The president has defended his administration's response to the fatal flooding amid criticism that federal assistance could have been provided more quickly.

Trump was also quick to criticize the Federal Emergency Management Agency's response to both disasters, and as president, he has said he wants to "wean off" FEMA and phase out the agency in an effort to shift more responsibility for recovery to states.

White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt is facing intense criticism after calling the deadly Texas floods—claiming over 100 lives—an “act of God.” The comment came as search and rescue efforts continued in Kerr County,

Seas are rising, glaciers melting, temperatures consistently higher, and these forces compound to cause much of what we’re suffering. Mr. Trump is in denial. (Of course, for decades, denying climate change and minimizing its significance have kept many politicians of both parties in office.

The Trump administration pushed back Sunday on criticism of the National Weather Service's initial forecasting and its staffing levels ahead Central Texas' catastrophic flooding. The big picture: The storm that's killed at least 80 people brought federal cuts to NOAA's NWS under scrutiny after it emerged that two Texas NWS offices were missing key staff at the time,

Still, Tom Fahy, legislative director for the National Weather Service Employees Organization, told The New York Times that the San Angelo office remains understaffed overall, missing a forecaster, a meteorologist-in-charge, and a senior hydrologist. Fahy did not respond to Al Jazeera’s request for comment.

ToplineAt least 59 deaths—including the deaths of 15 children—have now been confirmed in the central Texas flash floods, according to the latest update from officials, though dozens of children from a summer camp remain unaccounted for as blame swirls over preparedness and whether residents were properly alerted.