President Donald Trump is touring the devastation left by flash flooding in central Texas amid growing questions about how local officials responded to the crisis as well as questions about the federal response -- including the fate of the Federal Emergency Management Agency -- that he has so far avoided.

While he’s been in communities after hurricanes and tornadoes, President Trump said the devastation he saw after an aerial tour of the flood-ravaged Texas Hill Country on Friday was different.

The president has defended his administration's response to the fatal flooding amid criticism that federal assistance could have been provided more quickly.

WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump and Texas lawmakers on Friday defended the federal government’s response to the deadly July Fourth flooding in Central Texas, claiming that aid was quickly dispatched to reeling communities after the floodwaters swept through.

President Donald Trump on Friday toured the devastation from catastrophic flooding in Texas and lauded state and local officials, even amid mounting criticism that they may have failed to warn residents quickly enough that a deadly wall of water was coming their way.

As President Trump surveys flood damage in Texas, several congressional Democrats have signed a letter demanding an oversight hearing into his administration’s response. One of them, Congresswoman Jasmine Crockett (D-Texas),

In early July 2025, a screenshot claimed to show a real Truth Social post by U.S. President Donald Trump calling on people to forget the "Epstein files" and focus on the "beautiful young girls" who died in the Texas flash floods over the Fourth of July. Per the screenshot, Trump wrote:

Donald Trump is due to visit Texas Hill Country where the floods have killed at least 120 people and more than 160 others remain missing.