Trump's thuggish response to the California fires is a bad omen

Southern California is experiencing its most devastating winter fire season in more than 40 years. As of Sunday, ongoing wildfires have destroyed more than 12,000 homes and killed at least 24 people while burning through an area larger than San Francisco. Damages are likely to reach at least $135 billion, which would make this the most expensive fire in US history.

Disasters like this are horrific. They do, though, have the potential to pull Americans together. There has often in the past been bipartisan incentives to deliver aid quickly and efficiently to affected areas, whether in red or blue states. Local officials may reach across the political aisle to coordinate with national leaders, as when New Jersey Republican Gov. Chris Christie praised Barack Obama for the prompt federal response to Hurricane Sandy in 2012.

In the MAGA era, however, this kind of unity, or neighborliness, is anathema. Former and now incoming President Donald Trump and his cronies consistently treat national disasters as opportunities to sow division, to demonize and immiserate enemies, and to blackmail opponents.

https://www.publicnotice.co/p/trump-california-wildfires-response-newsom