Timber harvests in national forests began to tank in 1990 - from an average of almost 10 billion board feet a year (for thirty years) to today’s 2 billion.
You know who was President in 1990? - George W Bush.
The feds as well as the states have been disasters.
https://www.fs.fed.us/forestmanagement/products/cut-sold/index.shtml
The arsonists should be burned at the stake but the size of the losses is due to three things:
1. The (un)holy grail of absolute fire suppression
2. Total lack of proper forest management by all parties
3. Human encroachment into the resulting hazardous overgrowth and deadwood environments.
In other words, “Stupid hurts”.
Well, actually, not that it matters much, It was George Herbert Walker Bush (Daddy Bush).
Would you rather it had been Ross Perot, or maybe William Jefferson Clinton and "Co-President" Hillary Rodham Clinton... WAIT! It was those last two!!!