On Friday afternoon, California Governor Gavin Newsom announced that President Trump and his administration had agreed to California's requests for wildfire relief funds, reversing their decision from the day before that had refused aid. The fires, which began this year early in September, have ravaged the state, burning almost 1.9 million acres of land and calling for evacuations across the state.
Last month, Newsom wrote a letter to the President explaining the $229 million damages that the fires had caused and called for help from the federal government, as California was and is still unable to pay for relief efforts on our own, especially with the costly impact of Covid-19.
While this letter alone was not enough, after the President’s refusal to help, Newsom and the House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy worked together to present a firm argument as to why the Trump administration needed to reconsider their decision; this directly contrasted FEMA’s stance, which was that the wildfire damages were not beyond the limits of the state's capabilities, and thus did not need the aid.
Luckily, the President and his team quickly reversed their decision and approved Newsom's September 28th request for an emergency declaration.
However, the President has reiterated multiple times that unless California advances our forest-management efforts, he may get rid of our emergency-relief funds, despite numerous scientists pointing towards climate change as the issue, instead of forest management skills.
Personally, while I’m glad that the administration approved the aid, I think that the much bigger problem at hand is Trump’s stance on climate change and his staunch belief that mere forest management will solve our issue of increasingly damaging wildfires. This stance, which is not backed up by the majority of scientists, has led him to resist helping us in a time of need. So, I believe that the President either needs to be educated more on the topic of climate change and accept that it exists, or step down, before more land and lives are lost.
On that note, here are some questions to consider:
What do you think of the Trump administration’s quick reversal of their original decision? Why did they change their minds so quickly? Do you think they made the original decision too hastily?
Why do you think the Trump administration approved California’s request for wildfire-relief funds if Trump thinks that the state isn’t doing a good enough job managing the fires in the first place (referring to his stance on forest management)?
I believe a lot of Trump's mindset comes on business rather than the emotional needs of people. He knows that if news about the wildfire relief going to California is seen, his popularity as a "people person" will go up. However, he has to stick to his ideals which shows us the conflicting sides which he presents i.e the quick reversals or changing their minds. On the topic of climate change, the President is quick to ignore the effects even after the conference with Governor Newsom on the issue. He refuses to trust experts and believes that he knows best. This is a huge problem as Trump doesn't see California suffering the effects of global warming.
ReplyDeleteI definitely agree that Trump's mindset comes more from business than the good of the people, and that is likely a reflection of the fact that he was originally a businessman and entrepreneur, before he became a politician. And while I think that it's kind of his job as president to focus on the emotional needs of the people, the fact is that in his campaign and background, he showed that he was more a businessman, so I would argue that America should not have been surprised by this, because we knew this but elected him anyways (even though he didn't win the popular vote, which is an entirely different discussion). And thus, to ensure that he wins again, like you said, he had to give some aid in order to up his chances of winning the upcoming election, while still ultimately sticking to his more business ideals (which is perhaps why he has so many supporters in the first place).
DeleteI think the Trump administration approved California's request for wildfire relief funds because they realized how catastrophic the fires actually were. Even if he thinks that California isn't doing a good job managing fires I think part of his decision could have been influenced by the idea that if he helps California now, it could improve in the future. Also, like Evan said, continuing to refuse the request could have brought down his approval ratings even more before the election not only upsetting people in California but people who have heard about the California fires and care about the issue. Furthermore, I think the worsening state of the fires could have been another factor in changing the Trump administration's mind because it could have sparked the realization that the fires were getting worse and that Californias was going to have to pay more for relief efforts than originally expected.
ReplyDeleteI agree that the Trump administration approved the request for relief funds because they realized the extent of the fires, but I also think that it's important to note, at least in my opinion, that it was most likely his colleagues and not Trump himself who recognized this. I think that his cabinet's recognition and educated suggestion to provide the relief funds, combined with his desire to increase his approval ratings, led him to his reversal. With how Trump has talked about climate change in the past, I see this as more of a strategic move than a move for the good of the people, like Evan said.
DeleteI think the Trump Administration more than most previous presidents takes uses very large decision to spite other people, in this case the state of California. He knows that California votes blue, forgetting that we also have a very large Republican population. He used the original decision almost as a punishment to California and Gavin Newson, a supporter of shut downs and drastic moved against the Coronavirus.
ReplyDeleteOn a tangential note, he's not incorrect that forest management plays a part in the fires. Many experts have shown concern over the lack of clean up and the abundance of dead trees , but Trump's refusal to accept that climate change is the reason they keep growing in number in magnitude is, to say the least, concerning.
I definitely agree; all great points, Maya. I think that many people, myself included, are quick to dismiss Trump's stance on forest management, which is an effective mitigation strategy, all because of his other policies that we disagree with, so we just discredit him entirely. This comes with living in California, which you mentioned is a very blue state, and in turn, caused the Trump administration to want to spite us. However, that immature move itself goes to show their intentions with the presidency and the power they hold, indicating that perhaps they're not the right people for the job, because they don't necessarily always act for the good of the people (arguably).
DeleteThis post is closed; no new comments will be graded.
ReplyDelete