No, the US 'Military Did Not Enter California' Where They 'Turned on the Water'

Officials in California were forced to correct a fresh lie by U.S. President Donald Trump late Monday night after he falsely claimed in a social media post that the U.S. military had "just entered" the state "under emergency powers" and "turned on the water" he suggested had been turned off in relation to a "fake environmental argument."

Trump has been repeatedly critical of the management of California's management of water resources and environmental protection policies in the context of devastating fires that have ravaged southern portions of the state over the last month. The state's Department of Water Resources responded to the president's false claim, shortly after it was posted, with a clarification.

"The military did not enter California," the CA-DWR said. "The federal government restarted federal water pumps after they were offline for maintenance for three days. State water supplies in Southern California remain plentiful."

Over the weekend, Trump made public an executive order he claimed was designed to maximize water supplies, but critics said it's true purpose was to override state policies.

In a statement last week, the Association of California Water Agencies, the largest statewide coalition of public water agencies in the United States, pushed back against claims by Republican politicians that water management was the reason behind wildfire destruction in the Los Angeles area over recent weeks.

"Water supply has not hindered firefighting efforts," said the ACWA. "Reservoirs in California are at or above average storage levels for this time of year, thanks in part to years of proactive water management."

The agency, however, did cite the growing threat of the climate crisis, which it said was "increasing the frequency and intensity of climate-driven disasters, including storms, floods, droughts, and catastrophic wildfires."

That growing threat, explained the coalition, is why "its member agencies have advocated during the past two decades for further state and federal investment into advancing forest and headwaters health.”