'Absolutely outrageous': LA mayor calls out federal agent presence in MacArthur Park
Armored vehicles, mounted officers and armed troops briefly swarmed the city's MacArthur Park Monday morning before leaving. Bass said 20 children were playing at the park before the troops surged through and shared footage of federal officers running through the park.
"Franky, it is outrageous and un-American that we have federal armed vehicles in our parks when nothing is going on in our parks," Bass said at a Monday news conference. "It is outrageous and un-American that the federal government that seized our state's National Guard. It's outrageous and un-American that we have U.S. Marines who are trained to kill foreign soldiers overseas, deployed in our American city."
The mayor said on X that she visited the park the second she heard about what was happening and ordered the person in charge to leave immediately. Calling the scene "absolutely outrageous," she described what occurred as a "military-style operation designed to strike fear in the heart of our city."
"We will not be afraid and we will not be divided. We will stand TOGETHER," she wrote.
According to an X post from the Department of Defense, troops were present at the park to "ensure the safety of federal agents."
Los Angeles City Councilmember Eunisses Hernandez, whose district encompasses MacArthur Park, said on X that armed troops were "terrorizing street vendors, elders, and even children at summer camp."
USA TODAY has reached out to the National Guard for comment.
Pentagon spent $134 million on National Guard deployment
Bass has criticized the National Guard presence in LA, arguing that it is abnormal for them to be deployed without a governor's request.
Last month, President Donald Trump deployed 4,000 National Guard troops and 700 Marines to the city in response to protests against federal immigration enforcement. The president has defended the decision, writing on Truth Social that "if we didn't send out the National Guard—Los Angeles would be burning right now!"
Defense officials said the Pentagon spent $134 million for the 60-day deployment. Bryn MacDonnel, a special assistant to the defense secretary, explained that the costs included travel, housing and food, adding the funds came out of operations and maintenance accounts.
Gov. Gavin Newsom attempted to block the federal incursion in California and later filed a lawsuit against Trump and accused the president, as well as Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth, of trying to use the assets to help ICE conduct raids.
Contributing: James Powel and Bart Jansen, USA TODAY
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Business Insider
an hour ago
- Business Insider
U.S. Senators Warn Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang about His Trip to China
Two U.S. senators—Republican Jim Banks and Democrat Elizabeth Warren—sent a letter to Nvidia (NVDA) CEO Jensen Huang on Friday, urging him to be cautious during his trip to China. They asked him not to meet with any companies that are believed to be helping China get around U.S. export restrictions, especially those connected to the Chinese military or intelligence agencies and that are listed on the U.S. export blacklist. The senators warned that even appearing to support these companies could weaken U.S. efforts to control advanced chip exports. Elevate Your Investing Strategy: Take advantage of TipRanks Premium at 50% off! Unlock powerful investing tools, advanced data, and expert analyst insights to help you invest with confidence. Make smarter investment decisions with TipRanks' Smart Investor Picks, delivered to your inbox every week. Huang's trip was scheduled for the same day the letter was sent. In response, an Nvidia spokesperson said that when American technology leads the global standard, 'America wins,' and noted that China has one of the world's largest groups of software developers. They added that AI systems should be designed to run best on U.S.-based hardware, which would encourage other countries to choose U.S. tech over alternatives. However, the concern from lawmakers is that Huang's meetings could expose weaknesses in current rules and send the wrong signal about America's stance on protecting its technology. This issue ties into recent tensions between Nvidia and U.S. regulators. At the Computex trade show in May, Huang praised President Donald Trump's decision to loosen some AI chip export rules and called the earlier restrictions ineffective. But newer limits put in place in April could still cost Nvidia up to $15 billion in lost revenue. Lawmakers are now considering laws that would require chipmakers to verify where their products end up. There are also growing fears that Chinese companies like DeepSeek are helping the military and using fake companies to dodge the rules. Despite all this, Nvidia is reportedly preparing a cheaper version of its Blackwell AI chips specifically for the Chinese market. What Is a Good Price for NVDA? Turning to Wall Street, analysts have a Strong Buy consensus rating on NVDA stock based on 37 Buys, four Holds, and one Sell assigned in the past three months, as indicated by the graphic below. Furthermore, the average NVDA price target of $176.29 per share implies 6.7% upside potential.
New York Post
2 hours ago
- New York Post
LA Mayor Karen Bass signs order to provide cash payments to immigrants affected by ICE raids
Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass signed an executive order Friday to bolster protocols and support immigrant neighborhoods, including offering cash assistance, in response to raids by the Trump administration targeting those living in the United States illegally. The order is intended to help protect the city's workforce and residents from the federal government during immigration enforcement operations. Advertisement It also demands that federal agencies provide records of the raids, who was detained and for what reason and the cost to taxpayers, which will be part of a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request. 'There is a need for me to have an executive directive to help our city understand how to protect itself from our federal government,' Bass said at a press conference. 'What we have seen here over the last, now six weeks of raids that pop up, and we never know exactly when and where they're going to happen. 'The directive will help city workers know how to address immigration officials should they approach a city department,' she added. Advertisement The order also requires city departments to create a plan for protocols and training on how to comply with Los Angeles' sanctuary city ordinance. 3 Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass signed an executive order to help out immigrant neighborhoods by offering strengthened protocols and cash assistance. AP In addition, Bass said a plan is being worked out to provide cash assistance to those affected by the enforcement operations, the Los Angeles Times reported. Cash cards with a 'couple hundred' dollars on them will be distributed by immigrants' rights groups in about a week, Bass said. Advertisement The money will not come from city coffers, but from philanthropic partners, she said. 'You're telling me that isn't a Babylon Bee headline?' a White House spokesperson told Fox News Digital, referring to the satirical news site. 'Recent immigration enforcement in California has resulted in successfully detaining countless violent criminals and liberating children from illegal labor exploitation. But instead of helping these children or putting American citizens first, Bass is doubling down on her defense of illegal aliens.' 3 The new legislation comes in response to the ICE raids by the Trump administration in California last month. / MEGA Advertisement 'Americans are sick of these pathetic stunts from Democrat politicians. That's why they elected President Trump,' the spokesperson added. 'They want someone who will put America First, and it's certainly not Karen, Gavin & Co.' Bass has condemned immigration operations targeting criminal illegal immigrants in the city. Los Angeles is one of several cities suing the Trump administration over the 'unlawful' raids. Immigration agents on Thursday raided a cannabis farm in nearby Ventura County to target illegal immigrants working there. Ten illegal immigrant minors, eight of them unaccompanied, were found at the farm, U.S. Customs and Border Protection Commissioner Rodney Scott said. 3 Bass told reporters, 'There is a need for me to have an executive directive to help our city understand how to protect itself from our federal government.' Getty Images The farm is now being investigated for potential child labor violations. Advertisement Earlier in the week, nearly 100 National Guard troops and immigration authorities targeted crime-ridden MacArthur Park in Los Angeles, prompting Bass to go to the park to demand a halt to the operation, which was rebuffed by U.S. Border Patrol Chief Gregory Bovino. 'I don't work for Karen Bass,' Bovino told Fox News at the time. 'Better get used to us now because this is going to be normal very soon. We will go anywhere, anytime we want in Los Angeles.' Fox News Digital has reached out to Bass' office.
The Hill
3 hours ago
- The Hill
Senate Democrats join fired State Department employees to rally against layoffs
Senate Democrats on Friday joined State Department employees in protest of the Trump administration's decision to layoff 1,300 employees this week. 'This is not America first. This is America in retreat,' Sen. Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.) said on Friday at a protest outside the department's headquarters in Washington. 'And we don't want America retreating, do we?' 'Hell no,' the Maryland Democrat exclaimed. A number of workers gathered outside after the department sent reduction in force (RIF) notices Friday morning to about 1,100 civil servants and 250 foreign service officers stationed in the U.S., with plans to cut its workforce further. Workers were instructed to return their government-issued belongings on Friday. The move, which comes months after Secretary of State Marco Rubio led the department in shuttering the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), has been broadly condemned by Democrats on Capitol Hill. 'There are active conflicts and humanitarian crises in Ukraine, Sudan, Gaza, Haiti and Myanmar—to name a few. Now is the time to strengthen our diplomatic hand, not weaken it,' Sen. Jeanne Shaheen (D-N.H.), the ranking member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, wrote in a statement backed by all Democrats on the committee. Van Hollen echoed these concerns on Friday, stating the layoffs make the American public 'less safe.' 'When we retreat, that helps our adversaries and it hurts our friends and allies. When we retreat, it helps the autocrats and the dictators,' he said. 'And it undermines those fighting for human rights and democracy around the world.' Sen. Andy Kim (D-N.J.) also attended the Friday rally, describing the reduction in force as 'devastating' earlier in the day. Rubio has long maintained that efforts to reshuffle the Department are 'deliberate' and focused on boosting efficiency. 'It's not a consequence of trying to get rid of people. But if you close the bureau, you don't need those positions. Understand that some of these are positions that are being eliminated, not people,' Rubio told reporters while in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. But concerns have also been raised by the American Foreign Service Association, a union that represents tens of thousands of former and current diplomats. They argued the workforce reduction would 'damage our credibility abroad.' 'Diplomats are not faceless bureaucrats. They are America's forward presence, serving in war zones, evacuating citizens, negotiating for the release of detained Americans, and steadying allies in turbulent times. Like military personnel, they move every two to three years, serving wherever America needs representation, often in dangerous and difficult places,' the union wrote. 'Their mobility is a strategic asset. Firing them based solely on their current office location discards that asset and damages our credibility abroad,' the group added.
