In response to Donald Trump and his MAGA minions threatening to play politics with disaster relief, DNC Rapid Response Director Alex Floyd released the following statement:  

“As wildfires still rage in California, Donald Trump is trying to use desperately needed disaster relief as a bargaining chip for his extreme political agenda. Americans who are suffering shouldn’t be used by their president as pawns in exchange for tax cuts for the rich. After already threatening to rip away billions in critically needed disaster relief just weeks ago, Trump is showing us who he is and how he will lead: only focusing on himself and his billionaire backers at the expense of Americans in crisis.”

NEW: Donald Trump is once again threatening to play politics with disaster relief, suggesting tying it to his reconciliation bill so he can get “everything we want.”

Trump: “If you add Los Angeles into it then you can really do one, big beautiful bill because frankly they want that so badly. They want the money to go out there so badly. And I don’t think we should do a bill until Los Angeles is included, and when Los Angeles is included, we get everything we want.”

Just weeks ago, Trump directed his MAGA minions to break a bipartisan agreement, threatening a government shutdown and critical disaster relief funding in the process. 

John Bresnahan, Punchbowl News: “New: Trump is telling Republican senators that he is totally opposed to the CR & believes Mike Johnson has mishandling the situation”

Lawrence Jones III, Fox News: “I just spoke with the President-Elect @realDonaldTrump, and he is ‘totally against’ the proposed CR.”

NBC News: “President-elect Donald Trump excoriated a bipartisan government funding bill Wednesday afternoon, throwing the stopgap measure into chaos just as leaders of both parties were hoping to pass it.”

CBS News: “The new stopgap measure, with approval from the House, Senate and President Biden, would keep the government funded through March 14, giving lawmakers more time to reach agreement on new spending bills when the GOP controls both the House and the Senate.”