Trump’s Black History Month Event Has Quite an Interesting Guest List

When Trump was sworn in as president last month, the office had 936 employees. The administration plans to reduce that number to 150, which would hurt recovery efforts underway across the country, including in places that voted for Trump and Republicans overall. The office helps to supplement and fill in gaps left by the primary government agency responsible for disaster recovery, the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA).

Congress often uses the office for disaster relief by using a HUD program known as the Community Development Block Grant—Disaster Recovery, which can bring in more money than even FEMA can provide. For example, the Times reports that in 2006, Congress provided nearly $17 billion from the grant program to rebuild the Gulf Coast following Hurricanes Katrina, Rita, and Wilma.

Funding for the office has grown in recent years as disasters become more frequent thanks to climate change. In the 1990s, the office received a few hundred million dollars each year, but for the past decade, has received up to tens of billions of dollars in funding every year. For people who might not know how important the office is, like Elon Musk and administration officials, the office might seem ripe for cuts.