As firefighters continue to make progress on the three major wildfires burning in Southern California, they’re being buoyed by a stretch of lower-than-normal temperatures.
The Line, Bridge and Airport fires all ignited and grew rapidly during the previous heat wave, destroying several hundred structures thus far and injuring at least 17 people.
But while fire officials are working to tame the physical flames during this window of opportunity, the political battle around the destruction is just heating up.
Speaking at his Rancho Palos Verdes golf course on Friday, former President Donald Trump sought to blame at the feet of Gov. Gavin Newsom for the devastation.
Trump said Newsom — to whom he referred as “Newscum” and “a lousy governor” — declined to sign paperwork allowing more water to be diverted to farmers in exchange for federal funds being sent to the state “to put out all his fires.”
“I said, ‘Gavin, will you sign?’ It took him like a month and a half or two months, and then he decided for political reasons — and then we got hit with COVID and had to solve another problem,” Trump said.
On social media, Newsom said Trump “admitted he will block emergency disaster funds to settle political vendettas.”
“Today it’s California’s wildfires,” Newsom added. “Tomorrow it could be hurricane funding for North Carolina or flooding assistance for homeowners in Pennsylvania. Donald Trump doesn’t care about America — he only cares about himself.”
California firefighters also dispute the former president’s depiction of the issue.
In a statement, California Professional Firefighters President Brian Rice said “former President Trump should be ashamed for threatening to withhold federal firefighting aid from California.”
Rice noted that Trump discussed withholding federal aid even as “today, thousands of firefighters are on the front lines responding to wildfires throughout the state.” Additionally, this recent incident is a rehashing of when Trump first discussed the issue with Newsom in the aftermath of the 2018 Camp Fire, the deadliest in state history.
“He would rather watch our state burn in the name of his political games, than to send help if he were to become president again,” Rice said. “… It is shocking that we have a presidential candidate who is threatening our public safety and doesn’t even care what the consequences are to firefighters and the public. This has now become a serious public safety issue for our members and the public we serve. His rhetoric is dangerous, his ideas on public safety are dangerous, and his ignorant rhetoric has grown exponentially. It is a disgrace to our great nation and to every Californian that this man has a platform to threaten our livelihoods, safety, families and our state.”