A resurfaced July 1 post from Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem "bragging" about the use of FEMA funds for a makeshift detention facility nicknamed "Alligator Alcatraz" has sparked renewed scrutiny, as Texas reels from deadly flash floods that have killed over 80 people.
Earlier this month, Noem publicly praised her decision to redirect federal emergency shelter funds toward constructing a temporary migrant detention camp in a remote Florida swamp. In her X post, she celebrated the move as a political win, contrasting it with previous uses of the FEMA Shelter and Services Program (SSP), which she criticized for supporting "illegal aliens."
Alligator Alcatraz will be funded largely by FEMA’s Shelter and Services Program, which the Biden administration used as a piggy bank to spend hundreds of millions of American taxpayer dollars to house illegal aliens, including at the Roosevelt Hotel that served as a Tren de… pic.twitter.com/axKEc8s3nj — Secretary Kristi Noem (@Sec_Noem) July 2, 2025
The camp, expected to cost roughly $450 million for a single year, is estimated to cost taxpayers $250 per bed per day, well above the DHS threshold of $165, according to Fox News.
Noem's remarks drew backlash even before the floods, but the recent natural disaster in Texas has intensified criticism. Many are now questioning why FEMA money was funneled into a media-friendly detention site, while counties like Kerr, devastated by historic flooding, remain under-equipped and underfunded.
Social media users have been quick to voice their outrage, with many pointing to Noem's post as a tone-deaf display of political theater at a time when real emergencies are unfolding. The backlash has been swift and sharp across X, calling Noem out for "stealing" and being "incompetent."
As the death toll surpasses 50 in Texas and Kristi Noem fakes concern for Texans on behalf of the Trump administration, here's her post bragging about snatching money from FEMA to finance the Everglades Concentration Camp in Florida.
Why keep Americans safe when we can terrorize… pic.twitter.com/q9Gdu2DOOr — Maca Iglesias 💙Thank You, President Biden💙🇺🇸 (@rotterdamvvg) July 6, 2025
Here’s our girl, Kristi Noem letting everybody know she took FEMA money for her Alligator Auschwitz! FEMA money that could’ve helped Texas with this issue.
But who cares, right? pic.twitter.com/QAstOoJixo — Mark Bland (@markbland) July 5, 2025
so we just stealing disaster relief money now to cosplay prison warden in a tent?? this country is actually unwell — Fer 💖 (@princessbabyfer) July 6, 2025
#FireKristNoem She is incompetent and puts American lives in jeopardy. #TexasFloods — Angela Grant, MD (@astronglady) July 6, 2025
The July 4 floods in Texas, which raised the Guadalupe River over 25 feet in under an hour, are the deadliest natural disaster of 2025. Entire towns were overwhelmed, early-warning systems failed to reach sleeping residents, and local officials openly admitted to rejecting emergency infrastructure due to costs.
Harry_Mud on July 7th, 2025 at 19:10 UTC »
Arrest her now! What she did is 100% illegal. Congress controls the purse, not this idiot. It's illegal for her to take funds for one thing and use it for another. Only Congress can do that and she knows it! Noem needs to be put in a cell and left there.............
RamonaQ-JunieB on July 7th, 2025 at 18:39 UTC »
She is a disgusting and evil human.
30mil on July 7th, 2025 at 18:28 UTC »
American citizens will have to make a lot of sacrifices to fund these concentration camps.