In a tarmac moment, Trump declared that “forest management” was the most important part in handing the wildfires in California, Washington and Oregon (which he mispronounced).
Asked if he thought “forest management” AND climate change could be responsible for the massive wildfires, Trump responded saying that “I think something’s possible. Anything’s possible… When trees fall down, after a short period of time, about 18 months, they become very dry, they become matchsticks,” Trump said in a lesson on “forest management.” He also noted that when leaves fall down and dry out, they become flammable.
Trump said that the nations of Finland and Austria also have forests, but they don’t have forest fire problems. It should be noted that Finland is 20% smaller than California, and Austria is 1/5th the size of the state. (Note that it is unclear if Trump said “Austria” or “Australia,” which would be sad given that Australia has been devastated by wildfires in the last two years)
Trump said he spoke to the head of unspecified European nation who told him, “We consider ourselves a forest nation,” but they don’t have “trees that explode” the way California does.