Overview
- During a livestreamed Cabinet meeting on Dec. 2, Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem told President Trump, “You kept the hurricanes away,” after noting the U.S. made it through the season without a hurricane landfall.
- The clip circulated widely as politicians and commentators mocked the remark, with California Gov. Gavin Newsom quipping that Trump “controls the weather,” while some analysts suggested Noem was joking.
- Experts, including atmospheric scientist Marshall Shepherd, explained that synoptic and steering patterns directed storms away from the U.S. coast this year.
- The meeting doubled as a showcase of praise for the president, and Noem also accused President Biden of using DHS to “invade the country with terrorists,” touted ICE hiring, and spoke about FEMA’s disaster response as Trump at times appeared to close his eyes.
- This season was the first since 2015 with no U.S. hurricane landfalls; Fox News noted Tropical Storm Chantal was the only U.S. landfalling cyclone and that Hurricane Melissa devastated Jamaica.