Disaster aid for California should not come with conditions, US House Democratic Caucus chair says

Scenes on Capitol Hill after U.S. President-elect Trump called on U.S. lawmakers to reject a stopgap bill to keep the government funded in Washington, U.S.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Democratic Caucus chair Pete Aguilar said on Tuesday he will not support conditions to disaster assistance for fire-ravaged California, as top Republicans in Congress consider making the aid conditional.

"House Democrats are willing to roll up our sleeves and to stay here as long as possible, to have the conversations, but at the end of the day, ultimately this will mean disaster assistance and that needs to be free from partisan conditions," Aguilar told reporters at a news conference.

(Reporting by Richard Cowan, Katharine Jackson)