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Republicans Float Holding California Fire Aid Hostage for Key Trump Policy

House Speaker Mike Johnson said that Republicans are considering tying aid for the California wildfires to fulfillment of a key goal expressed by the president-elect.

House Speaker Mike Johnson confirmed that congressional Republicans are considering tying desperately needed disaster aid for the California wildfires to an increase of the debt limit—a key policy President-elect Donald Trump and his allies tried to force into a spending bill in December. Top Republicans, including Senate Majority Whip John Barrasso (R-WY), have already floated the idea of only extending federal emergency aid to the beleaguered state, which has a Democratic governor and supermajority in the state legislature, with “strings attached.” Speaking to reporters on Capitol Hill on Monday, Johnson echoed Barrasso’s concerns. “We’ve got to have a serious conversation about that,” the Speaker said. “Obviously there’s been water resource mismanagement, forest management mistakes, all sorts of problems. And it does come down to leadership, and it appears to us that state and local leaders were derelict in their duty in many respects. So that’s something that has to be factored in.” Johnson also said that in his “personal view,” the aid should come with conditions—but the entire Republican caucus has not had a chance to come to a consensus at the moment. When asked about the possibility of tying aid to the debt ceiling. “There’s some discussion about that, we’ll see where it goes,” he added.

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Zachary FolkFreelance Reporter

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