Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass is facing all kinds of heat and calls to step down as wildfires rage and ravage the city.
The 71-year-old Democrat took part in a press conference on Wednesday, after returning from a trip to Ghana, where at one point, she refused to answer an Irish reporter’s questions.
Despite receiving warnings about critical weather conditions in the days leading up to the catastrophic fires, Bass travelled to Africa on Tuesday, the day the blaze began, to attend the inauguration of the Ghanan president.
Sky News’ David Blevins saw Bass at the airport upon her return and asked her a series of questions, but she refused to answer him.
“Fire chiefs say that they’re really stretched to the limit and running out of water, what have you got to say to that? Have you no response to that?”
“Do you owe your citizens an apology for being absent while their homes were burning?”
“Do you regret cutting the fire department by millions of dollars, Madam Mayor? Have you nothing to say today?”
Bass cut the Los Angeles Fire Department’s budget by $17.6 million ahead of this week’s catastrophic fires, and prioritized funding for the city’s homeless population that largely went unspent, according to analysis by L.A.’s city comptroller, Fox News reported.
She initially tried to slash LAFD funding by $23 million, leaving them with a budget of $837 million in fiscal year 2023-24, which was 65% of the $1.3 billion earmarked for the homeless, according to the outlet.
Blevins continued to hound Bass and her assistant with questions, which went unanswered by both.
Bass eventually issued a statement: “To the thousands of families impacted by this horrific fire — the City of Los Angeles is providing resources and shelter as this emergency continues. To the hundreds of brave firefighters and first responders who have been responding all day to this blaze — we thank you. The City is working aggressively to confront this emergency.”
Wednesday’s press conference didn’t help her cause as she bumbled her way through a scripted speech and managed to mess up the fire emergency information website by telling locals to visit “URL” while stating the obvious and calling the firestorm “the big one.”
“If you need help, emergency information, resources, and shelter is available,” she read from her notes.
“All of this can be found at URL,” Bass continued. “Food, water, medicine, a bag packed and ready again, this is an active situation, and conserve water to the extent that you can. We want to make sure that we are ready if we need more water.”
Social media users were quick to rip into the first-term mayor, calling the showing “embarrassing” and begging her to step down.
“Mayor Karen Bass literally just read the words ‘URL’ off her script during the press conference instead of the emergency website for the victims of the fire,” one person commented in disbelief.
“I think we have a new winner for the most incompetent politician in America.”
Another added: “FIRE THIS DUMB*** NOW,” comparing her to “going all Joe Biden, not knowing what she’s saying!”
Celebs also weighed in slamming city officials and accusing them of failing to keep the city and its residents safe.
Fitness trainer Jillian Michaels commented: “Leadership in California is beyond negligent. This is completely unacceptable.”
Dancing With the Stars pro Val Chmerkovskiy criticized local officials for not using taxpayer funds to keep the fire hydrants up to code.
“5th largest economy on the planet. Firefighters didn’t have enough water pressure to do their jobs?! Are you joking me?!” he wrote on social media. “The taxes we pay for 3rd world infrastructure is unbelievable?! Come on.”
Producer and former model Sara Foster noted on X: “We pay the highest taxes in California. Our fire hydrants were empty. Our vegetation was overgrown, brush not cleared. Our reservoirs were emptied by our governor because tribal leaders wanted to save fish. Our fire department budget was cut by our mayor. But thank god drug addicts are getting their drug kits.”
She then suggested that Bass and Gov. Gavin Newson “RESIGN.”
Foster added: “Your far left policies have ruined our state. And also our party.”
Celebrities including James Woods, Mandy Moore, Paris Hilton and Billy Crystal shared that they lost their homes in the devastating fires.
Since Tuesday, firefighters have been battling to control a series of major fires in the L.A. area that have killed five people, ravaged communities from the Pacific Coast to Pasadena, and sent thousands of people frantically fleeing their homes.