In an effort to shrink the federal government, President Donald Trump and congressional Republicans have taken steps that are diluting the country’s ability to anticipate, prepare for and respond to catastrophic flooding and other extreme weather events.

In the weeks leading up to the devastating floods in Texas, five former directors of the National Weather Service sent a letter to U.S. President Donald Trump warning that continued cuts to the budget would result in the deaths of people.

Experts said the NWS did a good job warning about the flooding, but questions remain about whether the cuts played a role.

As the death toll rises in Texas, Trump has done everything but tap dance naked to deflect the media from discussing climate change (hoax), or how his staff cuts to the National Weather Service (600 in May) likely affected flood warnings.

Trump’s pick to lead the NOAA, Neil Jacobs, was chief atmospheric scientist for Panasonic Weather Solutions and has been a vocal proponent of privatization. The president’s nominee for another top NOAA post, Taylor Jordan, is a lobbyist with a roster of weather-related clients.