According to The Washington Free Beacon, a Lincoln Project donor was arrested for allegations of starting a massive fire in Yosemite National Park.
The blaze, which occurred in July 2022, destroyed 100+ homes and injured several firefighters.
At the time, politicians said climate change caused the fire.
So, arson is the cause of climate change?
Lincoln Project donor committed arson. https://t.co/ekzICr8c5n
— Cernovich (@Cernovich) June 19, 2023
The Guardian wrote in July 2022:
The governor of California, Gavin Newsom, declared a state of emergency for an area close to Yosemite national park, mobilizing thousands to tackle a wildfire that exploded on Friday, grew to more than 15,600 acres and on Sunday remained entirely uncontained.
Discussing the ferocity and fast-growing nature of the blaze, the former vice-president Al Gore, long a campaigner for action on the climate crisis, warned: “The survival of our civilization is at stake.”
The US climate envoy, John Kerry, told the BBC the White House was still considering announcing a climate emergency, adding that Joe Biden was prepared to use “every tool available to him” to tackle climate change, including executive orders.
The fire in Mariposa county, California, named the Oak fire, represented a dangerous new front in the fight against wildfires in the western US. The region has already seen blazes accelerated by a long drought – a terrible forewarning of the intensifying effects of the climate crisis.
However, authorities arrested Edward Fredrick Wackerman of Mariposa, California Friday.
Wackerman faces several charges, including aggravated arson, according to the Free Beacon.
From The Washington Free Beacon:
By the numbers: The arson suspect has donated $1,775 to Democratic candidates and committees since 2020, government records show, including a $1,000 donation to Tim Ryan’s failed U.S. Senate campaign in 2022 and $400 to the Lincoln Project, a disgraced liberal super PAC.
The so-called Oak Fire destroyed 127 homes and 66 outbuildings. Roughly 6,000 people were forced to evacuate as the inferno torched 30 square miles of land and smoke from the fire drifted more than 200 miles into parts of Nevada and the San Francisco Bay Area.
What they’re saying: “Ed Wackerman is facing several felony charges, including aggravated arson. These charges carry serious legal consequences and the District Attorney is committed to ensuring a fair trial and upholding justice,” Mariposa County District Attorney Walter Wall said in a statement. Authorities did not say how Wackerman is believed to have started the fire.
Per the FEC:
KCRA 3 reports:
Transcript:
AND IN MARIPOSA COUNTY, A 71 YEAR OLD MAN HAS BEEN ARRESTED, ACCUSED OF STARTING LAST YEAR’S OAK FIRE.
THE FIRE CONSUMED THOUSANDS OF ACRES AND HUNDREDS OF HOMES AFTER AN EXTENSIVE INVESTIGATION INVOLVING STATE AND FEDERAL AGENCIES.
EDWARD WACKERMAN WAS TAKEN INTO CUSTODY ON FRIDAY.
NICK GARCIA HAS THOSE DETAILS ABOUT WHY.
WHY DID HE DO IT?
WHY DID HE FEEL HE HAD TO DO THAT AND DESTROY SO MANY PEOPLE’S LIVES?
IT’S SAD.
THE ARREST OF 71 YEAR OLD EDWARD WACKERMAN HAS LEFT PEOPLE IN MARIPOSA WITH QUESTIONS.
CAL FIRE AND THE MARIPOSA COUNTY DISTRICT ATTORNEY WILL HOLD A PRESS CONFERENCE NEXT WEEK TO ANSWER SOME OF THOSE QUESTIONS.
MEANWHILE, WE FOUND SOME ANSWERS ONLINE THIS GO-FUND-ME PAGE WAS CREATED LAST AUGUST ON BEHALF OF ED WACKERMAN BY ONE OF HIS NEIGHBORS.
IT SAYS WACKERMAN WAS A FIREFIGHTER FOR 12 YEARS AND WAS RAISING MONEY TO HELP HIM REPLACE HIS WATER SYSTEM, WHICH WAS DESTROYED BY THE OAK FIRE.
HE’S ACCUSED OF SETTING TO DELIBERATELY START AND SET THAT FIRE IS ABSOLUTELY APPALLING.
AND WHAT’S WORSE IS I THINK I’VE ACTUALLY SEEN AROUND THE TOWN.
THE OAK FIRE CHARRED MORE THAN 19,000 ACRES AND DESTROYED 127 HOMES AND MORE THAN 60 OTHER BUILDINGS.
JEREMY OGLEBY’S HOUSE WAS ONE OF THEM.
JUST IT IS WHAT IT IS.
I JUST TAKE IT DAY BY DAY.
HE SAYS HE’S NOT SURE HOW TO FEEL ABOUT THE ARREST OF WACKERMAN.
WHILE IT MAY BRING SOME SORT OF CLOSURE, FOR SOME IT WON’T BRING BACK HIS HOME.
A PRETTY DEVASTATED, YOU KNOW, EVERYTHING WAS JUST A BIG MEMORY.OH, THIS WAS HERE.
THE COUCH WAS HERE.
TV WAS THERE, DRESSER AND EVERYTHING ELSE.
THAT’S WHERE IT WAS.
OGLEBY, LIKE MANY OF THE 126 OTHER FAMILIES WHO LOST THEIR HOMES, IS STILL WORKING TO REBUILD IT.
THAT WAS NICK GARCIA REPORTING FOR US TONIGHT.
WACKERMAN IS CHARGED WITH MULTIPLE FELONIES, INCLUDING AGGRAVATED ARSON.
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