Kristi Noem said it is not the federal government's responsibility to manage "disasters" like the deadly flash floods in Texas, saying it was instead the state's responsibility.

12:29 ET, 08 Jul 2025Updated 12:30 ET, 08 Jul 2025

Donald Trump hosted his sixth Cabinet meeting of his second term at the White House on Tuesday at 11 a.m

Kristi Noem, also known as "Ice Barbie", made an interesting statement at Trump's sixth Cabinet meeting during this second term as President on Tuesday.

Noem said that the federal government is not responsible for managing disasters like the deadly flash floods in Texas, adding that it was the state's responsibility.

"We, as a federal government don't manage these disasters. The state does. We come in and support them," Noem said. "And that's exactly what we did here in this situation -FEMA went to an enhanced level, immediately, but as soon as you signed the major disaster declaration we were able to get them resources and dollars right away just like you envisioned through state block grants to help them with clean up," Noem added.

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"FEMA has been deployed and we're cutting through the paper work of the old FEMA streamlining it much like your vision of how FEMA should operate and its been a much better response to help these families get through this terrible situation," she added.

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Donald Trump hosted his sixth Cabinet meeting of his second term at the White House on Tuesday at 11 a.m.

President Trump, who was set to speak on multiple issues across the board, was surrounded by reporters while his administration discussed the flash foods in Texas.

The death toll from the devastating floods in Texas over the July Fourth weekend exceeded 100 on Monday, as search-and-rescue teams continued their efforts, wading through swollen rivers and using heavy machinery to clear debris in the extensive search for those missing.

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Officials managing the search for flood victims stated they would address inquiries about weather warnings and why some summer camps did not evacuate before the lethal flooding that took at least 104 lives at a future date.

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