Mike Johnson Implies Conditions For California Wildfire Aid Is A 'Common Sense Notion' [View all]

Source: Huff Post

Jan 19, 2025, 03:44 PM EST


House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) said he “won’t commit” to providing aid without conditions to the flame-engulfed region of Los Angeles County.

Johnson and other Republicans have been considering leveraging California’s need for aid and relief to advance political agendas as the fires rage on. On Sunday’s episode of “Meet the Press,” host Kristen Welker asked Johnson if he could commit to not binding California disaster relief to conditions, such as increasing the debt limit.

“No, I won’t commit that because we have a serious problem in California,” Johnson said. “Listen, there are natural disasters. I’m from Louisiana, we’re prone to that. We understand how these things work. But then there’s also human error, and when the state and local officials make foolish policy decisions that make the disaster exponentially worse, we need to factor that in, and I think that’s a common sense notion.”

But California Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) has called for expedited aid with no “strings attached” multiple times.

Read more: https://www.huffpost.com/entry/speaker-mike-johnson-california-wildfire-aid_n_678d411ee4b0a4bfc4309304