Los Angeles, 9 January 2025- President Joe Biden will no longer travel to Italy this week as scheduled, the White House announced late Wednesday, canceling the trip in the final days of his presidency to monitor raging wildfires across the Los Angeles area.
“After returning this evening from Los Angeles, where earlier today he had met with police, fire and emergency personnel fighting the historic fires raging in the area and approved a Major Disaster declaration for California, President Biden made the decision to cancel his upcoming trip to Italy to remain focused on directing the full federal response in the days ahead,” White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said in a statement.
Biden, was also in Los Angeles for the birth of his great-grandchild
Authorities issued evacuation orders late Wednesday in response to a brushfire in the Hollywood Hills near Runyon Canyon, and six wind-driven fires burning throughout Los Angeles Region were still mostly uncontrolled at the time of the White House announcement.
California Gov. Gavin Newsom told CNN that as of Wednesday night, there were “five dead, likely more.”
Biden was scheduled to travel to Rome on Thursday, where the White House said earlier in the day that he’d meet with Pope Francis, Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, and Italian President Sergio Mattarella.
During a virtual gaggle previewing the trip on Wednesday, national security spokesperson John Kirby informed reporters that Biden had intended “to discuss efforts to advance peace around the world, including Pope Francis’ efforts to ease suffering for vulnerable communities.”
Along with thanking Meloni for her leadership as G7 president and announcing a new deal that will see the G7 provide $50 billion in loans to Ukraine, Kirby stated that he was expected to “highlight the close and enduring bilateral relationship” during his meeting with the leaders of Italy.
It’s not the first time domestic issues have forced the president to upend foreign travel. In October, Biden postponed a scheduled trip to Germany and Angola as Hurricane Milton made landfall.
Biden touted the federal response and vowed that the government was “prepared to do anything and everything as long as it takes to contain these fires and help reconstruct, make sure we get to normal.”
“It’s going to be a hell of a long way, it’s going to take time, but the federal government is here to stay as long as you need it and everything you need,” Biden, who was also in Los Angeles for the birth of his great-grandchild, said.