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Can Trump Bring New Water to Southern California?

Klamath River ends at the Pacific Ocean in Northern California. The Klamath River flows 257 miles through Oregon and northern California, emptying into the Pacific Ocean in Klamath, California.

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By Aakansha Malia

September 16, 2024
5:42 pm
Los Angeles, CA

As the planet warms, California is already facing the brunt of global warming in the form of a severe water shortage. With drought and overuse draining the state’s streams and aquifers, California is haunted by promises made to generations of farmers and ranchers—promises of priority access to the West’s most precious resources. As the race for the U.S. Presidential election heats up, former U.S. President and current presidential candidate Donald Trump took a stand for California on September 14, vowing to bring water access to the drought-stricken state. Speaking at a press conference at his golf club near Los Angeles, Trump addressed not only water scarcity but also the unequal distribution of water. He stated that wealthy households in areas like Beverly Hills get “38 gallons of water to

As the planet warms, California is already facing the brunt of global warming in the form of a severe water shortage.

With drought and overuse draining the state’s streams and aquifers, California is haunted by promises made to generations of farmers and ranchers—promises of priority access to the West’s most precious resources.

As the race for the U.S. Presidential election heats up, former U.S. President and current presidential candidate Donald Trump took a stand for California on September 14, vowing to bring water access to the drought-stricken state.

Speaking at a press conference at his golf club near Los Angeles, Trump addressed not only water scarcity but also the unequal distribution of water.

He stated that wealthy households in areas like Beverly Hills get “38 gallons of water to use,” while some areas “have no water left to use at all.”

Trump went on to claim that the Golden State has as much as 1,000 acres of “barren and dead and dark” land for every acre of usable land, while houses in wealthy areas still receive small amounts of water.

Trump went on to blame the protection of the delta smelt, a small species of endangered fish living in the Sacramento–San Joaquin River Delta. He then accused Governor Gavin Newsom of the Democratic Party of blocking efforts during Trump’s previous term in the White House to ease protections for the smelt.

He added that resolving the massive water shortage and ending many wildfires could be as simple as “turning on the faucet,” directing water that flows aimlessly into the Pacific toward use in Los Angeles.

“You have so much water, and all those fields that are right now barren—the farmers would have all the water they needed,” Trump said. “You could revert water up into the hills, where you have all the dead forests… The land would be damp, and you’d stop many of these horrible fires that are costing billions and billions of dollars by the federal government.”

Trump then made a direct appeal to Californians, promising, “Vote for me, California. I’m going to give you safety, I’m going to give you a great border, and I’m going to give you more water than almost anybody has. The farmers are going to do great, and the fields will be more green.”

This is not the first time a Republican has pinpointed California’s water issues. Many leaders have long fought for more water to be directed toward agriculture, industry, and homes, while conservationists have sought to limit such actions. Trump has consistently argued that the state should stop allowing Sacramento River water to flow into the Pacific to protect the Sacramento Delta.

Despite recent high levels of precipitation, California has battled with water struggles for a long time. According to the California Department of Water Resources, the state’s groundwater basins “remain seriously depleted despite the wet winter and take longer to recover.” A report estimates that California’s water supply could be reduced by up to 23% in the next 20 years due to climate change.

This underscores the critical importance of modernizing the State Water Project and upgrading aging infrastructure to capture water supplies when available, ensuring California can deliver on the human right of access to water.