Fire-ravaged California is grappling with the threat of floods, mudslides, and toxic ash this week as the state’s embattled leaders face more questions about their decision to dismantle an emergency response volunteer firefighting unit—and now attempt to erase its existence.
In the latest twist, the website and social media accounts for the firefighting unit, known as Team Blaze, vanished in the days after The Daily Signal was first to report on the controversial decision by a high-ranking military appointee of California Gov. Gavin Newsom.
Shortly after Newsom appointed Matthew Beevers as adjutant general of the California Military Department in July 2022, Beevers decommissioned the Emergency Response Command, a highly trained joint command consisting of two volunteer units, according to Maj. Gen. Jay Coggan, retired commanding general of the California State…
