LA mayor criticizes Vance’s visit as an ‘insulting’ publicity stunt

Mayor Karen Bass Responds to Vice President Vance’s Remarks

Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass (D) has accused Vice President Vance of being completely dishonest about his comments during his recent visit to the city, where he showed support for Marines involved in anti-ICE protests.

“He walks in, makes these statements about what he claims isn’t happening in LA, then goes on to shame the senator he’s supposed to be serving. It’s just rude, and honestly, I heard him say things about our city that were totally untrue,” Bass said.

Vance defended President Trump’s choice to send the National Guard and Marines to assist amid protests against immigration policies, which occurred in front of local, state, and federal officials in Los Angeles. This happened just last week.

In his statements, Vance seemed to suggest that California’s Governor Gavin Newsom (D) and Bass were somehow encouraging protesters and hindering law enforcement efforts.

Describing the protest as a “riot,” Vance asserted that the National Guard needed to be called in due to local agencies’ inability to control the escalating violence.

His visit to LA followed a ruling from a federal appeals court that allowed Trump to deploy the National Guard there, which was announced the day before.

Newsom has since taken legal action against Trump, claiming he wasn’t consulted prior to the deployment of the National Guard.

During his comments, Vance mistakenly referred to Senator Alex Padilla (D-Calif) as “Jose Padilla,” expressing disappointment that Padilla didn’t come to ask questions, suggesting it was a sign of lack of interest.

Padilla had been recently removed from a Department of Homeland Security (DHS) press room for attempting to ask questions, with DHS Secretary Kristi Noem claiming he didn’t identify himself. However, video evidence showed he did make his identity known. This incident ignited concern among Democrats about normalizing violent treatment of elected officials.

“He knows my name,” Padilla stated in an interview. “Unfortunately, that reflects the trivial and unsafe nature of this administration. But he is the vice president. I hope he takes the Los Angeles situation seriously.”