Politics
California firefighting aircraft stymied by U.S. Forest Service policy, local chiefs say
An aerial firefighting task force has been thwarted — and sometimes grounded — by a new interpretation of a U.S. Forest Service policy that prohibits contractors from providing flight supervision over federal lands, according to Southern California fire chiefs.
“I don’t understand why they’ve chosen this time to reinterpret this longstanding procedure,” said Los Angeles County Fire Chief Anthony Marrone. “Why are they moving the goalposts now, during fire season? The timing couldn’t be worse.”
The dispute is the latest to have local fire authorities at odds with the Forest Service amid a punishing season that’s seen more than a million acres of land burn across the state. Some county chiefs have also spoken out about Forest Service staffing shortages they say resulted in delayed federal responses to recent fires, including the Airport fire that destroyed homes in Orange and Riverside counties.
Orange County Fire Authority Chief Brian Fennessy has written to Congress requesting an investigation into the issue.
“This policy application defies common sense at a time when we all know wildfire is, if not the worst threat to public safety in the state of California and throughout the West, pretty close to the top,” he said.
The Forest Service said the policy is a longstanding business rule that applies to aviation operations nationwide. “We had a lack of clarity on the policy, so some people were using it inappropriately,” said Adrienne Freeman, an agency spokesperson.
At the heart of the dispute is the Quick Reaction Force, a 24/7 aerial task force staffed by the fire departments of Los Angeles, Orange and Ventura counties. Its fleet consists of three night-flying helitankers, a mobile base that can mix 18,000 gallons of retardant per hour and an intelligence helicopter that is typically staffed by pilots under contract with the Orange County Fire Authority who manage the airspace and tell the other helicopters where to make drops.
The task force has been operating for several years without issue. But in July, the local agencies received word from the Forest Service that contractors could no longer provide aerial supervision over fires burning on federal land. When the QRF is deployed to these fires, it generally must be overseen by an aerial supervisor who is an agency employee.
The Forest Service has 11 aircraft capable of performing this supervision in California, but only one — an airplane — can do so at night, Freeman said. That plane is at times unavailable because it’s already deployed, has logged too many flight hours, needs to refuel or requires repairs or maintenance.
“As a result of that, we’ve had to pull off of some fires that were threatening communities,” Fennessy said.
For instance, as the task force fought the Bridge fire the afternoon of Sept. 11, the Forest Service airplane supervising the effort, AA-52, had to return to base, according to Fennessy and a written statement provided by Ken Craw, an aerial supervisor who was flying Copter-76 under contract with the Orange County Fire Authority.
Rather than call in Copter-76 to relieve the plane as supervisor, all air operations — six helicopters and two water scoping air tankers — were shut down until another Forest Service plane could arrive a short time later, Craw wrote.
“In my opinion the choice of AA-52 to shut down the aerial firefighting operations instead of using Copter-76 put the public and firefighters at risk, and reduced the efficiency of the efforts to contain the Bridge Fire,” he wrote.
A similar situation resulted in a two-hour delay in QRF helicopters dropping retardant on the Fork fire in the Angeles National Forest on July 19, Fennessy said. Helicopters also were released from the Borel fire in the Sequoia National Forest the night of July 28, even though they had hours of flight time left, he said.
Fennessy and other Southern California fire chiefs have met and exchanged letters with Region 5 Director Jaimie Gamboa, sharing their concerns.
The requirement that an agency employee supervise night operations is impractical when that employee is flying a plane, which circles thousands of feet above helicopters and has limited visibility into what’s going on below, some of the county chiefs said.
“The helicopter coordinator position is more beneficial during nighttime helicopter operations than a fixed-wing aerial supervision platform that’s way too high above the fire,” said Marrone, who was previously in charge of the county’s air operations.
Robert Garcia, fire chief of the Angeles National Forest, has called on the QRF many times, as he has just one night-flying helicopter — the Forest Service’s only night-flying helicopter in the nation, he said.
Garcia said the Forest Service plane can provide adequate nighttime supervision to helicopters because it has technology on board to monitor the effectiveness of drops.
Still, he said, he’s expressed concerns about the policy interpretation to others in the Forest Service because of his forest’s reliance on the QRF intelligence helicopter to provide relief when the Forest Service plane is unavailable.
“I think it’s worth taking a hard look at this policy, because the QRF is really, to my knowledge, a singular example of this particular scenario,” he said. “But the consequences are high.”
The Forest Service may deviate from the policy when it’s in a unified command, or if there’s imminent threat to life or property, he said. Garcia has done so at least two or three times since July, enabling him to use the QRF helicopter for aerial supervision. Such supervision is needed only if more than two aircraft are flying over a fire, he added.
Garcia acknowledged that confusion over the new policy interpretation has at times resulted in some delays in decision-making, but said that hasn’t affected the outcome of any fires in Angeles National Forest. The probability of success in keeping the Bridge fire small was low from the start because of hot, dry conditions and steep, rugged terrain that hadn’t burned in more than 100 years, and the Fork fire was contained relatively quickly at 301 acres, he said.
The California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection also prohibits the use of contractors as aerial supervisors, a policy that was formalized this year but was in practice for a couple years before that, said Nick Schuler, deputy director of communications for Cal Fire.
But that hasn’t posed as much of an issue to the QRF because Cal Fire has agreements with Los Angeles, Orange and Ventura counties for them to provide initial attack fire suppression in many areas where the task force does its night flying work, Fennessy said. As a result, the counties dictate operations within those areas, he said.
The timing of the Forest Service’s change in policy interpretation has left him scratching his head. The contract pilots are “the best of the best,” with all the appropriate training and qualifications, and no one has raised safety concerns about them, Fennessy said.
He wonders whether the shift was retaliation for a 2022 60 Minutes episode in which he said the Forest Service was slow to use the QRF to fight the Caldor fire in Northern California and only greenlighted its use when he threatened to take the helicopters back home.
“It caused a lot of tension between the agencies — L.A., Ventura, Orange — and the Forest Service,” Fennessy said. “That’s the only thing I can think of because why now, years into this?”
Freeman of the Forest Service vigorously disputed that allegation. “No one gave that a thought, and we continue not to,” she said.
The Forest Service has been working to beef up its night flying operations, including by changing policy in Region 5 so that its employees can fly in contract aircraft to gain experience in nighttime aerial supervision, she said.
“We have worked incredibly hard to try to get to a place where we can utilize the QRF as well as all the resources in these counties,” she said. “This shouldn’t be about who has what. This is about trying to figure out ways to work together.”
Former President Trump will headline the National Rifle Association’s (NRA) Defend the 2nd event in Savannah, Georgia, Oct. 22, the organization announced Friday morning.
“This election is a pivotal one for America’s gun owners. Kamala Harris and her far-left allies have big plans to erode Second Amendment protections,” NRA Vice President and CEO Doug Hamlin said in a statement.
“Donald J. Trump has proven himself a fighter for Americans’ right to keep and bear arms. We are excited to have him speak at our Defend the 2nd event and to support his return to the White House in January.”
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Former President Trump speaks during the National Rifle Association Convention May 18, 2024, in Dallas. (AP Photo/LM Otero)
Earlier this year, the NRA endorsed Trump in his presidential campaign. Trump also spoke at the NRA’s convention in May.
The NRA has been ramping up its attacks on certain Democratic candidates who are softer on gun owners’ rights. Ohio is the second state the NRA Political Victory Fund has targeted this election cycle. Last month, the gun group launched a major radio campaign against vulnerable Democratic Sen. Jon Tester of Montana.
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Former President Trump speaks during the NRA ILA Leadership Forum at the National Rifle Association Annual Meeting in May. (Justin Sullivan/Getty Images)
“When it comes to preserving and strengthening our constitutional rights in America, the stakes could not be higher in this presidential election,” the NRA’s news release said. “No matter your reason for owning a firearm — whether for hunting, self-defense or just as an exercise of your constitutional right — law-abiding gun owners have a clear choice this fall if they hope to preserve their Second Amendment rights.”
RIPON, Wis. — As she turns up the volume on her efforts to court disgruntled Republicans in her battle with former President Trump for the White House, Vice President Harris on Thursday teamed up with the most visible anti-Trump Republican in the town that claims to be the birthplace of the GOP.
Harris campaigned in battleground Wisconsin with former Republican Rep. Liz Cheney, a one-time rising conservative star in the GOP who, in the wake of the Jan. 6, 2021, riot on the U.S. Capitol, has vowed to do everything she can to prevent Trump from returning to power.
“I have never voted for a Democrat, but this year I am proudly casting my vote for Vice President Kamala Harris,” Cheney told the audience as she formally endorsed the Democrat presidential nominee. “As a conservative, as a patriot, as a mother, as someone who reveres our Constitution, I am honored to join her in this urgent cause.”
Harris praised Cheney as a leader who “puts country above party and above self, a true patriot.”
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The campaign event took place in Ripon, Wisconsin, where a one-room schoolhouse was designated a national historic landmark due to its role in holding a series of meetings in 1854 that led to the formation of the Republican Party.
Cheney, the daughter of former Republican Vice President Dick Cheney, once rose within the ranks of House Republican leadership.
But she was the most high-profile of the 10 House Republicans who voted to impeach then-President Trump in early 2021 on a charge of inciting the deadly January 6th riot at the Capitol, which was waged by right-wing extremists and other Trump supporters who aimed to disrupt congressional certification of President Biden’s Electoral College victory in the 2020 election.
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The conservative lawmaker and defense hawk immediately came under verbal attack from Trump and his allies and was eventually ousted from her No. 3 House GOP leadership position.
Cheney, who has been vocal in emphasizing the importance of defending the nation’s democratic process and of putting country before party, was one of only two Republicans who served on a special select committee organized by House Democrats that investigated the riot at the Capitol.
Former Rep. Liz Cheney, R-Wyo., speaks at a campaign event for Democrat presidential nominee Vice President Harris in Ripon, Wis., on Oct. 3, 2024. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein)
In 2022, she lost the GOP congressional primary in Wyoming to Harriet Hageman, a candidate backed by Trump.
At a speaking event in early September at Duke University in swing state North Carolina, Cheney announced that she would vote for Harris in the presidential election. Cheney’s father also endorsed Harris.
Cheney on Thursday warned that “our republic faces a threat unlike any we have faced before: a former president who attempted to stay in power by unraveling the foundations of our republic.”
She argued that Trump “can never be trusted with power again” and emphasized that “in this election, putting patriotism ahead of partisanship is not an aspiration, it is our duty.”
“What January 6 shows us is there is not an ounce, not an ounce, of compassion in Donald Trump. He is petty. He is vindictive. He is cruel. And Donald Trump is not fit to lead this good and great nation,” Cheney said.
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Harris, speaking after Cheney, highlighted that “anyone who recklessly tramples on our democratic values as Donald Trump has, anyone who has actively and violently obstructed the will of the people and the peaceful transfer of power as Donald Trump has … must never again stand behind the seal of the president of the United States.”
And Harris also said that “I take seriously my pledge to be a president for all Americans.
Democrat presidential nominee Vice President Harris arrives at a campaign event with former Rep. Liz Cheney, R-Wyo., in Ripon, Wis., on Oct. 3, 2024. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein)
Cheney was not always a fan of Harris.
The Trump campaign on Thursday repeatedly pointed to a social media post by Cheney during the 2000 election in which she said, “@KamalaHarris has a more liberal voting record than Bernie Sanders and Elizabeth Warren. Her radical leftist views-raising taxes, banning gun sales, taxpayer $ for abortion & illegal immigrant health care, eliminating private health insurance-would be devastating for America.”
Trump, speaking with Fox News’ Bill Melugin during a rally in Michigan on Thursday, said Cheney was “terrible” and “a stupid war hawk. All she wants to do is shoot missiles at people.”
On Cheney’s backing of Harris, Trump said, “I think they hurt each other. I think they’re so bad, both of them.”
The Cheneys are part of a growing list of prominent Republicans who are supporting Harris.
Two other high-profile anti-Trump Republicans, former Rep. Adam Kinzinger of Illinois and former Georgia Lt. Gov. Geoff Duncan, had speaking roles at the Democratic National Convention, which was held six weeks ago in Chicago.
Former Republican Rep. Adam Kinzinger of Illinois speaks at the Democratic National Convention on Aug. 22, 2024, in Chicago. (Paul Steinhauser – Fox News )
And Harris is backed by more than 200 alumni who served in both Bush administrations or worked for the late Sen. John McCain and Sen. Mitt Romney, the 2008 and 2012 GOP presidential nominees, respectively. She’s also supported by more than 100 Republican former national security officials and other prominent Republicans.
Ripon is not the only town that claims to be the birthplace of the GOP. Exeter, New Hampshire, also has some bragging rites as it was the site of meetings in 1853 – a year ahead of the Ripon gatherings – by disenchanted political leaders who discussed the formation of a new party of Republicans.
But officials in Ripon said the group in Exeter never actually formed a political organization, or chose officials, as they did in Wisconsin.
Vice President Harris, the Democrat presidential nominee, campaigns with former GOP Rep. Liz Cheney in Ripon, Wis., the birthplace of the GOP, at an event on Oct. 3, 2024. (Fox News – Paul Steinhauser)
Wisconsin is one of seven crucial battleground states with razor-thin margins that decided Biden’s 2020 White House victory and are likely to determine if Harris or Trump wins the 2024 presidential election.
With less than five weeks until Election Day in November, Harris and Trump are locked in a margin-of-error race in the key swing states.
While Trump retains vast sway over the GOP, even a small sliver of Republicans supporting Harris could make an important impact in what will likely be a race within the margins in the battleground states.
Get the latest updates from the 2024 campaign trail, exclusive interviews and more at our Fox News Digital election hub.
With deepfake video and audio making their way into political campaigns, California enacted its toughest restrictions yet in September: a law prohibiting political ads within 120 days of an election that include deceptive, digitally generated or altered content unless the ads are labeled as “manipulated.”
On Wednesday, a federal judge temporarily blocked the law, saying it violated the 1st Amendment.
Other laws against deceptive campaign ads remain on the books in California, including one that requires candidates and political action committees to disclose when ads are using artificial intelligence to create or substantially alter content. But the preliminary injunction granted against Assembly Bill 2839 means that there will be no broad prohibition against individuals using artificial intelligence to clone a candidate’s image or voice and portraying them falsely without revealing that the images or words are fake.
The injunction was sought by Christopher Kohls, a conservative commentator who has created a number of deepfake videos satirizing Democrats, including the party’s presidential nominee, Vice President Kamala Harris. Gov. Gavin Newsom cited one of those videos — which showed clips of Harris while a deepfake version of her voice talked about being the “ultimate diversity hire” and professing both ignorance and incompetence — when he signed AB 2839, but the measure actually was introduced in February, long before Kohls’ Harris video went viral on X.
When asked on X about the ruling, Kohls said, “Freedom prevails! For now.”
Deepfake videos satirizing politicians, including one targeting Vice President Kamala Harris, have gone viral on social media.
(Darko Vojinovic / Associated Press)
The ruling by U.S. District Judge John A. Mendez illustrates the tension between efforts to protect against AI-powered fakery that could sway elections and the strong safeguards in the Bill of Rights for political speech.
In granting a preliminary injunction, Mendez wrote, “When political speech and electoral politics are at issue, the 1st Amendment has almost unequivocally dictated that courts allow speech to flourish rather than uphold the state’s attempt to suffocate it. … [M]ost of AB 2839 acts as a hammer instead of a scalpel, serving as a blunt tool that hinders humorous expression and unconstitutionally stifles the free and unfettered exchange of ideas which is so vital to American democratic debate.”
Countered Robert Weissman, co-president of Public Citizen, “The 1st Amendment should not tie our hands in addressing a serious, foreseeable, real threat to our democracy.”
Robert Weissman of the consumer advocacy organization Public Citizen says 20 other states have adopted laws similar to AB 2839, but there are key differences.
( Nick Wass / Associated Press)
Weissman said 20 states had adopted laws following the same core approach: requiring ads that use AI to manipulate content to be labeled as such. But AB 2839 had some unique elements that might have influenced Mendez’s thinking, Weissman said, including the requirement that the disclosure be displayed as large as the largest text seen in the ad.
In his ruling, Mendez noted that the 1st Amendment extends to false and misleading speech too. Even on a subject as important as safeguarding elections, he wrote, lawmakers can regulate expression only through the least restrictive means.
AB 2839 — which required political videos to continuously display the required disclosure about manipulation — did not use the least restrictive means to protect election integrity, Mendez wrote. A less restrictive approach would be “counter speech,” he wrote, although he did not explain what that would entail.
Responded Weissman, “Counter speech is not an adequate remedy.” The problem with deepfakes isn’t that they make false claims or insinuations about a candidate, he said; “the problem is that they are showing the candidate saying or doing something that in fact they didn’t.” The targeted candidates are left with the nearly impossible task of explaining that they didn’t actually do or say those things, he said, which is considerably harder than countering a false accusation uttered by an opponent or leveled by a political action committee.
For the challenges created by deepfake ads, requiring disclosure of the manipulation isn’t a perfect solution, he said. But it is the least restrictive remedy.
Liana Keesing of Issue One, a pro-democracy advocacy group, said the creation of deepfakes is not necessarily the problem. “What matters is the amplification of that false and deceptive content,” said Keesing, a campaign manager for the group.
Alix Fraser, director of tech reform for Issue One, said the most important thing lawmakers can do is address how tech platforms are designed. “What are the guardrails around that? There basically are none,” he said, adding, “That is the core problem as we see it.”
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