Beshear, feds trade compliments as Secretary Kristi Noem tours Kentucky flood damage
Gov. Andy Beshear and top officials in President Donald Trump’s Cabinet had nothing but positive things to say about each other’s responses to historic Kentucky flooding at separate appearances in Frankfort Wednesday.
Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem toured flood damage in the state via helicopter before touching down in Frankfort to take a tour of the Kentucky Emergency Management headquarters.
She said that Kentucky had handled its dealings with the federal government well in the aftermath.
“Some states can turn in their requests, but they have to have data in them in order to access those funds. So, we appreciate you all sending those in appropriately so we can take action on them,” Noem said.
Beshear met with Noem — as well as newly minted Small Business Administration chief Kelly Loeffler who traveled with Noem — briefly in Frankfort.
Initially, a joint press conference was planned for the early evening, but Noem was delayed by about an hour and a half and Beshear had prior commitments.
Noem mentioned that the pair were in Trump’s first full cabinet meeting earlier Wednesday.
The secretary said she and Beshear had already known each other because of her history as governor of South Dakota, a position she held until she became secretary under Trump last month. That existing relationship helped with quick communication, she said.
“Even when the event started, the governor and I were in conversation and talking on the phone quite often,” Noem said.
Noem said she has also spoken with 6th Congressional District Rep. Andy Barr and 5th Congressional District Rep. Hal Rogers about the damage they’ve seen in their districts.
Beshear applauded what he has seen as a swift and positive response from Trump, Noem and Cameron Hamilton, the acting administrator of the Federal Emergency Management Agency Administration. The governor said that staff from the agency’s national processing center — “where the final decisions are made,” he said — are currently on the ground in Kentucky.
Though the Democratic governor has become a consistent voice of opposition to Trump’s actions elsewhere on the federal level, he had nothing but positive words for the Republican-led Trump administration’s response to the flooding, which killed several Kentuckians and damaged hundreds of homes.
“There was zero politics played in any of this... They did their jobs, and I’m grateful for the people of the commonwealth of Kentucky. While I know there’s different discussion that’s out there about the future, I can tell you: the present, they did what we needed and are continuing to do what we need,” Beshear said.
One area of disagreement with Trump that the 47-year-old governor has made clear is on Trump’s stated desire to dismantle FEMA. Beshear has said it could be reformed but should not be nixed.
Noem said she sided with Trump on the matter. She said she didn’t foresee the money spent on aid for communities to be cut, but instead the aid process might be reformed to get funds directly to state and local governments.
“You’ve heard him talk about eliminating FEMA, and what he means by that is that the people that are closest to the individuals that were hurt or impacted by a disaster are the ones who know what they need more than people sitting in Washington, D.C., do,” Noem said.
This story was originally published February 27, 2025 at 4:30 AM.
