The California Department of Water Resources on Tuesday rejected President Donald Trump’s claim that the U.S. military “turned on the water” supply in the state.
In a statement on X, formerly Twitter, the department said the military hasn’t entered the state.
“The federal government restarted federal water pumps after they were offline for maintenance for three days,” the post states. “State water supplies in Southern California remain plentiful.”
Trump had previously claimed that the military “under Emergency Powers, TURNED ON THE WATER flowing abundantly from the Pacific Northwest, and beyond.”
“The days of putting a Fake Environmental argument, over the PEOPLE, are OVER,” he wrote on his Truth Social platform. “Enjoy the water, California!!!”
Trump has continued to make misleading statements about California’s water supply, attacking Democratic lawmakers in the state, including Gov. Gavin Newsom.
The state has contested Trump’s assertions, noting that there is no issue with the volume of water available. While some fire hydrants ran dry while firefighters were combatting the Palisades fire, officials maintained that this was due to the damaging effects the fire had on the system.
Yet Trump said providing disaster federal aid for California would also hinge upon the state addressing the purported issue.
“I want the water to be released, and they’re going to get a lot of help from the U.S.,” Trump said Friday.
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On that day, he also signed an executive order overriding what he described as “disastrous California policies.” He instructed Cabinet officials, including the defense secretary and the attorney general to ensure Southern California has adequate water resources.
“This tragedy affects the entire Nation, so it is in the Nation’s interest to ensure that California has what it needs to prevent and fight these fires and others in the future,” the order states. “Therefore, it is the policy of the United States to provide Southern California with necessary water resources, notwithstanding actively harmful State or local policies.”