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Molly Butler / Media Matters

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Right-wing media call for aid to be withheld from California with Los Angeles in ashes

Conservative personalities have called for aid to have “conditions” and come with “strings attached”

Written by Gideon Taaffe

Published

Many conservative media figures have come out in support of playing political games with aid for victims of the wildfires in California. 

As House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) floated the idea that the aid to California could come with conditions, right-wing media have speculated about what punitive conditions they would like to see, including telling environmentalists to “pound sand” and suggesting the federal government “attach strings that this could no longer be a sanctuary state.”

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  • Republican representatives have suggested aid to California be conditioned

    • Speaker of the House Mike Johnson floated conditioning aid to California. Johnson told reporters, “I think there should probably be conditions on that aid. That's my personal view. We'll see what the consensus is. I haven't had a chance to socialize that with any of the members over the weekend because we've all been very busy, but it'll be part of the discussion.” [ABC, 1/13/25]
    • Republicans are arguing over raising the debt ceiling, and some reportedly now want to tie aid to raising the limit. Johnson told reporters there had “been some discussion” of connecting the debt limit with California aid. Politico explained, “Linking the two issues together could bring a larger coalition of support to the table from both sides of the aisle and allow Johnson (R-La.) to deliver Trump a debt ceiling increase sooner rather than later.” [Politico, 1/13/25]

  • Right-wing media have supported the idea of holding California aid hostage

    • During an interview with Senate Majority Leader John Thune, Hugh Hewitt called for having “strings attached” on aid to California. Hewitt said: “What does the Congress do in the aftermath of this? And I hope it’s not just send money. I want strings attached to fix the local, state, and regional governments which are completely failed here.” Thune said he agreed with Hewitt. [Salem News Channel, The Hugh Hewitt Show, 1/13/25] 
    • On Fox & Friends, co-host Lawrence Jones called for “some conditions” to be tied to federal aid “to prevent this from happening ever again.” Jones clarified, “Part of the conditions is the roads, it’s about making sure the reservoirs are fixed, and making sure they get rid of some of the brush.” [Fox News, Fox & Friends, 1/14/25]
    • Fox anchor and host Dana Perino said the condition for aid to California could be to tell environmentalists to “pound sand.” Perino: “The condition might be, hey, you have to allow the forest service to do the work, and tell the environmentalists to pound sand while we do this. ... It's not like conditioned for something that doesn't make sense.” [Fox News, The Five, 1/13/25]
    • Fox Business guest Michael Lee suggested Congress to “attach strings” to Federal Emergency Management Agency aid so that California can no longer be a “sanctuary state.” Lee asked if the Trump administration and Congress could “attach strings that this could no longer be a sanctuary state, this can no longer be a place where you openly defy federal law and do everything in your power to step in the front of this administration.” He then falsely claimed that the Biden administration “played massive games with every bit of aid for red states during the last four years.” [Fox Business, Mornings with Maria, 1/13/25]
    • Fox host Sean Hannity argued that California doesn’t “deserve one federal dollar” because it is a sanctuary state. Fox News contributor Newt Gingrich said that “we should not give California itself a penny,” adding, “The government of California is corrupt, disreputable and follows policies that verge on insane and the rest of the country shouldn't be required to subsidize their insanity.” [Fox News, Hannity, 1/9/25]
    • Turning Point USA founder Charlie Kirk reacted to Mike Johnson’s call for “conditions” on aid to California by writing “Good!” [Twitter/X, 1/13/25]
    • Right-wing influencer Heather Mullins wrote, “Any Federal aid given to California, needs to stay out of the States hands.” [Twitter/X, 1/11/25]