Actor Mel Gibson slammed California Governor Gavin Newsom‘s handling of the devastating wildfires during an appearance on the Joe Rogan Experience podcast on Thursday.
Gibson highlighted Newsom’s neglect of wildfire prevention efforts while directing billions of taxpayer dollars towards woke initiatives.
California’s leftist spending priorities are now in the spotlight.
“We were just talking about the wildfire situation and how crazy it is that they spent 24 billion dollars last year on the homeless, and what did they spend on preventing these wildfires?” Rogan, 57, asked.
“Zero,” Gibson replied. “Zip.”
The actor ripped Newsom for failing to deliver his pledge to prioritize forest management and wildfire prevention.
“In 2019, I think Newsom said, you know, ‘I’m going to take care of the forest and maintain the forest’ and do all that kind of stuff,” Gibson said.
“He didn’t do anything.”
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Rogan pointed to reports that California firefighters are struggling with water shortages.
“And on top of that, they cut the water off,” he said.
Gibson then added some humour to Newsom’s incompetence, saying, “I think all our tax dollars probably went for Gavin’s hair gel. … It’s sad. The place is just on fire.”
Rogan condemned Newsom for claiming California as the “best” state in the nation with an “amazing economy.”
“You’re out of your f–king mind, dude. You’ve ruined this state. Personally ruined it.”
Gibson also mentioned that his son, Milo, shared a video of raging fires near the actor’s home.
Milo is part of a volunteer fire brigade in Malibu.
Rogan asked Gibson if the wildfire crisis could be the catalyst that made him leave California.
“Yeah, maybe,” Gibson responded, adding that he owns a place in Costa Rica.
Despite Newsom’s pledge to overhaul California’s approach to wildfire prevention, an NPR investigation revealed that he significantly overstated the state’s progress on fire prevention efforts.
“The investigation found Newsom overstated, by an astounding 690%, the number of acres treated with fuel breaks and prescribed burns,” NPR reporter Scott Rodd wrote.
Despite Newsome claiming that 90,000 acres were treated as part of 35 priority projects, according to data, just 11,399 acres were treated.
However, the governor’s office disputed the report.
“The notion that the Newsom administration is retreating on wildfire response – in dollars or actions – is wholly inaccurate,” the governor’s office stated.
The California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection (CalFire) allocated approximately $3.7 billion for fire protection between 2021 and 22.
However, the Hoover Institution reported that California has spent $24 billion on homelessness since 2019.
homelessness in the state increased by about 30,000 despite the spending.
