Mayor Karen Bass again criticized the Trump administration’s ongoing crackdown on illegal immigration in the city in an interview broadcast Sunday, saying Los Angeles is dependent on “immigrant labor.”
“Because we are a city of immigrants, we have entire sectors of our economy that are dependent on immigrant labor. We have to get the fire areas rebuilt. We’re not going to get our city rebuilt without immigrant labor,” Bass told Martha Raddatz last week in Los Angeles in an interview broadcast Sunday on ABC News’ “The Week.”
Bass has repeatedly called for the end of the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement raids in the city that began June 6. She and other Democrats, including Gov. Gavin Newsom, have accused the Trump administration of targeting people based on their skin color — claims the government denies — and sowing fear in the local immigrant community.
Bass has also accused the administration of reneging on its pledge to target those with criminal histories for deportation, saying most of those being detained in the local raids are otherwise law-abiding residents, notwithstanding their immigration status.
“President Trump is fulfilling the promise he was elected on — carrying out the largest mass deportation operation of criminal illegal aliens,” Abigail Jackson, a White House spokeswoman told City News Service in an email Sunday.
“While Karen Bass continues to support dangerous policies that put Americans at risk, ICE is removing threats from our streets. Just recently in Los Angeles, ICE arrested a criminal illegal alien with a conviction for second-degree murder, indecent exposure and a final deportation order from 2012.
“This is one of countless successful operations to go after the worst-of-the-worst that Karen Bass opposes. ICE is keeping communities safe, yet Karen Bass wants dangerous criminal illegals, like this man, to stay in America. She couldn’t be more out of touch.”
Asked by Raddatz who should be deported, Bass initially did not answer the question, but said “even people who are here legally, even people who are U.S. citizens, have been detained. Immigrants who have their papers and were showing up for their — their annual immigration appointment were detained when they showed up doing exactly what they were supposed to be doing.”
Pressed by Raddatz if the nearly “one million undocumented workers” in Los Angeles should be allowed to stay, Bass said, “This is what I think … What I think we need is comprehensive immigration reform.”
Reminded that Congress failed to pass such a bill in her 12 years in the House of Representatives, Bass cited a proposed bill in 2024 that received strong Democratic support and from some Republicans but ultimately failed after Trump, then a presidential candidate, opposed it.
“After I left, there was an immigration reform bill that had bipartisan support. This was during the campaign. The president decided he didn’t want to have it happen because he didn’t want immigration reform to happen where he didn’t take credit for it,” she said.
” … Let me just tell you that the people that make that trek, many of whom walk from Central America and even South America up to our border, risk their lives,” the mayor continued. “I don’t believe that all of these people are sitting at home dreaming of coming to Los Angeles. They’re coming here out of desperation.”
Statistics show that illegal crossings at the U.S./Mexico border have dropped to historically low levels after Trump took office in January. Bass was asked if she thought Trump had done anything good at the border.
“I will heap praise on the administration for the first six months in Los Angeles with the fires. If you ask me, is there anything that they have done good in terms of immigration? I don’t know. I don’t think so,” she said. “I think that the viewpoint has been punitive, has been, let’s make it as miserable as possible so that these people don’t come.”
Bass said she has a request in to speak with Trump administration officials about the raids and the ongoing National Guard deployment in the city, but has not had any conversations recently.
“I want to work with the administration to solve this problem. We have the World Cup in 11 short months here. We have the Olympics and Paralympics coming in three short years,” she said.
“I know that these games are very important to the president, and I look forward to working with him and we have an extreme difference on this issue, but there’s many issues for us to work on. And I will continue trying to outreach to the administration and hope that at some point they’ll be responsive.”