Newsom Denounces Trump Attempt to Politicize LA Wildfires: ‘We’ll Continue to Focus on What Matters’ | Video

California Gov. Gavin Newsom responded Wednesday to criticism from President-elect Donald Trump. But instead of tit-for-tat, Newsom denounced Trump’s attempt to “politicize” the devastating Los Angeles wildfires and vowed to “focus on what matters: saving lives and putting out these unprecedented fires.”

“People are literally fleeing. People have lost their lives. Kids lost their schools. Families completely torn asunder. Churches burned down. This guy wanted to politicize it. I have a lot of thoughts, and I know what I want to say, I won’t,” Newsom told CNN’s Anderson Cooper when asked about Trump’s attacks on Wednesday night.

“I stood next to the President of the United States of America today, and I was proud to be with Joe Biden, and he had the backs of every single person that’s going to get in play politics. Didn’t try to divide any of us,” Newsom continued.

In a follow-up message on X, Newsom shared the clip and added, “People are literally fleeing. Kids have lost their schools. Communities have lost their churches. Families have lost their homes. Some have even lost their lives. And the President-Elect’s response is to politicize it. We’ll continue to focus on what matters: saving lives and putting out these unprecedented fires.”

Watch the clip below:

Cooper also asked Newsom what his “message” to Californians was. “I mean, we have their backs,” Newsom replied. “We’re going to be back, and this is going to be a long, a long, long recovery process. But look, we have residents moving back into paradise. California. I’ve seen remarkable recovery efforts. I’ve seen remarkable sense of community purpose, resilience. So I’m not just playing the politician role of optimism. I really am long-term optimistic.”

“But the devastation, to hear people wailing and crying, concerned about their pet, their family, They’re just bewildered about what’s just and what they’re experiencing. And again, not just experience. I was not talking past tense, this is happening in real time, scope or second statement,” he added.

Earlier Wednesday, Trump wrote in a Truth Social post, “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.”

According to Newsom’s spokesperson, this is a lie and such a document does not exist: “There is no such document as the water restoration declaration – that is pure fiction.”

That’s in addition to the fact that the fires have been caused by conditions beyond the control of civic officials, namely the worst Santa Ana winds in more than a decade, exacerbated by the effects of climate change. The winds, which have reached speeds of up to 90mph, brought dry conditions to Southern California that effectively turned vast stretches of land into kindling. Read more here.

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