Racist, stupid crapâthatâs not unexpected. What we need is a tough local and national Democratic response. To everything.
President-elect Donald Trump speaks to the media before going to view the wildfire damage in the Los Angeles area.
(Saul Loeb / AFP via Getty Images)
Copresidents-elect Donald Trump and Elon Musk wasted no time racing to the political bottom in the wake of the devastating Los Angeles fires Wednesday, which have so far killed at least five people, injured many more, and destroyed thousands of structuresâmany if not most of them homes.
No surprise there.
On Truth Social Wednesday, the juvenile Trump denounced California Governor Gavin Newsom as âNewscumâ and accused him of ârefusing to sign the water restoration declarationâŚthat 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.â
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As local news sources and others quickly noted, that wasnât true. âState officials along with Republican sources in Californiaâs legislature confirmed to KCRA 3 on Wednesday there was never a âwater restoration declarationâ placed in front of Newsom,â the local station reported. âSince Newsom has been in office, there has not been legislation that would do what Trump is describing.â
Copresident Musk went Trump one better, as he frequently does. He blamed the disappointing (to everyoneâitâs tragic) response to the fire on DEI hires in the fire department. âThey prioritized DEI [diversity, equity, inclusion principles] over saving lives and homes,â Musk claimed, ridiculously. At the same time, he seemed to blame it on Jews, cosigning a post by maniac Alex Jones that blamed a âglobalist plot to wage economic warfare and deindustrialize the United States before triggering global collapse.â
âTrue,â Musk replied.
As journalist Ned Resnikoff observed, targeting âa city with a large Jewish populationâ for destruction would seem counterintuitive, but who really knows.
Right- and left-wing critics of liberal Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass widely claimed that sheâd cut the fire department budget, which she did not, as Politico reported. âIn fact, the cityâs fire budget increased more than $50 million year-over-year compared to the last budget cycle.â
But Politico placed its reporting in a piece headlined that the fire âthreatens to end Karen Bassâ extended honeymoon,â extensively quoting her critics.
Personally, I felt some sympathy for Bass, who was blindsided as she got off a plane from Ghana, where she was attending the new presidentâs inauguration at the request of President Biden. She got the flight on Tuesday, arrived on Wednesday. Bass was baited getting off the plane by a reporter for Sky News, the snooty Brit equivalent of Fox Newsâs Peter Doocy. He blamed Bass for cutting the fire department budgetâas Politico reported, she increased it by $50 millionâand cited Muskâs criticism.
My first reaction was why should she reply to the likes of Musk, with all his racism? But Bass reacted like the proverbial deer in the headlights, a species also known as Democrats, often standing silent. Anyone who didnât recognize the ideological leanings of Sky News might think she didnât have an adequate answer to the trolling. Democrats, sadly, need to get into the ring with these vicious, low-IQ demagogues.
Bass regrouped at a press conference later. As Politico reported: âThis is going to be an effort of all of us coming together, and we have to resist any effort to pull us apart,â she said, noting that she was on the phone coordinating with officials âevery hourâ of her flights on both military and commercial aircraft.
Newsom told Trump: âMy message to the incoming administrationâand Iâm not here to play any politicsâis please donât play any politics. Thereâs a time and place for thatâŚ. The precious moments we have to evacuate, we donât have any time for that mishegoss.â
Sorry, Governor Newsom, Trump has time for nothing but mishegoss. I hope President Biden can release as much FEMA money as possible before he leaves at noon January 20. And I hope Democrats toughen up on defenseâand eventually, on offense. The future of Los Angeles depends on it.
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