Los Angeles is being singled out by the US president, who seems to love nothing more than to play the victim. Karen Bass, the mayor of Los Angeles, is evading blows and launching her own jabs and uppercuts, despite not being known for being a public brawler until recently.
She has dubbed Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem a liar for implying that Los Angeles was a city of chaos and accused President Trump of starting the protests he denounced.
She took the podium at City Hall, surrounded by representatives from industry, labor, and religion, and once again defended her territory before I spoke with her on Tuesday about what it’s like to deal with a president like this.
Bass criticized the U.S. Justice Department’s lawsuit accusing her and the City Council of impeding the fight against an illegal immigration epidemic, saying, “This is basically an all-out assault against Los Angeles.” Bass has denied that the city’s sanctuary city protections are illegal, calling it a political ploy.
Lopez, Steve
Born in California, Steve Lopez has been writing columns for the Los Angeles Times since 2001. He is a four-time Pulitzer finalist and has received over a dozen national journalism honors.
According to Bass, we are aware that Los Angeles is the test case. Because the individuals who are being kidnapped off city streets and driven through parking lots are our neighbors, family members, and Angelenos, we will not back down. I want to be clear. I refuse to be threatened.
Bass’s political career hasn’t been the finest this year. It started when a wildfire that broke out when Bass was out of town destroyed Pacific Palisades, and it went on to raise doubts about L.A.’s preparedness for disasters and raise issues about who would be in charge of the reconstruction.
It appeared that Bass would be in risk of losing the 2026 reelection contest when you factored in the ongoing tragedy of mass homelessness and the wrangling over a city budget shortfall.
After that, federal agents and military arrived, and raids started on June 6. Bass began to establish herself by defying convention.
According to Fernando Guerra, a professor of political science at Loyola Marymount University, she has an innate tendency to form coalitions and rule by consensus. However, she is recalibrating and stating that confrontation is the only thing this guy understands because it doesn’t work with him.
According to Sara Sadhwani, a politics professor at Pomona College, Trump is targeting the center of Los Angeles, and since the president’s actions are bringing many Angelenos together, there can be unforeseen repercussions. Sadhwani went on, “I believe that the great majority of people in Los Angeles, as well as throughout the state, can agree that what’s happening now is not OK and runs counter to our values.” Additionally, Bass is demonstrating exceptionally excellent leadership.
In a letter to Trump, even half a dozen Republican state lawmakers have joined the opposition, urging him to concentrate on apprehending real criminals rather than targeting those who are vital to the economy.
Republican politicians have long criticized federal overreach and promoted state sovereignty and local authority, as Sadhwani pointed out. Despite court claims that California and Los Angeles are protected under the 10th Amendment, the Trump Administration is determined to dictate how they should run their own affairs, most recently with regard to sanctuary provisions.
Bass withdrew to her office following Tuesday’s press conference and informed me that her activism in the 1970s was the beginning of her advocacy for immigration.
This is my core identity. Naturally, though, her ideas about immigration are also influenced by her blended family. I have other family members who are married to folks from Korea, Japan, and the Philippines, and my ex-husband was a Chicano activist. My family has Greek ancestry.
She claimed that her family resembles the UN General Assembly when they are all together.
And that’s how Los Angeles appears, with plots that cut across boundaries and the world.
Although you may assume that this would be a highly contentious subject in some cities, Bass stated, “I don’t see anybody [here] anywhere calling for deportations.”
I explained to her that I frequently get inquiries like, “What do you not understand about the word illegal?” or from others who contend that their family members waited and lawfully immigrated.
I told Bass that I understood such viewpoints. However, I am also aware of the backdrop, which includes people’s desire to provide their kids better chances and the allure of doing so in a country that depends on immigrant labor and tacitly condones it while hypocritically denouncing it.
Bass claimed that she seen the damage caused by the division of families near the border while she was a member of Congress. She encountered folks who had lived with trauma, insecurity, and a sense of abandonment.
The mayor stated that federal agents should, at the at least, identify themselves, obtain warrants, and cease pulling people up off the street at random. Recall that the first goal was to pursue the seasoned criminals. Where have the seasoned criminals gone to? Are they being pursued through Home Depot parking lots? Are these car wash workers? Not in my opinion.
In actuality, the great majority of people who are arrested in Los Angeles have no prior criminal history.
Bass wanted to raise a few concerns regarding the expense of the raids in Los Angeles by an administration that vowed to reduce government.
You consider the National Guard’s young men and women. They quit their jobs, their schools, and their families. For what, she inquired? It’s an abuse of the military. The Marines are no different. They are not prepared to handle any situation that arises on the street. In distant nations, they are trained to battle and kill the enemy.
Yvette Lechuga, Bass’s daughter and senior administrative assistant at Mount St. Mary’s University, called her urgently while we were speaking. According to Lechuga, a woman was arrested as she disembarked from a shuttle.
Lechuga stated, “It appears that ICE grabbed our student.”
Bass promised that her staff would investigate.
For a while, we were under a sort of lockdown, Lechuga added.
“Jesus Christ,” the mayor said.
Steve Lopez at La Times
