In a fresh round of attacks on Democrats for their attempts to contain the flames in Southern California, President-elect Donald Trump denounced opposition liberal leaders as "incompetent" observers of "one of the worst catastrophes in our Country's history" on Sunday.

Trump's Truth Social post is the most recent in a string of assaults on Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass and California Governor Gavin Newsom by the president-elect and his supporters. Democrats already have to deal with challenging questions from voters and other elected officials, including members of their own party and, more often, from one another.

However, Trump's and his supporters' broadsides, like those from billionaire Elon Musk, are laying the groundwork for clashes between the president-elect and liberal states and cities prior to his inauguration next week. Many of these attacks are false or based on false information. The tug-of-war reminds us of some of the delicate, high-stakes exchanges between Trump and leading Democrats in the early stages of the Covid-19 pandemic in 2020, when liberal-leaning state and city leaders frequently held back politically out of fear of upsetting the first Trump White House and postponing federal assistance.

Conflicts with Trump are nothing new for Newsom, but the crisis engulfing Los Angeles suddenly poses a distinct and pressing obstacle. In addition to expressing dissatisfaction with Trump's rhetoric, the governor, who is being considered as a possible 2028 presidential candidate, has invited him to visit and assess the damage "to meet with the Americans affected by these fires, see the devastation firsthand, and join me and others in thanking the heroic firefighters and first responders who are going to risk their lives."

The milder stance came after the California leader responded sharply to Trump's remarks in an interview with CNN's Anderson Cooper last week, sounding extremely irritated.

"People are actually running away. People have died. Schools were gone. Churches burned down, families were ripped apart," Newsom added. "This individual sought to politicize it."

"I have a lot of thoughts, and I know what I want to say," he said after pausing once more.

"I refuse to."

The "far left" is the target of Republicans.

In California, Republicans have been less reluctant to assign culpability, particularly to Bass, who was on an official visit in Ghana at the time of the first fire in the Pacific Palisades. Increasingly, they are attempting to use the catastrophe as leverage against Democrats, especially the governors of large, liberal-leaning states and towns.

The main thrust of the GOP opponents' argument is that Democrats were oblivious to the dangers of a devastating wildfire outbreak and unable to fight it because they were focused on promoting liberal ideological ideas. This assertion is typically made with little to no supporting evidence.

We are really being burned to the ground by California Democrats' far-left policies. Vote no more for candidates who refuse to implement sensible forest and water management policies. I'm furious. Last Monday, Trump's new "envoy for special missions," Richard Grenell, wrote on X, "You should be, too."

Musk retweeted the message, which has become something of a rallying cry for many national Republicans, particularly Trump's most combative MAGA allies, who have attacked Bass and Newsom over land and water management issues, frequently fabricating or exaggerating negative details of a variety of bureaucratic and scientific procedures.

Both Bass and Newsom are obviously incensed by the criticism and eager to respond, but they also understand that in just over a week, they will have to rely on the president-elect for both short-term and long-term money for what is expected to be a years-long reconstruction project.

Fox News and other consistently pro-Trump media have also been affected by the problem.

During an interview on the network on Sunday morning, vice president-elect JD Vance was directly asked if the incoming administration would deny aid to California, a state that Kamala Harris won by more than 20 percentage points, or about 3.2 million votes, in the 2024 presidential election.

Vance responded, turning to criticize President Joe Biden's statement, "President Trump cares about all Americans." "Trump serves as the president for all Americans, and I believe he wants FEMA and other federal responses to be far better and more aware of what's happening on the ground."

In recent news briefings with municipal officials, the uncertainty surrounding Trump's plans for Los Angeles after he comes to office in eight days has been discussed. Bass stated on Sunday that although she hasn't had direct conversations with the president-elect, she has had positive interactions with a few members of his new government.

"I accepted the invitation to visit Los Angeles extended to the next president. I joined the governor and the supervisor. Yesterday, I had a direct conversation with the incoming government," Bass stated. "It was a wise decision."

According to officials, the wind-driven firestorms that are tearing through historic neighborhoods along the ocean, the Hollywood Hills, and communities farther inland in the San Gabriel Valley, such as Altadena and Pasadena, have destroyed homes, forced over 100,000 Angelenos to evacuate, and killed 24 people as of Sunday. Bass said Friday that the Federal Emergency Management Agency has promised to reimburse every penny of the city's firefighting costs. Disaster relief is being sent into the area from Washington, DC, where Biden is still after postponing a trip to Italy.

Democrats quarrel while a Republican from LA takes center stage.

A little-known California Republican who lives outside of Los Angeles has become possibly the most skilled communicator, both to the public and to Trump, of anyone posing for the media and TV cameras every few hours as Democrats try to find a middle ground with Trump.

Some in the city have applauded Republican Los Angeles County Supervisor Kathryn Barger for her updates and dispatches on local and national news programs. She did what many Democrats are afraid to do on Saturday: she used nice, congrats to frame Trump's call for assistance.

Barger first commended Trump in a letter for his handling of the 2018 Woolsey Fire, which occurred in the Santa Monica region during his first term. Barger successfully outlined the political benefits of interacting with local leaders after sending a “formal invitation” for Trump to travel to the impacted neighborhoods of Los Angeles.

"By accepting this invitation, Mr. President-Elect, you will join us in expressing gratitude to our brave first responders who have put their lives in danger to save others and in supporting our citizens," she wrote. Additionally, as our President, we would like you to support the residents of Los Angeles County as we chart our rebuilding path. Your presence would be much valued and felt.

Barger made a promise to the fire-affected Angelenos a day after delivering the letter.

"With you, I'm going to see this through," Barger declared during a press conference. "We will continue to combat current fires with all of our resources. We will provide the best possible care for displaced residents while attending to their housing, welfare, medical, and financial requirements.

Democrats have sent similar condolences to the city and the fire victims, but in some instances—most notably in the past 48 hours—their words have been overwhelmed by flimsy attempts to absolve themselves of responsibility for the government's response's inadequacies.

In a Saturday interview with the liberal "Pod Save America," Newsom blamed local authorities for not providing him with "straight answers" about the matter right away.

"As California's governor, I would like to know the response. "What happened?" is a question I have, although I'm not sure how many others asked on my own team. "Newsom said."

"I'll be honest with you, I wasn't getting straight answers," he continued.

In an effort to help fire victims recover more quickly, Newsom signed an executive order on Sunday that suspended certain criteria for construction under state environmental regulations.

When it comes to environmental stewardship, California is at the top of the country. Newsom assured NBC News that regulatory red tape will not impede the recovery process, saying, "I'm not going to give that up, but one thing I won't give into is delay."

Firefighting efforts in the Pacific Palisades have been further hampered by allegations that the Santa Ynez Reservoir was empty when the wildfires first started, prompting the governor to call for an independent probe into issues with the local water supply.

In an interview with ABC News on Sunday, California Senator Adam Schiff supported the plan and recommended that the state "go further" and "do an independent commission review of all of this."