” he added.
Mayorkas faced widespread criticism for claiming as Hurricane Helene hit Southeastern states that “FEMA does not have the funds to make it through the season,” despite just several months before assuring the American people that DHS was “tremendously prepared” for hurricane season.
Much of that criticism came from the fact FEMA had doled out hundreds of millions of dollars to house and care for illegal aliens in sanctuary cities across the country.
FEMA also faced criticism for its delayed response to Hurricane Helene, with some reports emerging and whistleblowers claiming that the agency was even hindering volunteer assistance and aid in impacted areas of Western North Carolina and Georgia.
Watch Mayorkas’ full remarks: