California Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) has made a deal with fellow far-left Democrats in the state legislature to set aside $50 million in taxpayer funds to fight the Trump administration and to shield illegal migrants from deportations — as the Los Angeles fires death toll reaches 24.
Newsom convened a special session immediately after President-elect Donald Trump handily beat Vice President Kamala Harris in the November election, saying another Trump presidency would require the legislature to “provide additional funding to the California Department of Justice (CADOJ) and other agencies” to prepare for legal battles.
“The freedoms we hold dear in California are under attack — and we won’t sit idle,” Newsom said on November 7 as he announced his plan. “California has faced this challenge before, and we know how to respond. We are prepared, and we will do everything necessary to ensure Californians have the support and resources they need to thrive.”
The governor has now reached a deal with state lawmakers to earmark $25 million for the CADOJ to use to push back against the incoming administration, and another $25 million “proposed by state Senate leaders to defend immigrants against deportation, detention and wage theft,” Politico reported Monday.
The deal is reportedly going to be voted on this week before Trump’s inauguration takes place next Monday, but California Republicans are bashing Newsom for focusing on the new president while Los Angeles faces devastating fires.
Firefighters are still working to contain three active fires that have already burned “an area bigger than San Francisco” and killed at least 24 people, the Washington Post reported Monday.
California Assembly Minority Leader James Gallagher (R) called out Newsom on social media, calling the $50 million deal a “slush fund”:
“At a time when California should be laser focused on responding to the devastating wildfires in LA, Democrat lawmakers’ priority is creating a $50 million slush fund to hire government lawyers for hypothetical fights against the federal government and to defend criminal illegal immigrants from being returned to their home countries,” the assemblyman wrote on X on Sunday.
Senate Budget Chair Scott Wiener (D), who has notably pushed to grant illegal aliens the ability to serve in party leadership positions and to reduce penalties for adults who have oral or anal sex with a minor if the offender is within ten years of the age of the victim, spoke out in favor of Newsom’s deal.
“This funding agreement cements California’s readiness to serve as a bulwark against Trump’s extremist agenda,” Wiener, whose district includes parts of San Francisco, said in a statement obtained by Politico.
“Senate Democrats are particularly proud to provide funding for providers of legal aid services, which know our communities’ needs best and are best positioned to defend at scale the millions of individuals and families that will be impacted by the incoming Administration’s extreme agenda,” Wiener added.
