As fires burn across the state, Trump’s illegal Guard deployment is already leaving firefighting crews short-staffed

What you need to know: President Trump's illegal militarization of Los Angeles has already left crews fighting fires across the state short-staffed.

SACRAMENTO - As multiple fires burn across the state today, a critical firefighting resource is short-staffed due to President Trump's illegal federalization of California's National Guard troops.

CAL FIRE crews responding to the Monte Fire in San Diego have had to fill in gaps left by an understaffed California National Guard (CalGuard) Joint Task Force Rattlesnake team.

Task Force Rattlesnake is made up of over 300 California National Guard members, who work at the direction of CAL FIRE to help fight and prevent fires. More than half of that team has been diverted to Los Angeles as part of President Trump's illegal federalization of the Guard.

Thanks to recent historic investments, CAL FIRE has been able to step up with robust resources to protect communities but Task Force Rattlesnake's understaffing and recent federal cuts create unnecessary strain.

"We're actively seeing the dangerous results of pulling the National Guard's Task Force Rattlesnake off of critical firefighting missions. Thanks to our investments, our CAL FIRE crews are stepping in to help fill the gaps and protect communities - but know this: Donald Trump is endangering Californians because of his reckless and authoritarian takeover of our National Guard."

Governor Gavin Newsom