Donald Trump fired hundreds of scientists, meteorologists, and technicians from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) last week, including those responsible for local forecasts at National Weather Service offices across the country.

John, these are the experts who track hurricanes, predict tornadoes, and issue life-saving alerts. Cutting NOAA’s staff could put lives at risk.

Here’s what this means in the short term:

1. Your Weather Forecasts May Be Less Reliable. NOAA provides the data that powers everything from TV weather reports to the apps on your phone. With fewer scientists running weather models, forecasts could become less accurate. If you live in an area prone to floods, wildfires, or winter storms, that’s a problem.

2. Less Time to Prepare for Extreme Weather. Tornado season is just beginning, but many of the experts responsible for tracking storms in real time are no longer on the job. NOAA’s hurricane center and tsunami warning offices also lost staff, putting coastal communities at greater risk. The fewer forecasters and technicians monitoring severe weather, the harder it will be to issue timely warnings.

3. Farmers Will Struggle to Plan Ahead. Agriculture depends on NOAA’s seasonal forecasts to determine when to plant, harvest, and prepare for droughts. Weaker forecasting means more uncertainty, which could hurt food production and drive up prices at the grocery store.

4. Disaster Response Will Be Slower. When an oil spill happens, NOAA is responsible for tracking the damage and guiding cleanup efforts. The same goes for mapping safe shipping routes after storms. When a container ship hit Baltimore’s Key Bridge last year, NOAA played a critical role in reopening the port. Without enough staff, future disasters will be harder to manage.

So why is this happening? Because Trump and Elon Musk are hellbent on privatizing weather forecasting and putting profits over public safety. This isn’t about helping people — it’s about money and power.

We can’t afford to sit back while Trump and his allies dismantle the agencies that keep us safe. We need climate champions at every level of government — leaders who will fight like hell to protect our communities and defend science. Will you chip in today to help us elect them?

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It’s now or never.

– Team JanePAC