Newsom-Trump war of words still simmering as president arrives in California to survey wildfires

When President Donald Trump lands successful California connected Friday to survey the devastating wildfires that person ravaged metropolitan Los Angeles this month, the state's Democratic politician volition beryllium among the officials greeting him.

But Gov. Gavin Newsom is showing up uninvited.

"I look guardant to being determination connected the tarmac to convey the president, invited him, and we’re making definite that each the resources helium needs for a palmy briefing are provided to him," Newsom told reporters connected the eve of Trump's halt successful Los Angeles.

Since the fires, which person killed astir 30 radical and forced tens of thousands to fly their homes, broke retired earlier this month, Trump has repeatedly criticized Newsom's handling of the immense crisis. He has accused the politician of mismanaging forestry and h2o policy, and pointing to aggravated backlash implicit a perceived deficiency of preparation, helium has called connected Newsom to measurement down.

UNINVITED NEWSOM SAYS HE'LL BE ON TARMAC TO GREET AND BRIEF TRUMP

People ticker the fume and flames from the wildfires successful the Pacific Palisades vicinity connected Jan. 7, 2025 successful Los Angeles, California.  (Tiffany Rose/Getty Images)

"Gavin Newscum should resign. This is each his fault!!!" Trump charged successful a societal media station connected Jan. 8, arsenic helium repeated a derogatory sanction helium often labels the governor.

And successful his archetypal Oval Office interrogation since returning to powerfulness successful the White House, Trump told Fox News' Sean Hannity this week, "This occurrence was conscionable raging, and past it would drawback to different area, different area, different area."

"It took a week and a fractional — and I’ve ne'er seen thing similar it. We look truthful weak," Trump argued successful the quality connected Fox News’ "Hannity," arsenic helium pointed towards his repeated assertion that a main crushed the blazes raged was due to the fact that firefighters didn't person entree to water.

TRUMP PLEDGES FEMA OVERHAUL DURING STOP IN HURRICANE RAVAGED WESTERN NORTH CAROLINA

Trump and immoderate apical Republicans successful Congress person pushed toward placing conditions connected continuing the monolithic national wildfire aid to California successful bid to unit argumentation changes.

Newsom connected Thursday signed a $2.5 cardinal authorities alleviation package. But California volition request overmuch much assistance from the national government.

California Governor Gavin Newsom (right) tours the downtown concern territory of Pacific Palisades arsenic the Palisades Fire continues to pain connected January 8, 2025, successful Los Angeles, California.  (Eric Thayer)

"I don’t deliberation we should springiness California thing until they fto h2o travel down from the northbound to the south," Trump said successful his Fox News interview.

Newsom, the politician of the nation's astir populous state, 1 of the Democratic Party's leaders successful the absorption against the returning president, and a imaginable White House contender successful 2028, has pushed back, arsenic the 2 larger-than-life politicians commercialized fire.

The politician has noted that reservoirs successful the confederate portion of California were afloat erstwhile the fires archetypal sparked, and has argued that nary magnitude of h2o could tackle fires fueled by winds of up to 100 miles per hour.

Newsom has besides charged Trump has dispersed "hurricane-force winds of mis-and-disinformation.

U.S. President Donald Trump boards Air Force One arsenic helium departs for North Carolina astatine Joint Base Andrews successful Maryland, January 24, 2025.  (Leah Millis/Reuters)

And successful a missive to Congress past week, Newsom emphasized that "our agelong nationalist past of responding to earthy disasters, nary substance wherever they occur, has ever been Americans helping Americans, afloat stop."

The wildfires are acold from the archetypal clip Newsom and Trump person taken purpose astatine each other. Their animosity dates backmost to earlier Trump was elected president the archetypal clip successful 2016, erstwhile Newsom was California's lieutenant governor.

The verbal fireworks continued implicit the past 2 years, arsenic Newsom served arsenic a apical surrogate connected the run way for erstwhile President Biden and past erstwhile Vice President Kamala Harris, who replaced Biden arsenic the Democrats' 2024 standard-bearer past summer.

Following Trump's convincing predetermination triumph implicit Harris successful November, Newsom moved to Trump-proof his heavy bluish state.

"He is utilizing the word ‘Trump-Proof’ arsenic a mode of stopping each of the GREAT things that tin beryllium done to ‘Make California Great Again,’ but I conscionable overwhelmingly won the Election," Trump responded.

While pushing backmost against Trump's attacks amid the wildfires, Newsom besides knows helium needs to enactment with the president.

President Donald Trump (center) looks connected with California Gov. Jerry Brown (right) and Lt. Gov. Gavin Newsom, arsenic they presumption harm from wildfires successful Paradise, California connected November 17, 2018.  (Saul Loeb/AFP via Getty Images)

Newsom, who 2 weeks agone invited Trump to travel to California to survey the damage, said successful a connection connected Monday pursuing the inauguration ceremony, "I look guardant to President Trump’s sojourn to Los Angeles and his mobilization of the afloat value of the national authorities to assistance our chap Americans retrieve and rebuild."

He emphasized "finding communal crushed and striving toward shared goals" with the Trump administration.

"In the look of 1 of the worst earthy disasters successful America’s history, this infinitesimal underscores the captious request for partnership, a shared committedness to facts, and communal respect – values that alteration civilian discourse, effectual governance, and meaningful action," the politician said.

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Veteran California-based governmental idiosyncratic Jack Pitney astatine Claremont McKenna College noted that "this is simply a precise hard balance" for Newsom.

"As a politician of California, helium needs to enactment with the president to get national assistance for the state. As a nationalist governmental figure, helium feels unit to onslaught Trump. It’s hard to bash some of those astatine the aforesaid time," Pitney told Fox News.