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@ Daily Kos
2025-02-22 01:09:43
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Los Angeles is experiencing some post-wildfire chaos amid criticism of the city’s response and attacks from MAGA and right-wing media. Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass announced Friday that she fired Los Angeles Fire Department Chief Kristin Crowley for her refusal to conduct an “after action report” on the fires that devastated the city in January. “Acting in the best interests of Los Angeles’ public safety, and for the operations of the Los Angeles Fire Department, I have removed Kristin Crowley as Fire Chief. 1,000 firefighters were sent home on Chief Crowley’s watch the day the fires broke out. Chief Crowley refused to do an after action report on the fires,” she wrote on X. “The heroism of our firefighters—during the Palisades fire and every single day—is without question. Bringing new leadership to the fire department is what our city needs,” Bass wrote in a press release Friday. In the meantime, Bass said in the press release that she has appointed former Chief Deputy Ronnie Villanueva to serve as interim fire chief. Bass has drawn immense criticism for her absence when the fires first broke out and for lackluster decision-making as homes and neighborhoods burned. She is seeking reelection in 2026—a campaign she hasn’t backed away from since she announced it in July. A firefighter carries a hose during the 2025 Los Angeles wildfires. Crowley has been a lightning rod for MAGA’s war on Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion efforts in right-wing media. After the fires, Fox News’ Laura Ingraham argued that “DEI, illegal immigrants, that is a priority for California,” but when people need water because their homes are burning, “apparently they’re out of luck.” DOGE bro Elon Musk also took it upon himself to push a ridiculous claim that the fires were the consequence of LAFD’s liberal policies of hiring women and people of color. “DEI means people DIE,” he wrote alongside a video of Crowley. Meanwhile, President Donald Trump pushed the debunked theory that water conservation policies caused the devastation of California’s wildfires. He later threatened to withhold federal wildfire aid unless California changed its voter identification laws and supported his mass deportation efforts. Trump later purported the insane notion that he gave a military order to “turn on the water” in California. “The United States Military just entered the Great State of California and, under Emergency Powers, TURNED ON THE WATER flowing abundantly from the Pacific Northwest, and beyond. The days of putting a Fake Environmental argument, over the PEOPLE, are OVER. Enjoy the water, California!!!” Trump wrote on Truth Social. The feud between Crowley and Bass has remained embarrassingly public since the fires broke out in January. While the fires spread, Crowley appeared on Fox 11 Los Angeles to chastise city budget cuts, alluding to Bass having failed the fire department. “Since Day one, this is my third budget as we’re going into ‘25, ‘26. What I can tell you is we are still understaffed, we’re still under-resourced, and we’re still underfunded,” she said. Bass’s move to oust Crowley signals a calculated effort to change the narrative ahead of her 2026 reelection bid, repositioning herself as a leader as the city begins its years-long recovery. It’s unclear whether new LAFD leadership is enough to restore trust in the city’s emergency response, or if she’s simply caving to Trump. Campaign Action
https://www.dailykos.com/stories/2025/2/21/2305354/-LA-fire-chief-gets-the-boot-for-mishandling-of-wildfires?pm_campaign=blog&pm_medium=rss&pm_source=main