House Speaker Mike Johnson has maintained that any relief aid for California and Los Angeles is likely to require policy review first.
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HouseSpeakerMikeJohnsonofLouisianaonSundayreiteratedhisbeliefthatCongressshouldconsiderattachingconditionstoaidforCaliforniafollowingthewildfiredisasterthatdestroyedmanyhomesandpartsofLosAngeles.
NewsweekreachedouttotheHouseSpeaker’sofficeandTrumptransitionteambyemailonSundayforcomment.
TheContextCaliforniafireauthoritiesoverthepast10dayshaveworkedtosuccessfullycontainallbutthetwolargestwildfires–thePalisadesfireandtheEatonfire,whichasofSundayafternoonlocaltimestoodat52percentand81percentcontained,respectively.ThefiresspreadrapidlyduetounexpectedSantaAnawindsblewtheinitialflamesoverlandthathadbeeninadroughtsinceMarch2024.
Eachofthosefiresnowrankamongthemostdestructivefires,accordingtotheCaliforniaDepartmentofForestryandFireProtection:TheEatonfire,whichhasburnedup14,117acres,hasdestroyedaround9,300structures,makingitthesecond-mostdestructivefireinstatehistory;t
