As Biden struggles, Harris touts California wildfire aid
ABC News
Vice President Kamala Harris returned to her home state during challenging times for the White House to highlight funding for federal wildfire programs
SAN BERNARDINO, Calif. -- After a difficult first year in office, Vice President Kamala Harris enjoyed a homecoming of sorts Friday, taking a helicopter tour in Southern California mountains to highlight new funding for federal wildfire programs.
She was joined by Gov. Gavin Newsom and California Sen. Alex Padilla — both Harris' friends and fellow Democrats — on a day when they inspected wildfire damage from the sky, visited a federal fire station where they heard about the increasing risk of destructive blazes and outlined new spending aimed at reducing the risk of wildfires and dealing with their aftermath.
She also announced $600 million in disaster relief funding for the U.S. Forest Service in California.
In brief remarks, the vice president hailed the work of firefighters and credited collaboration between governments “unencumbered by politics,” an apparent reference to past friction between heavily Democratic California and the Trump administration.
