Vermont Appeals Trump Disaster Aid Denial, But Good Luck Convincing Trump We Should Get It

The administration of Vermont Gov. Phil Scott has 
appealed Trump's rejection of disaster aid 
stemming from flooding in the Northeast 
Kingdom this past July 10. Nice to see Scott
making an effort, but I doubt Trump
will change his mind. He's too transactional.

Vermont Gov. Phil Scott this past week has appealed the Trump administration's rejected of disaster assistance to help people and towns trashed by Northeast Kingdom flooding this past July 10. 

Given Donald Trump's track record, good luck with that. 

Anyhoo, a release from Scott's office said:

"The Governor's appeal points to the cost of infrastructure repairs under the Federal Emergency Management Agency requirements as an aggravating factor that should be considered. It further outlines the cumulative economic effect on the state and communities that have seen catastrophic floods in each of the last three years."

State officials said after the initial disaster declaration request, they found additional damage that wasn't found earlier. "This information significantly increases financial burden for repairs which we believe strengthens our appeal,"  Scott said. 

The July 10 storms focused on parts of the Northeast Kingdom, especially the area in and around Sutton. That tiny town alone suffered more than $1 million in damage. Federal assessors found more than $1.8 million in overall damage. That exceeds the minimum threshold for a public assistance disaster declaration. 

A federal disaster declaration would mean Federal Emergency Management Agency would cover the costs of repairing infrastructure and start new projects that would minimize the risk of additional flooding. 

When the federal disaster assistance was initially denied in October, Scott initially said that Vermont wouldn't appeal, given the recent track record of Trump turning down appeals. But it looks like Scott changed his mind, and submitted the appeal. 

The prospects of Trump changing his mind about Vermont disaster aid is iffy at best. He regards disaster aid as transactional, and tends to support aid to red states but not blue ones. 

Vermont is among the bluest of the blue states. Scott is a Republican, but there is no love lost between the governor and Trump. 

I don't think the Scott administration is going to get anywhere with this appeal. But I give him an A for effort.