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Politicizing wildfire recovery would hurt all of the West

There hasn’t been much snow yet this winter. I don’t know about everyone else, but I’m watching the LA fires and worrying about what Durango’s summer will be like.

Congress is considering attaching strings to LA wildfire recovery bills. I hope that Jeff Hurd recognizes that he represents a huge, fire-prone district in a blue state, and that a fast-moving fire could devastate Durango (or Pagosa, or Dolores, or so many other towns in his district) as easily as fires burned parts of LA. And he is not the only Republican whose district could be hurt if Congress decides to use wildfires to start extorting concessions from blue state politicians.

I hope Rep. Hurd will work with representatives from rural parts of Washington, Oregon and California to pass a clean, no-strings-attached wildfire recovery bill and ensure that the West is not hurt by political games.

Wildfire happens whenever there is drought, things to burn, a spark (even from something like a chain saw) and winds to drive the fire (including into towns and cities). It doesn’t care which party runs a state. Neither should Congress, when it votes to support recovery from those fires.

Kim Hannula

Durango