Trump: Military Has 'Turned on the Water' in Calif., State Denies Claim

President Donald Trump declared on social media that the military has entered California and "turned on the water" from the Pacific Northwest, but state officials are denying his claims.

"The United States Military just entered the Great State of California and, under Emergency Powers, TURNED ON THE WATER flowing abundantly from the Pacific Northwest, and beyond," Trump wrote on his Truth Social page Monday night. "The days of putting a Fake Environmental argument, over the PEOPLE, are OVER. Enjoy the water, California!!!"

The California Department of Water Resources, however, responded on X that the "military did not enter California," reports The Los Angeles Times.

"The federal government restarted federal water pumps after they were offline for maintenance for three days," the agency said. "State water supplies in Southern California remain plentiful."

Last week Trump signed an executive order that directed federal agencies to "maximize" water deliveries in California and to "override" state policies if needed.

Trump has accused Gov. Gavin Newsom of holding back water supplies in California, thus impeding the state's response to the wildfires in Los Angeles. Last Friday, he said he wants to place conditions on disaster aid, calling for tightening voter requirements while increasing water supplies from Northern California, reports Politico.

Newsom and other state officials deny Trump's claims and say there is plenty of water in Southern California.

"Water supply has not hindered firefighting efforts," the Association of California Water Agencies said in a statement Monday, reports The Times. "Reservoirs in California are at or above average storage levels for this time of year, thanks in part to years of proactive water management."

Trump's order calls for an increase in the amount of water being pumped from the Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta and delivering more water through the federal Central Valley Projects.

The project is one of two systems of dams, aqueducts, and pumping facilities that send water from the Delta south. Trump in his order directed the federal Bureau of Reclamation to make sure that California agencies "do not interfere" with the water supply.

He also called on the federal government to throw out rules established by former President Joe Biden's administration in December to establish rules for operating the Central Valley Project and the State Water Project, the state's other water delivery system in the Central Valley.

The CVP ends, however, in the southern San Joaquin Valley near Bakersfield and does not reach Southern California's urban areas, reports The Times.

The project sends water from the Delta to California's farmlands.

Trump also indicated that he wants the water plan adopted during his first term in office, which the state challenged in court under the argument that it did not provide protections for several endangered species of fish.