Once again, Donald Trump has attacked one of his favorite targets: the Democrats. Faced with fires of unprecedented intensity in California – having caused at least 24 deaths, ravaged more than 15,000 hectares and destroyed more than 12,000 buildings – the future president of the United States once again looked for scapegoats in instead of recognizing the role of climate change. In his sights: Gavin Newsom, the Democratic governor of California.
Donald Trump accused him of incompetence in managing the fires. Their violent spread is due, according to Trump, to the lack of water experienced by the American state, which can be explained by Democratic environmental policies. According to Trump, these would divert rainwater to protect a critically endangered fish, the smelt. The future climate skeptic president also criticized the governor for refusing to sign a supposed « water restoration declaration »a document which, according to him, would have provided enough water to put out the fires.
« I will demand that this incompetent governor allow clean, beautiful fresh water to flow into California ! He is the one responsible for this situation. »wrote Donald Trump on January 8 on his Truth Social platform, renaming Gavin Newsom « Gavin Newscum » (« scum » meaning « junk » in English).
« Pure fiction »
These accusations are completely unfounded. Several experts, notably Jeffrey Mount, interviewed by the Washington Postconfirmed that these measures had no connection with the ongoing fires. These are more linked to prolonged droughts and violent winds, amplified by global warming. Furthermore, the majority of water used daily in Los Angeles comes from the Colorado River and is mainly intended for agriculture. As for the « water restoration declaration » mentioned by Trump, it simply does not exist. « It's pure fiction »said the California governor's office.
Firefighters search the ruins of a house after the fires in Los Angeles, California. Here, January 14, 2025.
© Etienne Laurent / AFP
The violence of the Californian fires is mainly attributable to climate change, as explained Reporterrebased on a rapid attribution study published on January 10. However, the Trump galaxy does not hesitate to spread conspiracy theories about the origin of the fires.
Elon Musk, Tesla boss appointed head of the Ministry of « government efficiency »for example claimed that they had spread due to« a series of environmental decisions » taken by the Californian state, in particular the ban on firebreaks – these voluntarily deforested areas in a forest – and the management of brush. But according to several experts, the winds that fanned the flames were so violent and the ground so dry that clearing would not have had a significant effect.
A question of identity
Regardless of the facts, Trump's message achieved its goal: shifting the debate to secondary themes, eclipsing the real cause of the fires, global warming. « It's a deflection campaign aimed at distracting the public from focusing on the real cause: our continued consumption of fossil fuels »underlines climatologist Michael Mann in an article published by the media Salon.
For Trump and his allies, the fires become an ideal lever to reinforce an already well-entrenched climate denialism. They are using the crisis to attack environmental policies, portrayed as « harmful » to the economy and ineffective in the face of natural disasters. This rhetoric is part of a broader logic of skepticism towards scientific facts, transformed into an ideological standard.
Read also: Silicon Valley turns to Trump, against a backdrop of climate misinformation
« Among American voters, climate change is not a scientific question, but an identity question, depending on the group to which one belongs: progressive or conservative »observes Jean-Daniel Collomb, researcher specializing in American climate policies at Grenoble Alpes University. Thus, an evangelical Christian from Oklahoma, a Republican voter, will be disinclined to believe in global warming. Conversely, a progressive academic in Boston will consider it a crucial issue.
« Trump understands this very well and is exploiting this polarizationcontinues Jean-Daniel Collomb. He knows that his voters love to attack Democrats and environmentalists. » Thus, Gavin Newsom is a prime target: representative of the left wing of the Democratic Party, he is the potential candidate for the 2028 presidential election.
A rehearsed speech
This strategy is not new. In August 2018, Trump had already claimed that environmental laws signed by his predecessors had hampered the management of the Mendocino Complex fire, which devastated 185,000 hectares in northern California and left nine people dead. Two years later, in 2020, at the time of the Creek Fire, having burned 139 hectares in the « Golden State »he had attributed the disaster to a « poor forest management » in a state run by Democrats. Never in his speeches did he mention the role of global warming.
When Trump is not blaming the Democrats, he is attacking another target: migrants. During hurricanes Hélène and Milton last September and October, he affirmed that the federal state only granted 750 dollars (734 euros) to the victims, because 1 billion dollars (978 million euros) would have been « stolen » to the federal agency for responding to natural disasters, Fema, for « give them to immigrants ».
Despite the scientific evidence, Trump's posture continues to slow down decarbonization efforts. A Carbon Brief analysis estimates that his return to power on January 20 could lead to an increase of 4 billion tonnes of carbon emissions in the United States by 2030, inflicting nearly $900 billion (€881 million). ) climate damage. Such a trajectory would seriously threaten commitments made under the Paris Agreement, which Trump has described as a « hindrance » to the United States economy.
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