President Donald Trump pushed back on Democratic Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass during a Friday evening press conference, defending the idea that Pacific Palisades residents shouldn’t have to wait for government assistance to fix their homes.
First Lady Melania Trump and the president traveled to Southern California’s Pacific Palisades on Friday afternoon to visit one of the areas in Los Angeles County destroyed by the wildfires that began on Jan. 7. During a press conference with state lawmakers and local officials, a local resident expressed frustration over how many homeowners had been unable to move forward on their properties.
“The number one thing that we are going to do immediately, and you will see this happen, is to clear out the debris. We’re concerned right now over the weekend because of the potential rain. But we are going to move as fast as we can. But we want you to be safe. We want you to be back in your homes immediately,” Bass said.
Trump jumped in.
“But the people are willing to clean out their own debris. It doesn’t cost a lot,” Trump said.
Bass could be heard responding, “they can,” before Trump continued, urging the Democratic mayor to allow residents to fix their properties themselves, as they were requesting.
“You should let them do it. Because by the time you hire contractors, it’s going to be two years. People are willing to get a dumpster and do it themselves and clean it out. There’s not that much left. It’s all incinerated,” Trump said. “And, you know, it’s just going to take a long time if you do [it].”
“You can do some of it. But a lot of these people, I know that guy right there that’s talking. I know my people. You’ll be in that thing tonight, throwing the stuff away and your site will look perfect within 24 hours. That’s what he wants to do,” Trump added.
Following the outbreak of the massive wildfires, thousands of residents were forced to flee their homes, with some not finding out their houses had burned down until days later. Trump went on to advocate for one of the residents, saying he would have to wait months before he could begin fixing his property.
“He doesn’t want to wait around for seven months till the city hires some demolition contract that’s going to charge him $25,000 to do his lot. I think you have to — you have emergency powers just like I do. I’m exercising my emergency powers. You have to exercise them also,” Trump said.
Bass could be heard attempting to state that she “did exercise” her powers, but Trump said that she had “very powerful emergency power and you can do everything within 24 hours.”
When the fires broke out in Los Angeles County, Bass faced massive backlash for being overseas in Africa for the inauguration of Ghanaian President John Dramani Mahama, despite having stated in 2021 that she would not leave the U.S. if elected. On her return, Bass was confronted by Sky News reporter David Blevins, who asked if she owed “citizens an apology for being absent while their homes were burning.”
The Democratic mayor has also faced criticism for a lack of resources during the crisis, particularly after cutting the Los Angeles Fire Department’s budget by $17.6 million for fiscal year 2024-2025, according to Fox News.
