‘The good news is: I’m a great-grandfather as of today!’ Biden said at wildfire presser
Los Angeles mayor Karen Bass (D.), fresh off a plane from Ghana, dodged questions about the wildfires ravaging Southern California. Democratic California governor Gavin Newsom rejected responsibility for empty fire hydrants. President Joe Biden celebrated some personal news.
That’s how top Democrats at the local, state, and federal levels reacted to the deadly wildfires as they spread through Los Angeles County on Wednesday and Thursday.
At his Wednesday press conference with Newsom, Biden pivoted from the devastation to mention the birth of his great-grandchild. “The good news is: I’m a great-grandfather as of today! My granddaughter had a full-on baby girl—baby boy! So, I’ll remember this day for a lot of reasons,” Biden said.
Newsom later noted he was “proud to be with Joe Biden,” crediting him with approving emergency aid for the wildfires destroying the Golden State.
Bass, meanwhile, was in Africa when the fires broke out. She landed back in the United States on Wednesday and was confronted by a reporter who asked if she owed “citizens an apology.” The mayor didn’t answer, staring blankly for nearly one minute before exiting through an emergency door.
Bass held a press conference the next morning. Facing questions about the city’s depleting emergency fund, Bass said it was not the right time to talk about “the status of our budget.” Bass slashed funding for the city’s fire department.
“Do you know how low [the reserve fund] has gotten at this point and how quickly you’re burning through the reserve?” a reporter asked Bass.
“I’m not here to talk about the status of our budget. If you would like to do that on another occasion, that would be fine. In terms of the reserve fund, I don’t have those concerns right now,” Bass said. “I will say that after our first priority, then we will look back at everything that was done to do an evaluation, to see what worked and what didn’t work.”
Dry conditions and intense Santa Ana winds sparked at least five wildfires in the greater Los Angeles area, beginning Tuesday in the Pacific Palisades. The infernos have ravaged nearly 45 square miles, and the Pacific Palisades fire—the largest blaze—remains zero percent contained. The destruction forced 180,000 residents to flee their homes and killed at least five.
During her Wednesday presser, Bass urged Californians in need to visit a website for emergency assistance. But she failed to share the link.
“We want to make sure that we are ready if we need more water. But make no mistake, Los Angeles will rebuild stronger than ever right now,” Bass said. “If you need help, emergency information—resources and shelter is available. All of this can be found at URL.”
Newsom had his own media struggles on Wednesday. As fire hydrants in the Pacific Palisades ran dry, CNN’s Anderson Cooper asked Newsom about the “situation with the water.” Newsom passed the buck.
“Obviously, Palisades ran out last night in the hydrants,” Cooper noted. “Local folks are going to figure that out,” responded Newsom, who threw his hands in the air. “When you have a system failure, it’s not dissimilar to what we’ve seen in other extraordinarily large-scale fires. Those hydrants are typical for two or three fires, maybe one fire. That’s going to be determined by the local.”
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