Mayor Karen Bass, Los Angeles, who came under intensive investigation last month for travel to Africa in the midst of a failed fire reaction, bends off the controversial journey.
“I felt absolutely terribly that I was not here for my city,” said Bass, a Democrat, a Fox 11 Los Angeles reporter in a recent interview.
“I would say it was a mistake, absolutely. The idea that I was not present was very painful,” she added and said that the correct “preparation did not happen” to inform her for the trip from Ghana.
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Mayor Karen Bass discusses recovery efforts during a press conference in Pacific Palisades on January 27, 2025. (Drew A. Kelley/Medianews Group/Long Beach Press telegram via Getty images)
She said she would not even have traveled to the south to San Diego if she had received the right “preparation” about the fire hazard.
“It didn’t reach that level for me to say:” Something terrible could happen and maybe you shouldn’t have traveled, “the Democrat added.
“I think that is one of the things we should look at, everything that has happened, including that, must be investigated,” she continued, revealing that there are at least two studies into the response of the city to the fires.
The National Weather Service released the “fire warning” on January 3 and the mayor left for Africa the next day. She did not return until January 8, according to Fox 11 LA.
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A Department of Corrections Crew works in control lines prior to The Palisades Fire, January 14, 2025, in Santa Monica, California. (AP Photo/Ethan Swope)
The fire in the Pacific palisades tore off the community and burning thousands of houses and companies.
In another interview with NBC Los Angeles, Bass admitted her Africa -trip Was “absolutely” a mistake and that she worked to regain the trust of the public after being confronted last month with recoil for her failed response to the furious fires in her city.
“Absolutely it’s, and I think I have to prove that every day by showing what we are doing, what works, what the challenges are,” Bass told NBC Los Angeles when asked if she is trying to win back. “
Bass was in Ghana in front of the curse of his president when the fires started, although a high fire risk was known at the time. The Palisades Fire started on January 7 and escalated all night, but the mayor only returned to the city on January 8 and she did not answer repeated questions from a Sky News reporter On her arrival in the United States.
“Yes, it was an ambush, and I wasn’t sure who he was. And that is a shame because I see the way that looks like I was avoided, but if you get off a plane, you are on an airplane for 17 Hour and someone touches you with a camera, I wish my answer had been better, “said mayor Fox 11 Los Angeles when he was asked about the viral clip.
She also claimed that the Biden administration asked her to travel to Africa on their behalf during the FOX 11 interview.
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Mayor of Los Angeles Karen Bass listens while Gov. Gavin Newsom speaks while touring fire damage. (Mayor Karen Bass/X)
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More than 170,000 people have signed a change .org -petition that calls her to resign as a mayor. The situation also resulted in public criticism of the mayor, ranging from former Democratic mayors opponent Rick Caruso to Liberal Talk show -Gastheer Bill Maher.
“La Mayor, Karen Bass, the Nero of American politics, was playing in Ghana while the city was burning,” Said maher last month.
Rep. Ro Khanna, D-Calif., Suggested that Disney CEO Bob Iger Run for mayor in 2026. When she was about to see if she made Khanna’s comments personally, Bass picked it up.
“I am only focused on one thing, and that is to ensure that our city is able to recover and rebuild, and that all those individuals who lived in the Palisades can go home,” Bass told NBC Los Angeles.
