When a reporter questioned Mayor Karen Bass about why she was out of town on Wednesday as fires in her city were out of control, she refused to comment.
As he questioned Bass about her presence in Ghana during the early hours of flames that have burned part of America’s second-largest city, Sky News reporter David Blevins did not acknowledge her.
Do you have to apologize to the people for not being there when their houses were on fire? Blevins inquired on a plane at the airport.
Blevins continued to ask questions, but Bass did not respond.
“Madam Mayor, do you regret slashing the fire department’s budget by millions of dollars? The reporter asked.
Bass was hushed and almost still once more. According to NBC Los Angeles, Blevins was alluding to a budget decrease Bass passed last year that reduced the fire department’s spending by over $18 million by freezing hiring and eliminating overtime intended for training.
Are you at a loss for words today? Do you have nothing at all to say to the people today? Blevins went on. “Elon Musk says that you’re utterly incompetent are you considering your position?”
Bass did not respond, instead gazing into space.
Have you got nothing at all to say to the people who are coping with this catastrophe today, Madam Mayor?” Blevins inquired.
Bass moved away from Blevins on the jetway about 40 seconds into the interrogation.
“Are you not sorry for them? Do you believe you ought to have been in Ghana at the time this was happening at home? Blevins uttered those words.
Then, before she left, she angled behind an assistant.
A request for response from the mayor’s office and Bass’s representatives was not immediately answered.
Bass departed Southern California on Saturday to attend Ghanaian President John Dramani Mahamaon’s inauguration on Tuesday.
As of Thursday morning, the Palisades Fire, which started on Tuesday, has burned over 17,000 acres.
Two years ago, Bass became the first female mayor of the city after barely defeating billionaire real estate mogul Rick Caruso in the election to City Hall.
Caruso told CNBC on Wednesday, “I don’t think the mayor should be on a global trip at this time.” “The very basic needs of leadership is to be present.”
Bass went to a number of fire-ravaged locations later on Wednesday.
She also defended the fire department’s budget cut of $17.8 million. Fire Chief Kristin Crowley stated in a memo dated December 4 that the layoffs have “severely limited the department’s capacity to prepare for, train for, and respond to large-scale emergencies, including wildfires.”
When asked about Crowley’s memo, Bass told reporters Wednesday night, “I am confident that it did not,” adding that the fire department’s budget might even go up this year.
She also discussed her international vacation, brushing off criticism that she ought to have been in the city. At the news conference, Bass stated, “Even though I wasn’t physically here, I was in contact with many of the individuals that are standing here throughout the entire time.” Other officials were standing at her side.
“I talked on the phone virtually all the time during the flight,” she added.