XPost: alt.los-angeles, alt.home.repair, alt.politics.republicans
XPost: sac.politics, talk.politics.misc

People watching Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass's colossally tone-deaf
response to her city's wildfire Caltastrophe have been treated to the
range and breadth of her public persona — her public character — which
mostly consists of world-class eliding, smiling, and cheerleading. Alas,
cheers appear to be the only thing this woman is capable of leading. And
things just got worse with her first sit-down interview. Though the fires
have been put out, another one was set with this 17-minute stinker. P.U.

It turns out, that Bass (rhymes with) leaving the country and going to
Africa amid the National Weather Service's unprecedented dire wind
warnings was actually the fire chief's fault. She said this in a different
way, of course, but she made it clear that President Biden wanted her to
go to Ghana "on his behalf" and when "I talked about [the dire wind
warnings] with" the Fire Chief Kristin Crowley, the chief tamped her
concerns.

Angelenos will be surprised to learn that she consulted anyone about the weather forecast or going to Africa, but there was a reason she brought it
with local Fox L.A. political reporter Elex Michaelson. It was the setup
to throw Crowley under the bus. (Wind warning: Kamala Harris has got
nothing on Bass's word salad):

I frankly wasn't aware of although there were warnings I think our
preparation what it wasn't what, what it typically is meaning that before there's a major weather event for example ... [Here's where she pivots to
say she was ready for the flooding from the rains that came after the fire
for which she was unprepared] ... that type of preparation didn't happen.
If that had I will tell you Elex I wouldn't have even gone to San Diego
let alone leave the country but—

Michaelson interjected at this point, "What do you mean there were
warnings you weren't aware of? Because I know we were talking about it on
the news a lot [and] people were talking about the problems [and] warning
that this was going to be a huge deal."

Warm up the big yellow school bus of blame because here it comes. Bass
said, for what I believe is the first time, that she consulted the fire
chief about the dire wind warnings.

Related: 'Lack of Leadership': L.A. Fire Vet Says No One Prepared Even
After Extreme Wind Warnings

"I, uh, talked about it with the fire chief [and] what she said is that we
have warnings of Santa Ana winds a lot, but predicting this." At this
point, Bass wanders off to confirm the city didn't prepare and then begins
an entirely new verbal construction of why she didn't know it would be so
bad.

"So, it didn't reach that level to me," she said, "to say something
terrible could happen and maybe you shouldn't have gone on a trip, but to
me — I don't know." That alone is disqualifying. How out of touch can you
be if you rely on others to tell you about the catastrophic weather event
that is all over the news? It was up to her staff to tell her she couldn't
go on a trip for the president because she didn't know the weather would
be so bad? How would that go over, exactly?

To be fair, no one ever knows how bad a wind event will be, but — has
Karen Bass ever been in L.A. during Santa Anas?

She then pivoted to the Gavin Newsom patented answer that someone should
do something about this by saying, "I mean I think that, that's one of the things we need to look at look at so two investigations are taking
place..." by the city and the fire department.

She needs an investigation to figure out if the fire chief also biffed the assignment.

She doesn't know yet if someone will be fired like her overpaid and
obviously unqualified hires who are in charge at the fire department and
the L.A. Department of Water and Power.

Related: L.A. Gets Another Reminder of Why Commie Karen Is Such a Dud

Indeed, she blamed the state of California for the only nearby water
reservoir being empty saying, "I will tell you that the fire hydrant
situation is also something that has to be examined. The reservoir, as you know, was a reservoir for drinking water. The reason why it was empty it
was mandated by the state to be emptied because there was a tear in the cover..." For nearly a year?

Worse, a public records request for Bass's text messages shows that Bass's leadership after getting back from Ghana was scattershot and lacked
overall strategic considerations–which will not be surprising to anyone observing her from the jump.

Los Angeles County Supervisor Lindsey Horvath, whose district comprises
all of the areas burned in the Palisades fire, including Malibu, was
beyond frustrated with Bass. Instead of putting on a united front, Bass
was freelancing news conferences and decisions. The L.A. Times reported
one exchange:

“You asked us to lay off the daily pressers. We did. We asked you to join
us for this announcement tomorrow. No response. Now we hear you’re doing
one without us today when we are in lead role at your Depts’ request?”
wrote Horvath, whose district includes Pacific Palisades.

“Doesn’t feel very ‘locked arms’ to me,” she added, invoking a catchphrase
Bass often uses to emphasize the importance of cooperation among
government officials. The slogan is central to Bass’ political brand, with
the mayor citing it at most public appearances.

Michaelson also asked Bass about the "ambush" interview with a SkyNews
reporter when she stepped off the jet from Ghana. Bass blamed the long
flight for saying nothing.

"...You've been on a plane 17 hours and somebody hits you with a camera. I
wish in hindsight my response had been better," says the mayor, who merely stared dazedly at the reporter asking pertinent, on-point, and tough
questions. Burping would have been better than what she did.

Michaelson asked about how long it would take before L.A. residents would
get their homes rebuilt: three to five years, she predicted.

Bass says she's running for re-election in 2026 and hopes voters see her
as a leader.

Good luck, L.A.

https://pjmedia.com/victoria-taft/2025/02/20/karen-n4937150

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