President Trump threatened to cut Federal Emergency Management Agency funds to California to combat wildfires.
In a tweet Wednesday morning, the president said money was being wasted by poor forest management.
“Billions of dollars are sent to the State of California for Forest fires that, with proper Forest Management, would never happen,” Trump said. “Unless they get their act together, which is unlikely, I have ordered FEMA to send no more money. It is a disgraceful situation in lives & money!”
Billions of dollars are sent to the State of California for Forest fires that, with proper Forest Management, would never happen. Unless they get their act together, which is unlikely, I have ordered FEMA to send no more money. It is a disgraceful situation in lives & money!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 9, 2019
Gov. Gavin Newsom, D-Calif., who was sworn in this week, responded saying he had sent a letter to the federal government along with the governors of Oregon and Washington asking for help in combating “unprecedented” wildfires.
“We have been put in office by the voters to get things done, not to play games with lives,” he said. Disasters and recovery are no time for politics. I’m already taking action to modernize and manage our forests and emergency responses. The people of CA — folks in Paradise — should not be victims to partisan bickering.”
Throughout November, two separate wildfires ravaged California and left dozens dead and thousands displaced.
The Camp Fire, which broke out north of Sacramento and led to the evacuation of more than 50,000 homes and burned more than 148,000 acres of land, became the most destructive wildfire in California history. The other wildfire, Woolsey Fire, burned through areas near Los Angeles.
As the fires raged on last fall, Trump approved a disaster declaration for California, unlocking federal funds and resources to help with state, tribal, and local recovery efforts.
Trump found himself at odds with Finnish President Sauli Niinisto after he said Niinisto had told him that raking leaves in his country was a form of forest management. But Niinisto had a different recollection about the conversation about forest management on Nov. 11 while they were both in Paris. “I mentioned [to] him that Finland is a land covered by forests and we also have a good monitoring system and network,” Niinisto told a paper in his country. “We take care of our forests.”
