Gavin Newsom Calls Out Trump for Politicizing Human Tragedy and Spreading Disinformation – While Inviting Him to California

AP Photo/José Luis Villegas, File

Democratic California Governor Gavin Newsom invited President-elect Donald Trump to tour the historic fire damage in the Los Angeles area in a Friday letter following days of Trump attacking him.

Since Tuesday’s devastating wildfire broke out in Pacific Palisades, Trump has referred to the governor as “Gavin Newscum” and blamed his leadership for Los Angeles being ill-prepared to handle this week’s other infernos.

“He is the blame for this,” Trump wrote in a Wednesday 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.”

During an interview Thursday with CNN’s Anderson Cooper, Newsom brushed off Trump’s statement as “pure fiction.”

“It’s, uh, well, one can’t even respond to it. I mean, you know, people are literally fleeing. People have lost their lives. Kids lost their schools,” he said. “I have a lot of thoughts, and I know what I want to say. I won’t. Um, I stood next to a 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 in this community. He didn’t play politics, didn’t try to divide any of us.”

Friday, Newsom posted a letter addressed to “The Honorable Donald J. Trump” and wrote, “@realDonaldTrump, “as you prepare to assume the presidency once more, I invite you to come to California. The hundreds of thousands of Americans – displaced from their homes and fearful for the future – deserve to see us all working together in their best interests, not politicizing a human tragedy and spreading disinformation from the sidelines.”

Newsom’s full letter read:

Dear Mr. President-elect,

It was just six years ago that we toured the devastation of the Camp Fire in the town of Paradise, the deadliest wildfire in California’s history. That day, you also visited the Woolsey Fire near Malibu, which took the lives of three residents and displaced tens of thousands. Communities, traditions, places — wiped out in a matter of hours. You witnessed firsthand the heartbreak and destruction that all too many places across this nation have faced from more frequent and more severe natural disasters –
fires, hurricanes, and floods.

Now, California is again facing one of the most destructive fires in our history. On Tuesday, January 7, a massive windstorm hit Southern California, with hurricane-force gusts nearing 100 miles per hour in Los Angeles County. Southern California has seen virtually no rain this winter, and when those winds swept through the parched landscape, tiny ignitions became raging wildfires. Those fires, including the Palisades, Eaton, Hurst, Lidia, Woodley, and Kenneth Fires, have devastated the Greater Los Angeles Area, even in the face of Herculean work by legions of experienced firefighters. Tens of thousands of acres have burned. Thousands have lost their homes and businesses. At least ten people are reported to have died. The loss and devastation are horrific.

We are thankful that President Biden has swiftly approved our major disaster declaration – a strong indication of the partnership California needs and appreciates with any federal administration. However, the threat to lives and property remains acute. Higher-than-normal winds of up to 70 miles per hour are still forecast for the next several days, and more extreme winds are likely early next week, with no change to dry conditions.

As you prepare to assume the presidency once more, I invite you to come to California again — to meet with the Americans affected by these fires, see the devastation firsthand, and join me and others in thanking the heroic firefighters and first responders who are putting their lives on the line. In the spirit of this great country, we must not politicize human tragedy or spread disinformation from the sidelines. Hundreds of thousands of Americans – displaced from their homes and fearful for the future – deserve to see all of us working in their best interests to ensure a fast recovery and rebuild.

With respect and an open hand,
Gavin Newsom