Top Democrat rejects any conditions on wildfire aid
House Democratic Caucus Chairman Pete Aguilar (D-Calif.) on Tuesday flatly rejected Speaker Mike Johnson’s (R-La.) proposal for conditions to be put on federal aid for California wildfires, setting up a potential partisan fight that could delay billions of dollars in emergency assistance.
“We will not support conditions to disaster assistance,” Aguilar told reporters in the Capitol.
“We can have a lengthy debate and discussion and use the committee process to have discussions about the steps that California has taken to protect itself,” he continued. “But at the end of the day, ultimately this will mean disaster assistance, and that needs to be free from partisan conditions.”
Aguilar’s red line sets the stage for what could potentially be a fierce battle over the delivery of emergency help in response to the wildfires in and around Los Angeles, which are shaping up to be among the most damaging — and most expensive — natural disasters in the nation’s history.
Johnson on Monday said he supports conditions on any new federal aid, citing what he characterized as “mismanagement” of........
© The Hill
