The first part is just fundamentally flawed in accuracy. The money isnt going to change. The states can come up with their own recovery plans for the various type of Disasters. I believe Washington did it for the Green River and they did it for earthquakes and storm. The Feds dont need to write a massive check to each coastal state and have the money siting around, while we pay interest on it.

I suspect, like many other govt jobs. Fema is probably "FULL" of patronage positions. If we are going to have FEMA, then it needs to be staffed with professionals that are not subject to politics. Given that we dont have a monthly need for FEMA, there is no need for massive numbers of employees, like trucks and truck drivers when the private sector is available 24 hours a day. Electrical workers traveling state to state and fire fighters going from state to state are the basis, for this type of work. They just need professsional experience managers, to be on site The day of the disaster and coordinating with local and state officials and vendors. I dont care if they stay in a 200 dollar a night room with hookers, but the need to be there until the job is done. They can trade out every two weeks or so, if needed, but they should not leave.