California has suffered a devastating loss. Lives, properties, memories, all up in smoke. Republicans wasted no time blaming men (Democratic ones, of course) for this climate change-fueled act of God. Predictably, Republicans from red states that take huge amounts of money from the federal government, want to use fire relief as a cudgel to force California to change its policies to align with MAGA thinking. The irony is that California contributed eighty-billion dollars to the U.S. Treasury, meaning that it funds places like Kentucky, West Virginia, Mississippi, and Louisiana—the very places that would impose their will on the Golden State. Today’s commentary takes a look. I hope you’ll listen.