Vice President-elect JD Vance dismissed concerns that President-elect Trump might try to withhold federal aid from California as it seeks to rebuild the damage from the wildfires.
In an interview on “Fox News Sunday,” Shannon Bream asked Vance about Trump’s remarks from September 2024, when he threatened at a press conference in Los Angeles to withhold federal aid from California.
“We won’t give him money to put out all his fires,” Trump said at the time. “And if we don’t give him the money to put out his fires, he’s got problems.”
On whether there is any consideration of withholding aid to Californians, Vance dismissed the idea but said Trump is committed to improving federal responses to crises.
“No, look, President Trump cares about all Americans, right? He is the president for all Americans,” Vance said. “And I think that he intends to have FEMA and other federal responses much, much better and much more clued into what’s going on there on the ground.”
Asked about California Gov. Gavin Newsom’s (D) invitation for Trump to visit his state, Vance said, “Well, I know the president would love to visit California” and said, “Our hearts go out” to those affected by the natural disasters.
“Whatever your political affiliation, it’s hard not to see those images and just be heartbroken for our fellow Americans who are going through a very tough time,” Vance said.
“And I do think, frankly, the federal government has to do a better job. President Trump is committed to doing a better job when it comes to disaster relief. That’s true for the hurricane victims and flood victims in North Carolina. It’s true for the fire victims in California. We just — we have to do a better job. We need competent good governance.”
He said Trump still can criticize Newsom “for, I think, some very bad decisions over a very long period of time.”
