House Speaker Mike Johnson stated on Monday that California, which has been devastated by wildfires, should not receive unlimited federal emergency aid.

“I think we’ve got to have a serious conversation about that,” Johnson (R-La.) told reporters as the House reconvened after a three-day break.

“Obviously, there has been water resource mismanagement. Forest management mistakes — all sorts of problems. And it does come down to leadership,” Johnson elaborated.

“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. I think there should probably be conditions on that aid. That’s my personal view. I haven’t seen what the consensus is,” he said.

At present, there are no definitive plans in Congress regarding whether or how to offer additional assistance to California, following several wildfires that have claimed at least 24 lives, destroyed thousands of buildings, and resulted in billions of dollars in damages.

Over the weekend, around two dozen Republicans met with President-elect Donald Trump at Mar-a-Lago to discuss potentially linking wildfire aid to an increase in the debt ceiling, which must be addressed before a June deadline to avoid default, according to Politico.

Johnson confirmed that “some discussion” had taken place regarding the idea of tying further aid to a debt ceiling increase.

Many Republicans have criticized California’s Democratic leadership for its role in the wildfires, including the decision by Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass to cut $17.6 million from the Los Angeles Fire Department’s budget for the current fiscal year.

Senate Majority Whip John Barrasso (R-Wyo.) also suggested over the weekend that any additional funding would likely come with conditions attached.

“I expect that there will be strings attached to money that is ultimately approved, and it has to do with being ready the next time, because this was a gross failure,” Barrasso remarked on CBS’s “Face the Nation” on Sunday.

“It’s heartbreaking to hear the fire chief say that they’ve diverted all of this money away from the fire department to be used for social programs, when they were already stretched too thin,” Barrasso lamented.

“I expect there’s going to be hearings, there’s going to be requests of Congress. There can’t be a blank check on this,” Barrasso added. “These sorts of things can’t happen again. And the policies of the liberal administration out there, I believe have made these fires worse.”

Lawmakers may choose to wait until more precise assessments of the wildfire damages are available.

President Biden has already declared a major disaster for California and pledged federal funding to help the state recover.

Meanwhile, Trump, 78, has called for Governor Gavin Newsom’s resignation. Newsom, 57, initially accused Trump of politicizing the crisis but later invited the president-elect to visit California to witness the devastation firsthand.

The incoming president has criticized state leaders for their handling of water conservation and forest management, which he believes have contributed to the severity of the fires.

{Matzav.com}