- by foxnews
- 12 Jan 2025
Gov. Gavin Newsom, D-Calif., appeared to deflect when he was confronted about Los Angeles residents being angry over his wildfire response, saying local leaders and people on his own team weren't giving him a clear picture of the devastation.
Newsom admitted he wasn't fully clued in to why the response was lagging and appeared to pass the buck to other leaders.
"We had my team start talking to local leaders, saying, 'What's going on?'" Newsom began.
"And you weren't getting straight answers from the local leaders?" Favreau cut in. "I was getting different answers," Newsom affirmed, adding, "and so, for me, that's not a - when you start getting different answers, then I'm not getting the actual story."
Newsom added that he has been giving these leaders "a little bit of grace," as he understands they're "assessing" the "emergency environment."
He noted that tempers are flaring up over the wildfire response because "no one has any patience anymore."
Newsom's press office responded to the comments on X, stating, "LADWP said that because of the high water demand, pump stations at lower elevations did not have enough pressure refill tanks at higher elevations, and the ongoing fire hampered the ability of crews to access the pumps."
It added, "Broadly speaking, there is no water shortage in Southern California right now, despite Trump's claims that he would open some imaginary spigot."
During the podcast interview, Newsom again slammed Trump for the claims, stating the president is spreading misinformation.
"It's words. It's a salad. It's the form and substance of fog. It's made up. It's delusional and it's a consistent mantra from Trump going back years and years and years, and it's reinforced over and over and over within the right wing."
The governor added that Trump has managed to bring this alleged affinity for misinformation "into this crisis in a profoundly demeaning and damaging way."
Trump transition team spokesperson Steven Cheung replied to Newsom's accusation, telling Fox News Digital, "Instead of appearing on liberal podcasts, maybe Newscum [sic] should be doing his f---ing job and actually help people who continue to suffer under his terrible leadership."
Airline performance in the U.S. has recently come under scrutiny as major carriers and regional operators face widespread cancellations and delays, leaving passengers frustrated and travel plans disrupted. Delta Airlines recorded the highest number of cancellations, with 357 flights canceled (12%) and 561 delays (20%), while American Airlines followed with 176 cancellations (5%) and 456 delays (15%).
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