Petition For Urgent Recall Of Democrat LA Mayor Surges Past 60,000 Signatures

A growing number of Los Angeles residents are calling for a change in leadership as the worst wildfire crisis in recent memory continues to unfold. Mayor Karen Bass, a Democrat, was out of the country when the first major brushfire erupted in the Pacific Palisades on Tuesday morning. By the time she returned from a vacation in the African Nation of Ghana, Pacific Palisades had been decimated, while a separate fire in the Pasadena-Altadena area had already burned more than 4,000 acres. As of this report, nearly a dozen brushfires have burned an area twice the size of Manhattan as Southern California firefighters work to control the inferno.

As of 9:30 a.m. Western Time, more than 60,000 Los Angeles residents have signed a petition that calls for the “immediate recall” of Mayor Bass due to her disastrous response to the fires. “In the wake of these catastrophic fires, our city has been left in crisis. Water supplies have been severely strained, billions of taxpayer dollars have been misallocated or left unaccounted for, and countless lives have been lost,” the petition reads. “Families have been displaced, homes destroyed, and livelihoods shattered—yet Mayor Bass has been absent from the frontlines, choosing to travel abroad while her constituents suffer.”

The document went on to state that Bass’ Administration has been woefully underprepared despite valiant efforts from firefighters and emergency workers. It notes that the city has dealt with water issues, as several Los Angeles area communities have been left with empty water hydrants. Martin Adams, former general manager of the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power, told the Los Angeles Times that the city’s infrastructure is simply not equipped to deliver the necessary volume of water to battle the fires. “The system has never been designed to fight a wildfire that then envelops a community,” he said.

“Basic resources, such as water and emergency services, have been inadequate, and leadership has been nowhere to be found when it was needed most,” the petition continues. Residents went on to demand the immediate resignation of Mayor Bass due to her “failure to lead during this unprecedented crisis.” Additional demands include a thorough investigation into the city’s wildfire preparedness and any failures that occurred during the response the crisis, a complete accounting of taxpayer funds that go towards disaster preparedeness, and a comprehensive plan to deal with future emergencies.

“The people of Los Angeles deserve a leader who is present, accountable, and actively working to protect and serve our community. Mayor Bass’s actions—or lack thereof—have shown she is unfit for the office she holds,” the document concludes. “We call on our fellow Angelenos and all concerned citizens to stand with us in holding Mayor Bass accountable. It is time for a change.”

Bass speaks at the U.S. Institute of Peace in 2020

Bass has faced intense criticism over emergency management decisions made before the wildfire crisis unfolded. For the fiscal year 2024/25, the mayor slashed roughly $17.6 million from the Los Angeles Fire Department’s budget.

A memo obtained by the Daily Mail further revealed that Bass wanted to cut an addition $49 million from the department’s budget just before the Pacific Palisades fire ignited. The extra cuts would have shuttered 16 fire stations and crippled the department’s ability to respond to wildfires, LAFD sources told the outlet. Astonishingly, the memo was dated January 6, just one day before the crisis began.

According to LAFD sources, the document was sent from the department’s “top brass” to division chiefs and captains after a tense meeting Chief Kristin Crowley and Mayor Bass. “The LAFD is still going through a FY [financial year] 2024/2025 $48.8million budget reduction exercise with the CAO [City Attorney’s Office],” the memo reads. “The only way to provide a cost savings would be to close as many as 16 fire stations (not resources, fire stations); this equates to at least one fire station per City Council District,” it continued, noting that the planned cuts had not been made just yet.

As of this report, wildfires in and around Los Angeles have burned 54 square miles, prompting evacuation orders for more than 130,000 people. More than 4,000 homes and additional buildings have been destroyed, while at least 11 people have been killed.

It took mere hours for the ineptitude of Gavin Newsom and Karen Bass to render the Pacific Palisades a scorched wasteland. To rebuild will be a gargantuan task. The first necessary step must be to recall these two worthless political hacks. #RecallGavinNewsom #RecallKarenBass pic.twitter.com/V2XxpnOmd2

— James Woods (@RealJamesWoods) January 10, 2025

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