Pres. Trump to visit scorched California Monday for briefing on wildfires

LOS ANGELES — President Donald Trump announced that he would visit California Monday, a state scorched by explosive wildfires that destroyed thousands of structures and killed several.

The president will travel to McClellan Park in Sacramento County to be briefed on the blazes.

“Since mid-August, President Trump and Governor Newsom have spoken by phone and the White House and FEMA have remained in constant contact with State and local officials throughout the response to these natural disasters. The President continues to support those who are battling raging wildfires in a locally-executed, state-managed, and federally-supported emergency response,” Deputy Press Secretary Judd Deere said in a statement.

Last month, Trump issued a major disaster declaration to provide federal assistance.

This is not the first time wildfires are bringing Trump to the Golden State. In 2018, his visit included a stop at Paradise, where 85 people were killed and roughly 19,000 structures were destroyed in and around the city.

The president has faced criticism for oversimplifying the cause of wildfires by throwing blame at forest management.

During his remarks in Pennsylvania Thursday, Trump addressed the California wildfires and blamed the “years” of leaves and broken trees, claiming “they’re like, like so flammable.”

“And I see again, the forest fires are starting,” Trump said. “They’re starting again in California. And I said, ‘You’ve got to clean your floors. You’ve got to clean your floors.'”

Democratic rival Joe Biden also pointed fingers toward the wildfires’ cause but instead blamed climate change.

“The science is clear, and deadly signs like these are unmistakable — climate change poses an imminent, existential threat to our way of life,” he said in a statement released Saturday. “President Trump can try to deny that reality, but the facts are undeniable.”