WASHINGTON — The Trump administration announced on Thursday new oil drilling off the California and Florida coasts for the first time in decades, advancing a project that critics say could harm coastal communities and ecosystems, as President Donald Trump seeks to expand U.S. oil production.

Reaction was swift from local politicians, with 24th District Congressman Salud Carbajal, a longtime critic of new oil drilling on the Central Coast calling the move "reckless and dangerous."

“Despite clear opposition from public officials, environmental experts, and residents across our state, the administration has proposed to sell California’s coastline to Big Oil. Let me be clear: this is a reckless and dangerous move,” Carbajal said in a statement.

"The Central Coast knows the devastating conse

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