DC insider Michael Whatley has failed so miserably at delivering federal relief to Western North Carolina that he’s now trying to rewrite history, claiming he’s not the president’s “hand-picked Hurricane Helene ‘recovery czar’” after getting grilled about the massive delays in disaster aid.
In January, the president tapped Whatley to “lead the team.” Under Whatley’s watch, only 11 percent of needs have been met in Western North Carolina.
In new footage, Whatley also nearly forgets the name of the FEMA Review Council he was charged with leading. (No wonder he blew through the deadline for the Council’s final report…)
Whatley [00:47]: “Well, the title [‘recovery czar’] came from the Democrats choosing to call it that but what really happened was President Trump, when he came back down to North Carolina for his first trip after being sworn in as president, asked me if I would be willing to help make sure that the needs of Western North Carolina were being relayed to the administration and that the relief from the administration was going to get into Western North Carolina.”
Whatley [01:57]: “I have been named to the…uh…to the, um…FEMA Review Council by the president…”
“Michael Whatley knows he has completely failed Western North Carolina as the Helene ‘recovery czar’ and rather than taking responsibility, he’s backing away from the job,” said Mallory Payne, senior communications advisor at the North Carolina Democratic Party. “Whatley’s definition of leadership – failing North Carolinians and then rewriting history to avoid tough questions – has no business in the United States Senate.”
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