Elon Musk has revealed that his Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) had caught FEMA spending nearly $60 million to house illegal aliens in “luxury hotels” in New York City just last week, soon after President Donald Trump took office.
Musk made the announcement in a post on X on February 10, noting that this was a clear violation of the law.
“The [DOGE] team just discovered that FEMA sent $59M LAST WEEK to luxury hotels in New York City to house illegal migrants,” Musk wrote. “Sending this money violated the law and is in gross insubordination to the President’s executive order.”
“That money is meant for American disaster relief and instead is being spent on high end hotels for illegals! A clawback demand will be made today to recoup those funds,” he added.
The @DOGE team just discovered that FEMA sent $59M LAST WEEK to luxury hotels in New York City to house illegal migrants.
Sending this money violated the law and is in gross insubordination to the President’s executive order.
That money is meant for American disaster relief…
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) February 10, 2025
Trump’s acting FEMA Director Cameron Hamilton responded to Musk’s announcement by confirming that the payments had been suspended and the FEMA workers who authorized the payments would face discipline.
“I want to thank the [DOGE] team for making me aware of this. Effective yesterday these payments have all been suspended from FEMA. Personnel will be held accountable,” he stated.
I want to thank the @DOGE team for making me aware of this. Effective yesterday these payments have all been suspended from FEMA. Personnel will be held accountable. @elonmusk https://t.co/UO7HVrLg7M
— Cameron Hamilton (@FEMA_Cam) February 10, 2025
Hamilton, a former Navy SEAL, went on to note that Congress “should have never passed bills in 2023 and 2024 asking FEMA to do this work. This stops now.” His comment refers to FEMA’s shelter and services program for illegal aliens, which has cost American taxpayers over $1.4 billion since fall 2022.
This news comes as Musk’s DOGE has turned its focus to FEMA, which has been in the crosshairs for some time now due to its mismanagement of funds and politicization of the agency. The disaster relief agency has been criticized for spending much more money on illegal aliens while American citizens who are victims of disasters have been neglected. The agency was also caught promoting discrimination against Trump supporters during on-the-ground hurricane relief efforts.
Just a few days after taking office, Trump signed an executive order creating a council that will assess FEMA and its programs.
“There are serious concerns of political bias in FEMA. Indeed, at least one former FEMA responder has stated that FEMA managers directed her to avoid homes of individuals supporting the campaign of Donald J. Trump for President,” the executive order said. “And it has lost mission focus, diverting limited staff and resources to support missions beyond its scope and authority, spending well over a billion dollars to welcome illegal aliens.”
