FIRST ON FOX — The House Homeland Security Committee is demanding interviews with three FEMA employees on possible “systemic bias” against Trump supporters — as the agency deals with fallout from now-fired employee Marn’i Washington telling relief workers to skip houses visibly advertising support for President-elect Donald Trump during recovery efforts after Hurricane Milton. 

In a letter to FEMA Administrator Deanne Criswell, Homeland Security Committee Chair Mark Green, R-Tenn., asks to speak with three employees who would have been responsible for policy in Florida, where Washington was assigned. Those employees are FEMA Region 4 Administrator Robert Samaan, Deputy Region 4 Administrator Robert Ashe and Chad Hershey, the lead for FEMA’s Disaster Survivor Assistance crew. 

The letter cites recent comments by Washington, including to Fox News, that she’s being scapegoated for doing what her superiors told her to do. 

Green is joined on the letter by Reps. Dan Bishop, R-N.C., and Anthony D’Esposito, R-N.Y., who chair relevant Homeland Security subcommittees. 

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“Ms. Washington’s statement contradicts FEMA’s press release and points to a possibly systemic bias within FEMA against individuals that support President-elect Donald J. Trump,” the lawmakers said in the letter. “If such bias is present within FEMA, the Committee is deeply concerned that households that support President-elect Trump and even neighborhoods consisting of primarily Republican-aligned households might be receiving diminished levels of resources, manpower, and support, significantly protracting recovery following natural disasters.” 

Criswell said in a statement after the Daily Wire first reported on Washington’s order that it was “reprehensible” and “a clear violation of FEMA’s core values and principles.”

“I’m just simply executing, again, what was coming down from my superiors,” Washington shot back in an interview with Trace Gallagher on “Fox News @ Night” last week. 

“This was the culture. They were already avoiding these homes based on community trends from hostile political encounters,” Washington also said. 

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Green’s letter asks that FEMA schedule the interviews with Hershey, Ashe and Samaan by the end of this week. Fox News is also told by a source familiar that the Homeland Security Committee will have another transcribed interview request on FEMA oversight soon. 

“If [Washington] is right and there is a broader ‘policy’ of discriminatory practices in the agency’s recovery efforts, this Committee will demand accountability from the highest levels,” Green said in a statement to Fox News. 

FEMA Administrator Deanne Criswell speaks at a press briefing at the White House in Washington, Friday, Jan. 14, 2022. (AP Newsroom)

Washington emphasized to Fox News that FEMA prioritizes “avoidance” and “de-escalation” in situations where some employees may feel unsafe, and that isn’t necessarily politically targeted at Trump supporters. This could include other situations, like urban areas where there are unleashed dogs, she said. 

Washington told Gallagher that discriminating against people explicitly because of political leanings would violate the Hatch Act, but said “unfortunately, again, the passionate supporters for Trump, some of them were a little bit violent.” 

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Criswell will nevertheless face a congressional grilling Tuesday. She appears before a House Transportation & Infrastructure subcommittee at 10 a.m. EST and then will testify to the House Oversight Committee at 2 p.m. EST.  

Fox News’ Trace Gallagher and Melissa Summers contributed to this report.

WASHINGTON —  President-elect Donald Trump’s plan to execute mass deportations of immigrants in the U.S. illegally will involve the military and a national emergency declaration, he confirmed Monday.

In a Nov. 8 post on Trump’s social media platform Truth Social, Tom Fitton, who leads the conservative legal group Judicial Watch, wrote: “GOOD NEWS: Reports are the incoming @RealDonaldTrump administration prepared to declare a national emergency and will use military assets to reverse the Biden invasion through a mass deportation program.”

Trump responded early Monday: “TRUE!!!”

A spokesperson for the Trump transition team didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment.

During his first term, Trump bypassed Congress to divert Pentagon funds to expand the border wall by declaring a national emergency. President Biden terminated the emergency order just after he took office in 2021.

Mass deportations were one of Trump’s top campaign promises — he said he would go after at least 15 million people who are in the U.S. illegally, though it’s not known whether the total number of undocumented immigrants is that high. On the campaign trail, Trump said his strategy would rely on military troops, friendly state and local law enforcement and wartime powers.

Trump chose Tom Homan, previously the acting director of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, to oversee deportations as his “border czar.” Homan promised to resume workplace immigration raids and prioritize immigrants who pose threats to public safety and national security for deportation.

Republicans hold a slim majority in the House of Representatives, though the size of that narrow margin will not be known until the final five undecided races are called.

The five House races that remain uncalled as of Monday morning are in Alaska, California, Iowa and Ohio. The balance of power currently sits at 218 seats for Republicans, and 212 for the Democrats.

Alaska

At-large district

Democratic incumbent Rep. Mary Sattler Peltola is in a tight race in Alaska’s at-large congressional district, where she is trailing Republican entrepreneur Nick Begich.

As of Monday morning, Begich holds a nearly 3-point lead at 48.7% of the vote compared to Peltola’s 46.1%. The vote count sits at 155,120 to 146,782 with roughly 98% of the vote counted.

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California

13th Congressional District

Republican Rep. John Duarte is leading former Democratic state assembly member Adam Gray in California’s 13th Congressional District, but the highly contested race remains uncalled as of Monday morning.

Roughly 86% of the vote has been counted, and Duarte holds a 50.6% to 49.4% lead. The pair is separated by just over 2,000 votes.

45th Congressional District

Democratic challenger Derek Tran has taken the lead over Republican incumbent Rep. Michelle Steel in the 45th District. Steel had been in the lead by a few hundred votes late last week, but Tran now has a razor-thin 36-vote lead.

President-elect Trump will begin his second term with control of both the House and the Senate. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon, File)

Roughly 94% of the vote has been counted for the district.

Iowa

1st Congressional District

Republican incumbent Rep. Mariannet Miller-Meeks holds a less than 1% lead over challenger Christina Bohannan with 99% of the vote counted. Miller-Meeks’ lead sits at just under 1,000 votes.

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Bohannan has requested a recount in her bid to unseat Miller-Meeks. The Associated Press has not yet called the race because the margin was close enough that it could prompt a recount. Miller-Meeks has declared victory and said she was confident in her lead.

Ohio

9th Congressional District

Democratic incumbent Marcy Kaptur leads her Republican challenger, Derek Merrin, by less than 1 point with 99% of the votes counted. Kaptur’s lead sits at just over 1,000 votes as of Monday morning.

Races with a margin of 0.5% or less trigger an automatic recount in Ohio.

Fox News’ Anders Hagstrom, Chris Pandolfo and Jasmine Baehr and the Associated Press contributed to this report.