The next is the transcript of an interview with Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass that aired on “Face the Nation with Margaret Brennan” on July 20, 2025.
MARGARET BRENNAN: We flip now to Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass. Good morning, Madam Mayor.
LOS ANGELES MAYOR KAREN BASS: Good morning, good morning.
MARGARET BRENNAN: Glad you possibly can hear me. We’re immigration points six months in. You’ve had such a firsthand expertise out in LA, given the deployment of U.S. troops. The President ordered the early launch of practically half of the Nationwide Guard from LA. Have they departed but? What are the remaining ones doing?
MAYOR BASS: Nicely, I consider they’ve departed, however they had been by no means wanted within the first place, and the remaining ones are doing what they had been doing all alongside, which is actually defending two federal buildings, one among which in Westwood, the place there by no means has been a giant protest towards the immigration raids. That is simply such an unbelievable misuse of, not solely taxpayers cash, however of the younger people who find themselves within the Nationwide Guard, who’ve needed to depart their households, their jobs and their training for this deployment that’s utterly pointless. 4,000 troops, my understanding, is, most of their time has been spent in full boredom, taking part in video video games and primarily ready round. As a result of once more, 4,000 deployed, and about 200 truly used.
MARGARET BRENNAN: The White Home, after all, argues they deployed them as a result of there was interference with the operations of legislation enforcement in finishing up a number of the roundups. There are nonetheless enforcement actions by ICE going down. You’ve talked about your objections, as you described them to “masked males, unmarked vehicles, drawing weapons, snatching individuals off the road.” You filed a Freedom of Info request to cite, “know who these masked males are.” Why, although, is their id necessary to you? Do you intend to prosecute them?
MAYOR BASS: Nicely, no, let me simply clarify, as a result of you will have people who find themselves actually strolling down the road, sitting at bus stops, are particular person distributors promoting fruit on the road. These masked males pull up in unmarked vehicles and bounce out of the vehicles with rifles and detain individuals. So for the typical citizen, it seems prefer it’s a violent kidnapping. So it is best to by no means have that. They do not establish themselves. And moreover, to your earlier visitor, how on earth do they know that they are a risk after they’re simply chasing random individuals by means of parking tons at Residence Depots, going to automobile washes and rounding up individuals. It is tough to get your automobile washed in Los Angeles now, as a result of many of the automobile washes, the workers will not come to work out of worry {that a} raid will happen.
MARGARET BRENNAN: Nicely, the performing director says that his brokers, a few of them worry that their households will probably be retaliated towards, and that is why they’re masking their faces, that they do put on markings for the businesses that they work with. How do you reply?
MAYOR BASS: Nicely, properly, to start with, let me simply inform you that the masked males usually are not from Los Angeles, and so how their households could possibly be retaliated towards. After which what’s that to say to native legislation enforcement, the Los Angeles Police Division, none of whom are ever masked who at all times establish themselves and even hand somebody a enterprise card. In order that makes completely no sense in any respect. And I do not know, however I’ve a tough time believing that the lady promoting pineapples on the nook goes to assault an ICE agent. After which when he says that there is identification, the issue is many of those males are in plain garments with vests on that say ‘police,’ it seems like one thing that they might have gotten on-line. I feel it is actually necessary to level out the intense nature of the randomness. And , Homan has stated, he is talked about a lot of standards for why they cease individuals. One of many factors of standards is bodily look. Los Angeles is 3.8 million individuals, and about 50% of our inhabitants is Latino, so I assume meaning 50% of Los Angeles could possibly be attainable suspects in an immigration raid.
MARGARET BRENNAN: Nicely, Tom Homan has- Tom Homan has stated bodily description can’t be the only issue for cheap suspicion, however issues like location, occupation, bodily look add up, notably if an individual runs away, or if there is a tattoo or one thing. You do not appear to consider that.
MAYOR BASS: Location, sitting at a- properly, location, sitting at a bus cease, strolling down the road, promoting fruit? No, I do dispute that, completely. And , once more, the Nationwide Guard ought to have by no means been deployed within the first place. We didn’t ask for them. That is the federal seizure of energy from a governor deploying the Nationwide Guard when the Nationwide Guard weren’t even wanted. We had protests on the finish of the- on the finish of the peaceable protest, there completely was some violence and a few looting and vandalism, we introduced that utterly below management. The troops have by no means been concerned in crowd management, by no means concerned within the protest. They’ve been guarding a constructing. Our police division and our sheriff’s division are those that introduced the protests, when it devolved into violence, below management. We by no means wanted the Nationwide Guard within the first place. It is a political stunt, a horrible misuse of taxpayers’ {dollars}.
MARGARET BRENNAN: There’s extra we may speak about right here however I wish to ask you about fires, as a result of we at the moment are formally in hearth season. It was simply six months in the past we noticed these blazes in LA, you fired the then hearth chief for you stated a failure to organize. However you continue to do not have a everlasting hearth chief in that position. Is not that an issue? Are you ready?
MAYOR BASS: No, no, I do not assume that that is an issue in any respect. Our interim hearth chief has 40 years of expertise. The truth is, he had only in the near past retired. I known as him in, out of retirement, in the course of the fires. He was doing the emergency operation heart. So he stepped in, did not miss a beat by taking up the hearth division. And we’re ready. We do know that it is hearth season.
MARGARET BRENNAN: So is your plan to maintain him in place because you introduced him out of retirement?–
MAYOR BASS: –No–
MARGARET BRENNAN:–put him in an interim foundation?
MAYOR BASS: I am sorry, no, we’re doing a nationwide search, and he’s actually open to use. However the nation’s second-largest metropolis must ensure that we search the nation for the perfect expertise. And I am positive that there will probably be individuals within the division that apply, however we wish to solid the web vast. We did the identical kind of seek for our police chief–
MARGARET BRENNAN: –Nicely okay–
MAYOR BASS:–in the meantime he’s greater than able to managing properly.
MARGARET BRENNAN: Nicely, want town properly. We will probably be watching as you progress by means of hearth season. Thanks–
MAYOR BASS:–Positive.
MARGARET BRENNAN: –We’ll be proper again.
