President-elect Donald Trump railed Sunday against the “incompetent pols” who are in charge of fighting the wildfires in Southern California.
“The fires are still raging in L.A. The incompetent pols have no idea who to put them out,” Mr. Trump posted early Sunday. “Thousands of magnificent houses are gone, and many more will soon be lost. There is death all over the place. This is one of the worst catastrophes in the history of our Country, they just can’t put out the fires. What’s wrong with them?”
Mr. Trump has continuously railed against California Gov. Gavin Newsom and Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass, both Democrats, for their handling of the fire. He said Mr. Newsom cared more about saving a tiny fish rather than his state’s residents.
Mr. Newsom said Sunday on NBC’s “Meet the Press” that the fires will be the worst natural disaster in U.S. history “in terms of just the costs associated with it, in terms of the scale and scope.”
He announced Sunday an executive order that would suspend permitting and review requirements to allow for homes and businesses to be rebuilt faster. It would also create protections against price gouging on building materials, storage services and other equipment needed, along with working with the legislature to find changes that would make rebuilding faster while also protecting against future wildfires.
When asked what he thought about the blame put on him by Mr. Trump, Mr. Newsom said he invited Mr. Trump to come see the fire devastation himself.
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“We want to do it in the spirit of an open hand, not a closed fist. He’s the president-elect. I respect the office,” the governor said.
“I don’t know what he’s referring to when he talks about the Delta smelt in reservoirs. The reservoirs are completely full, the state reservoirs here in Southern California. That mis- and disinformation I don’t think advantages or aids any of us,” Mr. Newsom said of the president-elect’s criticism. “Responding to Donald Trump’s insults, we would spend another month. I’m very familiar with them. Every elected official that he disagrees with is very familiar with them.”
Last week, Mr. Trump started placing the blame for the fires on Mr. Newsom.
“Governor Gavin Newscum refused to sign the water restoration declaration put before him that would have allowed millions of gallons of water, from excess rain and snow melt from the North, to flow daily into many parts of California, including the areas that are currently burning in a virtually apocalyptic way,” Mr. Trump posted.
“He wanted to protect an essentially worthless fish called a smelt, by giving it less water (it didn’t work!), but didn’t care about the people of California. Now the ultimate price is being paid. I will demand that this incompetent governor allow beautiful, clean, fresh water to FLOW INTO CALIFORNIA! He is the blame for this. On top of it all, no water for fire hydrants, not firefighting planes. A true disaster!” he posted.
In Los Angeles, the death toll rose to 24, with at least 16 more people missing Sunday as firefighters scrambled to make further progress and forecasters warned of dangerous weather with the return of strong winds this week.
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• Mallory Wilson can be reached at mwilson@washingtontimes.com.
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