Once again, my beloved city is in the midst of civic eruptions. The clashes that began last Friday between federal ICE agents and local demonstrators reminded me of forest fires which start small but in heavy winds can spread alarmingly quickly.
When I saw how fast they spread over three days, with President Trump calling National Guard troops to the city, I couldn’t help but wonder: Did it have to get this far? Could wiser leadership have prevented such an explosive scenario?
Let’s go back to Friday, when the clashes began, with LA Mayor Karen Bass releasing this statement expressing her “deep anger” at the federal initiative:
“This morning, we received reports of federal immigration enforcement actions in multiple locations in Los Angeles,” Bass said in her statement. “As Mayor of a proud city of immigrants, who contribute to our city in so many ways, I am deeply angered by what has taken place. These tactics sow terror in our communities and disrupt basic principles of safety in our city. My Office is in close coordination with immigrant rights community organizations. We will not stand for this.”
Unfortunately, there was no mention of Bass reaching out to ICE Acting Director Todd Lyons, who released his own statement:
“Our brave officers were vastly outnumbered, as over 1,000 rioters surrounded and attacked a federal building. It took over two hours for the Los Angeles Police Department to respond, despite being called multiple times. The brave men and women of ICE were in Los Angeles arresting criminal illegal aliens including gang members, drug traffickers and those with a history of assault, cruelty to children, domestic violence, robbery, and smuggling.”
Regardless of which side of the political fence you’re on, it was bewildering to me that our mayor, the public face of our city, showed disregard for federal law, not even mentioning the usual boilerplate that “we’re working with federal authorities to reduce tensions and find lawful solutions.”
Instead, she piled on the emotions as if she were a partisan activist.
This crisis is not about the value of immigrants. I am one of those immigrants. Our country, our state, our city would be nothing without immigrants. That was never the point. The point is that under President Biden’s irresponsible border policy, millions of illegals entered the country, including criminals.
Simply put, enforcing federal law against federal crimes is a federal duty. It shouldn’t cause a mayor to feel “deep anger” or say she “won’t stand for it.” Those kind of reactions from leaders only emboldens protestors to escalate the chaos to the point of riots, as we have seen happen all too often.
If Bass had an issue with the tactics of federal law enforcement, she should have reached out to work with them, not make statements to undermine them. Law enforcement can happen without the tragic clashes the world has seen coming out of Los Angeles.
It is precisely during such moments of high intensity that a leader is most needed.
By the time Bass released a more responsible statement on Saturday night, the damage was already done, with federal troops on the way.
“Reports of unrest outside the city, including in Paramount, are deeply concerning,” Bass said. “We’ve been in direct contact with officials in Washington, D.C., and are working closely with law enforcement to find the best path forward.”
But wise leaders don’t wait until things get out of hand to do the right thing. “We are working with law enforcement to find the best path forward” should have been the very first message on Friday. Indeed, knowing how explosive these confrontations can be, Bass should have anticipated them and coordinated with federal authorities before they even showed up.
Meanwhile, as the clashes continued to escalate, Governor Gavin Newsom jumped into the fray by demanding Trump remove the National Guard, threatening to sue and calling it a breach of “state sovereignty.” Bass herself said that deploying federalized troops is a “chaotic escalation.”
But there were no troops when the clashes began and Bass expressed her “deep anger” at federal agents. As heavy-handed and bullying as Trump can be, the truth is that the “chaotic escalation” occurred before any federal troops entered the scene. So, just when the situation called for a serious de-escalation, our fearless leaders went after the president, perhaps hoping he’d be blamed for their own failures.
The reality is that our leadership failed us when the horrific fires traumatized the city last January, and it failed us again when it fueled the flames of civic anger and let them get out of hand. My beloved L.A. deserves better than leaders who can neither prevent fires nor put them out.
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