Only two months ago Governor Gavin Newsom proclaimed that he was going to "Trump proof" California with a $50 million "litigation fund" designed to frustrate the President's efforts to deport illegal immigrants. Today, Newsom is asking the federal government for over $40 billion in relief funds for aftermath of the Los Angeles wild fires. The question is, should Newsom get those dollars no questions asked? Or, should California be forced to make concessions on some of their more destructive policies?
The "Golden State" has a long history of gorging on federal funding, often with an attitude of entitlement. California has the highest rate of debt in the nation - It tops the list with over $500 billion while the next closest state in New York with around $300 billion. And though Newsom has often cited the state's large tax revenues as a rationale for federal expenditures, the state still runs an average deficit of $30 billion per year and around 35% of the state budget is built on federal funds. In other words, they are far more reliant on the federal government than they let on.
Democrats love to claim that red states are "supported by California tax dollars", but in reality California can't even support itself.
Which is why Newsom is back and begging for money yet again; this time to fix a calamity that could have been avoided had Democrats listened to Donald Trump and others years ago and adapted their water management protocols to better prepare for fires.
Newsom sent a letter Friday addressed to House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.); House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.); Rep. Tom Cole (R-Okla.), the House Appropriations Committee chair; and Rep. Rosa DeLauro of Connecticut, the lead Democrat on that committee, asking for their support.
“Los Angeles is one of the most economically productive places on the globe, but it can only rebound and flourish with support from the federal government as it recovers from this unprecedented disaster,” Newsom wrote. A total of 16,251 structures were destroyed as the fires tore through a combined 37,400 acres of Pacific Palisades, Malibu, Pasadena and Altadena.
Republicans have suggested linking aid to certain policy changes, such as altering California’s water policy or imposing new voter ID requirements.
As with the wildfires in Maui in 2023, Democrat leaders are full of excuses and deflections on the disaster in LA. The strategy seems to work well for them - They simply stall for a few weeks until the issue is forgotten by the public, then beg for money. Trump's offer of federal funds in exchange for policy changes is perhaps the only accountability that could be squeezed from progressive governments without arduous litigation.
Dems will argue that this kind of bargaining with government funds is "hurting the victims of the fires"; but the truth is that such bargaining is necessary to prevent future disasters. Leftist state governments continue to make the same mistakes over and over again because they are always rewarded and never punished. Changing this dynamic is the only way to convince them to reform.