The real reason Donald Trump is going to war with California

| 1:30 pm EDT September 18, 2019
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California is on Donald Trump’s mind a lot lately. As with everything else that Trump does, the motivation is always based on his needs rather than on a strong, consistent policy. Lining his pockets and vengeance are two reliable motivators. Trump’s back and forth battle with California Governor Gavin Newsom is the likely spark to the EPA’s plan to revoke the state’s power to limit vehicle emissions. Trump has been on a big government mission to roll back environmental regulations.

California’s resistance to Trump’s rollbacks of Obama-era rules to push the development of fuel-efficient cars is part of the state’s goals to fight climate change. Trump is no stranger to fights with local government, here or abroad. But with California, it has become personal, with Newsom calling the move a “vendetta.” The state is vowing to fight the EPA.

California is also on Trump’s radar in terms of the crisis of homelessness. Like all the other large urban centers led by Democrats, Trump has mentioned the crisis of the poor. Seemingly out of the blue, the issue of the homeless has become a Trump talking point. Is there some sudden desire to help these people? Is he planning some cages to house the homeless? At first it wasn’t clear, but as usual, Trump’s big mouth betrayed his true intentions. As with everything else Trump does, his concern for the homeless is actually a concern for his bottom line.

Initially, Trump blamed Democrats for the problem, which started only two years ago, according to him. Republicans must take care of their own, he claimed. The Trump administration has been planning a crackdown on the homeless camps in California, and planned to determine if unused government facilities could be used to house the homeless, though they have not started “rounding up people yet.” The White House news pool has reported that Trump stated that “we can’t let Los Angeles, San Francisco and numerous other cities destroy themselves by allowing what’s happening.”

And then he betrayed himself by revealing his true motivator: speaking to tenants, foreign tenants who pay a great deal of money to rent or buy apartments in big cities. What a shock. Trump isn’t concerned about the poor; he is concerned about his rental properties.