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Critics Say Trump Got 'Nothing Right' About Causes of LA Wildfires
One observer blasted MAGA's "conflagration of lies and disinformation."
Jan 09, 2025
Progressive critics were left shaking their heads this week as Republican U.S. President-elect Donald Trump and his MAGA allies absurdly blamed the Los Angeles County wildfires on everything from an ichthyophile governor to diversity policies—while ignoring what experts say is the true cause of the deadly infernos.
On Wednesday, Trump took to his Truth social media platform to falsely accuse Democratic California Gov. Gavin Newsom—whom he repeatedly called "Newscum"—of refusing "to sign the water restoration declaration put before him that would have allowed millions of gallons of water... to flow daily into many parts of California, including the areas that are currently burning in a virtually apocalyptic way."
Newsom's office responded to Trump's accusation by correctly noting that "there is no such document as the water restoration declaration."
Trump also accused Newsom of wanting "to protect an essentially worthless fish called a smelt, by giving it less water," a red herring and false statement given that the state's plan to protect the endangered delta smelt actually involved increasing the amount of fresh water flowing into its habitat.
Jeffrey Mount, a water policy expert at the nonpartisan Public Policy Institute of California, toldMSNBC newsletter editor Ryan Teague Beckwith on Thursday that Trump got "nothing right" in his post.
Summarizing his interview with Mount, Teague Beckwith wrote:
Without getting into too much detail, here's what did happen... During Trump's first term, his administration sought to divert some of the water coming into a river delta near San Francisco to farmers in the San Joaquin Valley, among others. They came up with a plan for the water, which Newsom challenged in court. The Biden administration later negotiated a new plan with California on how to divvy up the water.
This is basic stuff, so the fact that Trump describes this as Newsom refusing to sign some kind of document that never existed should give you a sense of how disengaged he is with his own policy.
Meanwhile, MAGA acolyte and soon-to-be Department of Government Efficiency co-leader Elon Musk used his X social media network—formerly Twitter—to amplify racist posts disparaging Democratic Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass, an antisemitic diatribe by defamatory conspiracy theorist Alex Jones, implicitly sexist and homophobic attacks on Los Angeles' fire chief, and his own frequent aspersions of diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) policies.
Slate web editor Nitish Pahwa condemned MAGA's "conflagration of lies and disinformation."
"Just one day after Mark Zuckerberg announced that Facebook and Instagram would no longer be fact-checking informational posts, and mere months after nonstop online hoaxes obstructed federal efforts to assist North Carolinians in the recovery from Hurricane Helene, we're getting an early-year preview of how the United States is going to experience and respond to these rampaging climate disasters throughout the near future," Pahwa said.
"In the vacuum left by mainstream TV networks that did not at all mention climate change in their fire coverage, bad-faith digital actors swooped in with their own takes," Pahwa added. "Climate change doesn't just boost record weather events—it boosts the snake-oil salesmen, too."
Climate experts and defenders weighed in with science-based explanations for the increase in extreme weather events like the Los Angeles County wildfires.
As Common Dreamsreported earlier Thursday, Aaron Regunberg, Public Citizen's Climate Program senior policy counsel, noted that "a recent study found that nearly all of the observed increase in wildfire-burned area in California over the past half-century is attributable to anthropogenic climate change."
"This devastation is the direct result of Big Oil's conduct," Regunberg asserted.
As Fossil Free Media director Jamie Henn said, "This is exactly the sort of disaster that Exxon's own scientists predicted more than 50 years ago, but they spent billions to keep us hooked on fossil fuels."
According to the U.S. National Park Service, the area burned annually by California wildfires has increased fivefold since the 1970s.
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'This Is Unprecedented': Several Horrific Wildfires Ravage Los Angeles
"There is no 'firefighting' in these kinds of conditions," said one meteorologist. "There is only saving as many lives as possible and getting the heck out of the fire's way."
Jan 08, 2025
Several major wildfires burned out of control in California's Los Angeles County on Wednesday as roaring winds fueled the rapid spread of the blazes, forcing tens of thousands to evacuate as state, local, and federal officials mobilized resources to confront the emergency.
Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass wrote on social media late Tuesday that the city is "working aggressively" to stem the wildfires, which scientists and government officials characterized as uniquely devastating.
"Emergency officials, firefighters, and first responders are all hands on deck through the night to do everything possible to protect lives," California Gov. Gavin Newsom said early Wednesday. The governor noted that more than 1,400 firefighting personnel have been deployed to "combat these unprecedented fires."
The Palisades, Eaton, and Hurst fires broke out on Tuesday. It quickly exploded amid what the National Weather Service described as "extremely critical fire weather," with wind gusts up to 99 mph propelling the devastating blazes. The extreme winds forced emergency crews to ground aircraft that were working to contain the fires.
"For some context, fire crews are up against near hurricane-force winds occurring mid-winter in rugged terrain during a drought at night," wrote meteorologist Eric Holthaus. "There is no 'firefighting' in these kinds of conditions. There is only saving as many lives as possible and getting the heck out of the fire's way."
"The emergence of extreme wintertime wildfires in California presents one of those classic 'this is climate change' moments."
The Eaton fire, which broke out Tuesday evening in the Pasadena area, "spread so rapidly that staff at a senior living center had to push dozens of residents in wheelchairs and hospital beds down the street to a parking lot," The Los Angeles Times reported.
"The residents waited there in their bedclothes as embers fell around them until ambulances, buses, and even construction vans arrived to take them to safety," the newspaper added.
The three fires have together burned thousands of acres so far and destroyed or endangered tens of thousands of homes and buildings, according to Newsom's office. So far, at least 19 school districts have announced complete or partial closures due to the fires.
Video footage posted to social media showed residents watching in horror as flames surrounded their homes:
This is by far the craziest video from the fire in Los Angeles. This guy is filming huge walls of fire surrounding a house they're in, and there's another person and a dog. I have no idea why they didn't evacuate or what happened to them. Let's hope they're okay. #PalisadesFire pic.twitter.com/QYtsBSKvdl
— Sia Kordestani (@SiaKordestani) January 8, 2025
Another video shows residents attempting to salvage as many belongings as possible before fleeing:
Video of the moment my friend and I abandoned his house after we tried to save what we could. Please be praying for him and his family @orlylistens
Location: North of Rustic Canyon#cawx #PalisadesFire #fire #California pic.twitter.com/fie6Ywkmz3
— Tanner Charles 🌪 (@TannerCharlesMN) January 8, 2025
"There has been a recent massive increase in wildfires in California but really, a fire this big in January? This is unprecedented," scientist Hayley Fowler wrote on social media. "One of many extreme events fueled by the climate crisis."
Holthaus wrote Tuesday that Southern California is "facing a rare and dangerous juxtaposition of extreme winds and midwinter drought," the meteorologist described as "a worrying example of the state's expanding wildfire threat as climate change worsens."
"The National Weather Service defines 'extremely critical' fire weather as sustained winds over 30 mph and relative humidity of less than 10% in drought conditions and temperatures warmer than 70 degrees," Holthaus observed. "This is the first time in history these criteria have been met anywhere in the United States during January."
"The emergence of extreme wintertime wildfires in California," he added, "presents one of those classic 'this is climate change' moments: A specific set of weather conditions are now occurring in such a way to produce the potential for rare disasters to become much more common."
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'Playing With Human Lives': Los Angeles Mayor Rips GOP Texas Gov. Over Migrant Stunt
"It is abhorrent that an American elected official is using human beings as pawns in his cheap political games," Karen Bass said of Greg Abbott.
Jun 15, 2023
Republican Texas Gov. Greg Abbott on Wednesday night announced that his state had dropped off its "first" busload of migrants in Los Angeles, the latest move by a right-wing governor to ship vulnerable asylum-seekers to a distant Democratic-led jurisdiction.
"It is abhorrent that an American elected official is using human beings as pawns in his cheap political games," the city's progressive mayor, Karen Bass, said in a statement condemning Abbott.
The arrival of 42 migrants, including eight children, at L.A. Union Station "did not catch us off guard, nor will it intimidate us," said Bass. "Shortly after I took office, I directed city departments to begin planning in the event Los Angeles was on the receiving end of a despicable stunt that Republican governors have grown so fond of."
"Now, it's time to execute our plan," she added. "Our emergency management, police, fire, and other departments were able to find out about the incoming arrival while the bus was on its way and were already mobilized along with nonprofit partners before the bus arrived."
Jorge-Mario Cabrera, communications director for the Coalition for Humane Immigrant Rights-Los Angeles (CHIRLA), was at Union Station when the bus arrived from McAllen, Texas. He told the Los Angeles Times that the passengers were forced to endure a 23-hour bus ride without food.
"Los Angeles is not a city motivated by hate or fear, and we absolutely will not be swayed or moved by petty politicians playing with human lives."
It remains unclear whether everyone aboard made the trip voluntarily or knew the final destination of the bus. Lindsay Toczylowski, executive director of the Immigrant Defenders Law Center, said her team is working to determine whether migrants provided informed consent or were unlawfully detained.
Cabrera said CHIRLA "had been tipped off Tuesday night about the migrants' pending arrival," the Times reported. "He said the travelers originated from Venezuela, Guatemala, and Honduras, with two of African descent. One of the Guatemalan migrants has a court date scheduled in New York, he added."
"That's where the cruelty of this process is unbounded," Cabrera explained. "That's why Los Angeles made sure that we were coordinated and prepared to deal with the human beings behind this political charade."
The migrants were taken to a welcoming center at a nearby church, where they were able to rest, eat, and speak with attorneys. As Cabrera put it, "We know that they're traumatized and they need a number of services."
Los Angeles Councilmember Eunisses Hernandez (D-1) said that "the church was serving as a triage center, with nonprofit organizations and the Community Investment for Families Department among those on hand," the Times reported. "Hernandez said migrants were getting services, and some were being connected with relatives."
According to the newspaper, "The city's Emergency Operations Center was activated Wednesday afternoon to assist in coordinating city, county, and state partners, along with local community organizations."
\u201cThis evening, more than 40 people were sent by the Governor of Texas to our City of Los Angeles.\n\nShortly after I took office, I directed City Departments to begin planning for an event like this.\n\nThis did not catch us off guard.\n\nWe are now executing our plan. 1/3\u201d— Mayor Karen Bass (@Mayor Karen Bass) 1686795379
Hernandez noted that "months-old babies" were among those put on the bus by Abbott. The people involved "were essentially dehumanized," said Hernandez. "They were used by a weak politician as a political stunt."
Her fellow councilmember, Kevin De León (D-14), also denounced Abbott for engaging in "heartless exploitation." While the move was "not shocking," the city official said in a statement, it reflects "a tremendous lack of leadership."
Abbott has previously come under fire for his interstate migrant busing scheme. Since it was launched in April 2022, more than 21,600 people have been transported from Texas to Washington, D.C., New York City, Chicago, Philadelphia, Denver, and now Los Angeles.
In a statement, Abbott claimed that "Texas' small border towns remain overwhelmed and overrun... because of President Joe Biden's refusal to secure the border."
Data released earlier this month showed that unauthorized crossings of the U.S.-Mexico border are at their lowest point since the start of the Biden administration.
"We are a city that seeks to treat all people with dignity and compassion."
Since the White House imposed new asylum restrictions that went into effect when Title 42 ended on May 11, the number of people stopped by Border Patrol each day has plummeted from more than 10,000 to roughly 3,000. In addition, the number of people waiting in northern Mexico prior to immigrating to the U.S. appears to be falling.
Undermining Abbott's dubious accusations of inaction at the border, immigrant rights groups have condemned Biden's crackdown on asylum-seekers, saying the president's new ban deepens the bipartisan abandonment of international human rights law set in motion by the Trump administration.
Abbott is not the only far-right governor to dump migrants in Democratic-led jurisdictions in the past year.
Last September, Florida governor and 2024 GOP presidential candidate Ron DeSantis organized flights of nearly 50 South American asylum-seekers from San Antonio, Texas to Martha's Vineyard in Massachusetts, prompting a lawsuit and a criminal investigation into whether people were "lured... under false pretenses." The Bexar County Sheriff's Office recently recommended criminal charges over the Martha's Vineyard flights.
After DeSantis flew additional migrants to Sacramento earlier this month, California Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) threatened to slap the "small, pathetic man" with kidnapping charges.
Abbott, for his part, vowed Wednesday to continue shipping people across the country, saying that "Los Angeles is a major city that migrants seek to go to, particularly now that its city leaders approved its self-declared sanctuary city status."
In response, Bass said: "Los Angeles is not a city motivated by hate or fear, and we absolutely will not be swayed or moved by petty politicians playing with human lives. We are a city that seeks to treat all people with dignity and compassion."
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