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CNN This Morning

Deadly Wildfires Rage in Southern California; Trump Seizes on L.A. Infernos to Reignite Feud with Newsom. Aired 6-6:30a ET

Aired January 09, 2025 - 06:00   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

KASIE HUNT, CNN ANCHOR: It's Thursday, January 9. Right now on CNN THIS MORNING.

[06:00:30]

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Everything is just gone. And I just want to wake up from this bad dream.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HUNT: Utter devastation. Residents in Southern California reeling as multiple fires rip through neighborhoods, leaving nothing but ash.

And --

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We are not out of danger.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HUNT: Raging out of control. While the winds have decreased some, the danger far from over.

And --

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT-ELECT OF THE UNITED STATES: Whether it's one bill or two bill, it's going to get done one way or the other.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HUNT: Donald Trump on the Hill, meeting with senators to strategize about how best to get his agenda through Congress.

And later --

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JIMMY CARTER, FORMER PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: It's time for the people to run the government, and not the other way around. (END VIDEO CLIP)

HUNT: Remember America's 39th president. Today, Jimmy Carter will be honored in the nation's capital.

All right. It is 6 a.m. here on the East Coast. Here is a live look at the Capitol Rotunda.

There you can see President Jimmy Carter lying in state. That shot from the top of the Capitol dome at the Rotunda. Just -- just a stunning one that really, really strikes a nerve at moments like this.

In just a few hours, his state funeral will be held here in the nation's capital at the National Cathedral, before he'll be buried later on today in his hometown of Plains, Georgia.

Good morning, everyone. I'm Kasie Hunt. It's wonderful to have you with us.

We do want to start with the scenes of total devastation that are unfolding across Los Angeles County at this hour, as tens of thousands of residents are fleeing from the most destructive wildfire outbreak in L.A.'s history.

Dramatic images out of the Studio City neighborhood overnight, where a home caught fire and then collapsed, sending embers flying.

But thanks to the quick action of Los Angeles firefighters, that fire was contained before the nearby hillside could be engulfed in flames.

There are now several major fires burning across L.A. County, most of them 0 percent contained, and they're being fueled by powerful hurricane-force wind gusts.

More than 130,000 residents are under evacuation orders or advisories, many getting out with just moments to spare.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

FRANCOIS AUROUX, EVACUATED FROM PALISADES FIRE: Houses were on fire. There was gas shooting out into the road. All of the trees were on fire. I was riding. I had my helmet on, and there were branches and embers hitting me. And it was definitely a sight to behold.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HUNT: The Sunset Fire is burning in Hollywood Hills. That's putting famed landmarks like the Hollywood sign into harm's way.

At least five people have lost their lives in the fires, and thousands of structures have been damaged or destroyed. So many have lost everything.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BRENDA MATA, LOST HOME IN FIRE: This is our nest egg. This is where we moved in when we got married. This is where our son was born. This was our house. And this was what we worked for. This was what we were going to use to retire. That was our investment.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HUNT: The danger not yet over as firefighters continue to battle the flames.

CNN meteorologist Derek van Dam joins us now with the latest on when conditions might improve. Derek, when could we see some relief here in Southern California?

DEREK VAN DAM, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Kasie, I was encouraged this morning to wake up to see this view, with helicopters actually able to fly and drop their retardants and their water on the ridge tops here fighting the fires.

Remember, that's the difference between this morning and yesterday morning when we were not able to fly those fixed-wing helicopters, the aircraft, to help fight the fires from above, which is such an incredible way to -- to combat these fires.

But now that the winds relaxed somewhat yesterday, they were given that opportunity to fly those airplanes. Will that continue? That's the big question, because we do anticipate the wind to pick up through the course of the day today.

Five active fires: Lidia Fire, Hurst Fire, Eaton Fire, Sunset Fire, and Palisades Fire. But I want to zoom in to Palisades, our largest fire in Western L.A. County that has now moved into portions of Santa Monica.

Here's the famed Santa Monica Beach, the pier. And this is the burned area from the Palisades Fire. Look at the outer edges right here, encroaching on this very densely populated area. The winds here gusting 50, 60 miles per hour through the course of the afternoon today.

[06:05:01]

So, it is going to be yet another challenging day for people and firefighters on the ground -- Kasie.

HUNT: Yes, that is an incredibly concerning detail there.

Derek, thanks very much for that report.

For more on how firefighters' efforts to contain the blazes are going, let's bring in Mike Lopez. He is a retired CAL FIRE battalion chief.

Mike, good morning to you. I'm sure you have many, many friends who are out there on the front lines.

What have you heard from crews about the challenges they're dealing with right now? And do they have what they need to keep going? MIKE LOPEZ, SECRETARY TREASURER, CALIFORNIA PROFESSIONAL FIREFIGHTERS:

The challenges right now have been -- you know, is the wind. Obviously, if the wind slows down, the men and women of the fire service can get in there and put lines in place and start doing some active firefighting and trying to corral this.

So, that's our biggest hurdle, is really -- is just trying -- is to get the firefighters around the working edges of the fire while the wind has slowed down to minimal before it kicks back up in the afternoon.

HUNT: Mike, can you talk to us a little bit about some of the things that unfolded over the initial kind of 24 hours? We've heard reports, for example, of hydrants running dry in the Pacific Palisades.

If you are a firefighter, what is -- what causes that? Who's to blame for that? And how much of a problem is it?

LOPEZ: Well, you know, it's not -- it only -- it's sporadically. And what happens is not every hydrant is -- is gridded to -- to be affected exactly the same.

Some have more pressure, some have less, some have more containment of -- containers of 00 of water tanks on top of the hill.

And so, when you have everyone draining the system all at one time, the firefighters -0 and unfortunately we -- you know, our citizens are trying to do the best also by, you know -- they think that -- that they're using their garden hoses and pre-wetting their -- their homes, that helps out. It does to an extent. But the firefighters need the water to come in and extinguish that.

And so, the whole drawdown on the system is really -- when you have that, when you have millions of gallons of water being used, then that takes its toll on the whole system at large.

So, to blame anybody, that's -- that's a real tough one.

HUNT: Yes. Fair enough. We are seeing some political conversations already about -- about this. I'm curious about the frontline firefighters' view of what should be done, as these fires are clearly getting more intense, more dramatic.

What do firefighters need? Is it more training? What kind of funds do you need? Is it -- I know it's different to fight a wildfire in the brush than it is to fight it in an urban area. What do you all need from our leaders going forward?

LOPEZ: Well, throughout government in California and across the country, you know, fire departments are at a -- they're trying to retain as many firefighters as they can and try to hire. But because of budget cuts along those lines, that always creates an issue across this country, specifically California. There's a lot of that.

But firefighter -- fire is -- gets put out by firefighters. If you lack firefighters, that is one of the issues that -- that really contributes to this.

California has the best mutual aid system in the world, where we can move resources up and down the state. So, the governor did pre- position over 100 fire engines before this, before the first fire started down in Southern California.

So, we have in motion a great system to -- to predetermine and -- and to get our resources available. So, they use CAL FIRE. They use local government. They use federal resources.

So, firefighters moved down there. And you know, the question is, is it always enough or is it enough? And we can -- we can send a -- you know, an extra 500 firefighter engines down there at the very beginning. But when you have 40-, 50-, 60-mile-an-hour winds come all at once with fires behind it. You know, the firefighters are now into rescue, life safety and they're -- and trying to extinguish all at once. So, that becomes very difficult.

HUNT: Yes, for sure. All right. Mike Lopez, very grateful for your time this morning. Again, we are always thinking of you and your frontline colleagues who are doing so much to try to help their friends and neighbors. Thank you.

LOPEZ: Thank you very much.

HUNT: All right. Coming up next here on CNN THIS MORNING, one agenda. Donald Trump meets with Republicans to strategize less than two weeks before his inauguration. Republican Congressman Zach Nunn joins us live to discuss.

Plus, saying goodbye to President Carter. In just hours, his state funeral will begin here in Washington.

And we're going to continue to cover those destructive wildfires in Southern California as tens of thousands of acres burn this morning, sending homes and iconic landmarks up in flames.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's just been nonstop. It's madness. It's just nonstop. Once one house goes, the next one goes, the next one goes.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK

[06:14:31]

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TRUMP: This is a true tragedy, and it's a mistake of the governor and, you could say, the administration. They don't have any water. They didn't have water in the fire hydrants. The governor has not done a good job.

With that being said, I got along well with him when he was [SIC] governor. We worked together very well. And we would work together. I guess it looks like we're going to be the one having to rebuild it.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HUNT: The devastating wildfires in Los Angeles reviving Donald Trump's feud with California Democratic Governor Gavin Newsom. Overnight, Trump posted on Truth Social, calling for the governor's resignation, saying, quote, "This is all his fault," end quote.

[06:15:06]

Newsom, taking a brief moment to respond while in the middle of the flames.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GOV. GAVIN NEWSOM (D-CA): One can't even respond to it. I mean, it's -- people are literally fleeing. People have lost their lives. Kids lost their schools. Families completely torn asunder; churches burned down.

This guy wanted to politicize it. I have a lot of thoughts, and I know what I want to say. I won't.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HUNT: All right. Our panel is here: Eli Stokols, White House correspondent with "Politico"; Isaac Dovere, CNN senior reporter; Meghan Hays, former Biden White House director of message planning; and Scott Jennings, CNN senior political commentator, former senior adviser to Mitch McConnell.

Welcome to all of you. Thank you all for being here.

Scott Jennings, I will say that usually, what -- what happens here is while people are still -- while these things are still happening, typically in the past, the sort of unwritten rule has been, Hey, let's not talk about it. Let's not play the blame game yet. Like, let's get the fire out, right? Let's save these homes.

Is it too soon for what Trump's doing?

SCOTT JENNINGS, CNN SENIOR POLITICAL COMMENTATOR: I mean, if I were a California Democrat, I would also be screaming politicization, because I wouldn't want anybody drawing attention to my management of this or decision making either.

I don't think its politicizing anything to draw attention to public policy choices, and whether the governor or whether the mayor of L.A., whether you're looking at things that happen in the city, such as cutting the firefighter budget; whether you're looking at issues like, because it's California, they can't manage to build water storage, which would have come in handy on this.

I think if I lived out there, I would have these questions right now, too. And so, I think -- I think if Congress, by the way, is going to spend

a bunch of money here, which they're going to need to do, some of these issues need to be addressed.

So, the fact that Trump is bringing them up now is actually -- I think most taxpayers are going to want to see policy changes so that we don't have to -- repeat of this in the future.

HUNT: Meghan Hays.

MEGHAN HAYS, FORMER BIDEN WHITE HOUSE DIRECTOR OF MESSAGE PLANNING: Yes, so I'm from California, and these water fights have been older than I am. And the longest time, and I'm from Northern California, so there's always the fight of the water.

But L.A. doesn't actually get most of its water from Northern California. It gets it from the Colorado River.

But needless to say, some of you are right on these -- some of these policy decisions. And that's fair to look at.

I just -- you know, you say you want to -- the president-elect wants to get along with the governor, but calling him "Newscum" is probably not the best way to do that.

But I agree that people should look at their policy decisions. But I don't think now is the time to do that. People literally have lost everything they have, and these urban fires are not something that California is used to. We're used to wildfires. And so, I think there is a little bit different argument here.

HUNT: Well, and Eli Stokols, I mean, the bottom line here is that this is about presidential politics, right? I mean, the back and forth between Donald Trump and Gavin Newsom.

I mean, it is no secret that Gavin Newsom wants to run for president. Obviously, Donald Trump cannot run again. But I mean, I feel like I'm hearing the next presidential campaign already, in his words.

ELI STOKOLS, WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT, "POLITICO": Which is wild because we just finished one.

HUNT: Yes.

STOKOLS: And Donald Trump has four years in office.

HUNT: The inauguration hasn't even happened yet.

STOKOLS: Doesn't need to run again. I mean, if this was happening last year, it would make a little more sense in the context of, well, Donald Trump has a political case to prosecute.

And also, this is just sort of what Donald Trump does. We've seen, in natural disasters and tragedies when he was president and after his presidency, his instinct is not to express empathy to the people who are going through it. His instinct is to point the finger, and that's what he's doing.

Scott's right. There are legitimate questions to be asked about -- about management, about budget cuts. I mean, it's -- the nuance of this is a little more complicated than the way Trump is presenting it.

The budget cuts in Los Angeles, $17 million to the firefighters' budget. Those were pushed for by Republicans, as well, who wanted her to cut the budget. There are consequences to all these policy decisions. They're playing out in real time.

It's understandable that people would -- would want to talk about that at some point.

But this is nothing new from -- from President Trump. What's interesting is just sort of like what's the upside for him politically? He's the president now. And, you know.

HUNT: Yes. What do you think, Isaac, is the -- are the implications of this for Newsom, who clearly so does want to be on the national stage?

I mean, this -- this is a disaster. And it did happen on his watch.

EDWARD-ISAAC DOVERE CNN SENIOR CORRESPONDENT: It did. But I don't think you can blame any politician for this kind of natural disaster.

HUNT: It doesn't mean people won't, though.

DOVERE: Sure. And let's see what actually happens with the fires and the aftermath of it.

I do think that, given the way that this fight is playing out politically, we can talk about the back and forth and the presidential implications or political implications.

People in California have reason to be skeptical that they will receive federal aid at the level that they might have, had another president been about to come in because, as Eli was saying, Donald Trump was vengeful when he was president, his first term, in deploying federal aid.

He has -- he clearly sees a political issue with Gavin Newsom. He wants to have this fight, call him Gavin "Newscum."

This is -- we can go back and forth. But at the -- the end of it, it's about the people whose houses have been destroyed, whose businesses have been destroyed, and what's going to happen to them. And that's where this fight really becomes about, more -- more than just --

[06:20:07]

HAYS: But also --

DOVERE: -- 2028.

HAYS: And on top of that fight, all these people lost their insurance, too. Like, insurance policies were canceled just in January. Like, there is some serious questions here about how insurance companies are operating that Congress should probably be investigating, too.

There's a lot that goes into this. I mean, people were talking about how they've had homes in their families for 70 years, and their policies were canceled the beginning of January, and they didn't have fire insurance.

So, I mean, I don't -- I don't know, obviously, all the facts there, but that's a real policy issue.

JENNINGS: I do think there's a split screen here, too, with Florida, to be honest. A lot of what we talk about in terms of emergency management in this country almost always comes from hurricanes and weather. And, you know, who is the recognized best emergency manager in the country? Ron DeSantis in Florida.

So, Newsom is also -- he's under assault from Trump a little bit. But, you know, he's also dealing with, I think, a comparative here. You know, what do other governors do? Is he as good?

So, when you're talking about the future politics of it, is he as good at this as another governor might be? Could be a real problem for him, because, you know, right now I think people have serious questions, and there are no answers yet. He'll have a chance to answer them. But it doesn't look great right now.

STOKOLS: Trump is blaming Biden for this on the presidential level. He's about to be president for another four years. There are going to be more natural disasters that occur on his watch.

And so, you're setting up this situation where, is it the president's fault every time there's a fire because conditions are dry, every time there's a hurricane?

When he's president, he -- he will say it's not his fault, but it just kind of sets that up, that expectation up that, oh, well, the president has something to do with this or could have prevented this, which is not necessarily the case.

HUNT: Right.

All right. Panel will be back a little bit later on in this hour.

But straight ahead on CNN THIS MORNING, final trip canceled. President Biden nixes his last presidential visit abroad. We'll talk about that.

Plus, working through the night. Firefighters continuing to battle the flames in California. Our breaking news coverage continues next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[06:26:11]

HUNT: All right. We're back now with our top story this morning.

The Palisades Fire now officially the most destructive on record for Los Angeles. Over 1,000 structures gone with more in the fire's path. The actor James Woods, sharing video of the Palisades Fire closing in

on his home. He and his wife escaped. A devastated Woods telling CNN he's not sure he'll have a home to go back to.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JAMES WOODS, ACTOR: Sara was on with her 8-year-old niece last night, and she came out.

I'm sorry. Just, you know, one day you're swimming in the pool, and the next day, it's all gone.

But yes, she came out with her little Yeti piggy bank for us to rebuild our house.

I'm sorry. I'm usually -- I thought -- I thought -- I thought I would be stronger than this. I thought I'd be stronger than this. But you know.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HUNT: CNN's Leigh Waldman has been on the ground reporting for us there. Let's watch.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

LEIGH WALDMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Here in the Pacific Palisades, we've watched as building after building continues to go up in flames.

This one, the latest one we've watched as the building itself seems to be collapsing in on itself, throwing embers across the street as wind gusts pick up those flames and throw those embers across the street.

Here in L.A. County, now six wildfires are burning. This is stretching resources of already exhausted fire crews incredibly thin. As we hear explosions off in the distance, as more buildings like this one are engulfed in flames.

WALDMAN (voice-over): People who live near the Eaton Fire burning in Altadena are worried their homes are gone. The deadly blaze ballooned to more than 10,000 acres overnight and is now threatening about 13,000 buildings.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It's been moving throughout the night. It was pretty -- it was clear last night. When I came back this morning, the fire and the wind moving this way.

WALDMAN (voice-over): The Palisades Fire is now over 15,800 acres and has already destroyed at least 1,000 structures, making it the most destructive ever in Los Angeles County, according to CAL FIRE.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: My neighborhood is entirely burned down. My elementary school is probably burnt down. My high school just burnt down, and my middle school might burn down.

WALDMAN (voice-over): Tens of thousands of people are under evacuation orders.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: First thing is rescue operations. We want you out. Houses can be replaced, all that. Lives cannot.

WALDMAN (voice-over): Thursday is expected to see critical fire danger stretching from Santa Barbara to San Diego. The White House says President Joe Biden has officially approved a major disaster declaration for California, unlocking federal resources for survivors.

AUROUX: I mean, it is heartbreaking. We lost everything. And not only us, everyone around us. When I was standing in my front yard, I was looking at this giant red glowing fire that was just enveloping everything. And it was just heart-wrenching.

WALDMAN: Fire crews from other states will be coming here to assist with the already stretched resources that we're seeing across California.

In the Pacific Palisades, I'm Leigh Waldman reporting.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

HUNT: Our thanks to Leigh for that report.

After the break here on CNN THIS MORNING, renaming the Gulf of Mexico? Add that to the list of things Donald Trump wants to do when he takes office. Republican congressman Zach Nunn joins us next to discuss.

Plus, other states now sending backup to help fire crews stretched thin in Southern California.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It was a very, very long night, similar to today. Lack of resources, lack of water. You can't prepare enough for something like this. It's impossible.

(END VIDEO CLIP)