The Trump administration drew the fury of some of the president’s staunchest supporters when Reuters reported that Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) funds would be denied to states and cities that boycott Israeli companies.
FEMA, which is overseen by the Department of Homeland Security, said in grant documents uploaded on Friday that states must follow its “terms and conditions,” which include states certifying that they will not limit “commercial relations specifically with Israeli companies or with companies doing business in or with Israel or authorized by, licensed by, or organized under the laws of Israel to do business.”
But when reached for comment by Newsweek and other news outlets on Monday, a DHS spokesperson denied any “current” NOFO, or Notice of Funding Opportunity, requirement tied to Israel. An updated document posted after Reuters and Newsweek reported on the notices showed that language about boycotting Israeli companies had been removed.
Why It Matters
The FEMA notices posted Friday related to at least $1.9 billion in federal grants that states depend on for search‑and‑rescue gear, emergency management salaries, backup power systems and other essentials, according to Reuters’ reporting and Newsweek’s review.
They marked the Trump administration’s latest move to leverage federal funding to advance its stance on Israel but also sparked sharp scrutiny from many Trump supporters.
The blowback highlights a broader fissure within the Republican Party between hawkish lawmakers who support sending more aid and weapons to Israel and isolationist MAGA influencers who oppose the U.S. becoming more involved in conflicts in the Middle East.
Julia Demaree Nikhinson/AP
What To Know
Reuters’ reporting drew immediate blowback from many of Trump’s most faithful MAGA supporters, many of whom have repeatedly criticized Israel over its war against Hamas in Gaza.
“Denying Americans who won’t support the genocide being conducted by your friends,” conservative commentator Candace Owens wrote on X. “Trump has fully betrayed America for [Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin] Netanyahu and if you cannot see that now you are completely blind.”
“Best 100 million Miriam Adelson ever spent,” Owens added, referring to the Republican megadonor and widow of billionaire Sheldon Adelson.
“This cannot be real,” far-right activist Milo Yiannopoulos, who has been accused of making racist and Islamophobic statements, wrote on X.
The Hodgetwins, a conservative political commentary duo made up of twin brothers Keith and Kevin Hodge, wrote on X: “Is this America first?”
“There is no FEMA requirement tied to Israel in any current NOFO. No states have lost funding, and no new conditions have been imposed,” a DHS spokesperson told Newsweek on Monday when reached for comment about the original notices posted Friday.
“FEMA grants remain governed by existing law and policy and not political litmus tests,” they added. “DHS will enforce all anti-discrimination laws and policies, including as it relates to the BDS [Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions] movement, which is expressly grounded in antisemitism. Those who engage in racial discrimination should not receive a single dollar of federal funding.”
Monday’s reporting came after prominent figures in the MAGA movement spoke out in May against the bipartisan IGO Anti-Boycott Act, saying it would criminalize boycotts and free speech against Israel. A pending vote on the measure was canceled after the backlash.
Republican Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene of Georgia came out strongly against the bipartisan bill, saying in part that “it is my job to defend American’s rights to buy or boycott whomever they choose without the government harshly fining them or imprisoning them.”
Greene recently became the first congressional Republican to refer to Israel’s actions in Gaza as a “genocide.”
Newsweek reached out to Greene’s office for comment on Monday.
Israel has also vehemently denied carrying out a genocide in Gaza and said Hamas is to blame for recent reports of widespread starvation throughout the besieged territory.
What People Are Saying
Robert McCaw, the head of the Council on American-Islamic Relations’ Government Affairs arm, in a statement: “The Trump administration’s demand that American cities and states threatened by natural disasters must not boycott Israeli companies involved in war crimes in order to receive federal support is patently unconstitutional and un-American.
“It’s also ludicrous: under the Trump administration’s new rule, American states and cities can boycott any country in the world over its human rights abuses – even America itself – but not Israel. This is not an America First policy. This is an Israel First policy and it must not stand.”
McCaw added in a statement after the DHS changed the language in its FEMA notices: “We acknowledge that DHS stripped the word ‘Israel’ from its grant language, but this is not reform. It’s camouflage. The vague anti-boycott clause that remains can still be weaponized to punish Americans who speak out against Israeli government’s human rights abuses, as Secretary Noem has explicitly said.”
A spokesperson for Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem said in a statement to Reuters: “DHS will enforce all antidiscrimination laws and policies, including as it relates to the [Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions] movement, which is expressly grounded in antisemitism.”
What Happens Next
Monday’s move from the Trump administration is largely symbolic, since at least 34 states have anti-BDS policies in place, according to a University of Pennsylvania law journal.
Update 8/4/25, 6:49 p.m. ET: The headline and content of this story have been updated to reflect the DHS saying there is no “current” FEMA conditioning of aid to states based on their stances on Israel.
