Fires on the west coast are burning across an incredible amount of land, burning at an incredible scale.

Smoke has dimmed the sun in cities as far as 2,000 miles away.

Dozens of people have lost their lives. Many more have lost their belongings and their homes.

The scale, the intensity and the frequency of wildfires have grown more alarming in recent years.

It's clear, according to fire experts, that the U.S. needs a new strategy to cope with this escalating threat.

But exactly what that strategy should be is tricky to figure out.

President Trump has said forest management is the single solution to combating fires out west.

Trees fall down after a short period of time, about 18 months, they become very dry.

They become really like a matchstick and they get up, you know, there's no more water pouring through.

And they become very, very, they just explode. They can explode.

Also leaves. When you have years of leaves, dried leaves on the ground, it just sets it up.

It's really a fuel for a fire. So they have to do something about it.

He's repeatedly shrugged off warnings that human caused climate change contributes to turning western states into Tinder boxes.

Trump's view is contrary to scientific consensus on this issue.

The president's rhetoric seems to reflect a lack of agreement at the federal level around how to solve this fire problem.

But how much does Trump's refusal to acknowledge men made climate change affect the country's wildfire management and response plans?

For that matter, how much of forest management falls on the states versus the federal government?

Ultimately, who's responsible for preventing these wildfires from burning out of control?

This is Ken. He do that. A podcast that explores the powers and limitations of the American presidency. I'm Allison Michaels.

The need from the states from the federal government in terms of recovery is going to continue to stack up that segment Kim White House reporter at the Washington Post.

She's been closely covering Trump's response to the wildfires later in the show.

I talk to a fire and climate expert about where responsibility lies for fire mitigation and disaster response.

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