Gregg Phillips, the FEMA official who sparked controversy over his promotion of election conspiracy theories and bizarre claims about teleporting to a Waffle House, has been pushed out of the agency, according to reporting from CNN and The Washington Post on June 25, 2026.
The Department of Homeland Security, which oversees FEMA, confirmed Thursday that Phillips is taking leave from his position as Associate Administrator for the Office of Response and Recovery. However, sources told CNN the departure was not voluntary: new DHS leadership had grown weary of the embarrassment surrounding Phillips and of his periodic clashes with agency leaders over their agenda.
Phillips was appointed to lead FEMA’s Office of Response and Recovery in December 2025 despite a long history of promoting election fraud conspiracy theories. His most prominent claim came in 2016, when he asserted through his organization True the Vote that more than 3 million noncitizens had voted illegally, according to NBC News and the BBC. That claim was never substantiated, and multiple studies and election officials have found such noncitizen voting to be extremely rare.
The final blow to his tenure came in March 2026, when CNN reported on a cache of outlandish comments Phillips had made during appearances on right-wing podcasts. Among the most striking was his claim that he had been teleported to a Waffle House in Rome, Georgia, a revelation that drew national media attention and ridicule. Phillips later doubled down on the claim, telling podcast hosts that he had experienced teleportation multiple times.
In late March, Democrats on the House Homeland Security Committee expressed serious concerns about Phillips’ fitness for the role. He failed to appear for scheduled testimony before the committee, according to Mississippi Today and the News of the United States. The absence intensified pressure on the Trump administration to remove him.
Phillips’ appointment had marked a significant shift in FEMA leadership. The agency, responsible for disaster response and emergency management, had previously been led by officials with extensive crisis-management experience. His elevation reflected the Trump administration’s willingness to place election-focused activists in senior government positions, a pattern also seen in other agencies during the administration’s second term.
The New York Times reported in April 2026 that no staff members at the Waffle House location Phillips named could recall such an incident, further undermining his credibility. Despite the mounting scrutiny, Phillips remained in his post until this week, when DHS leadership made the decision to remove him.
Sources
- CNN — reported Phillips was pushed out of FEMA due to embarrassment and clashes with agency leadership; confirmed DHS announcement of his departure
- The Washington Post — confirmed Phillips is stepping away from his FEMA role on June 25, 2026, and noted his history of promoting election conspiracy theories
- NBC News — documented Phillips’ 2016 claim about 3 million noncitizen votes and his role as a Trump-cited authority on voter fraud
- BBC — reported on Phillips’ unsubstantiated claim of 3 million illegal votes cast by noncitizens in 2016
- Mississippi Today — reported that Phillips did not appear for scheduled House Homeland Security Committee testimony in March 2026
- The New York Times — investigated Phillips’ Waffle House teleportation claim and found no corroboration at the named location
