Though the January 2025 Los Angeles wildfires are, fortunately, extinguished, the devastation left behind by the blazes that took nearly a month to contain has been heartbreaking to witness, with 29 lives lost, entire communities wiped out, and a rebuilding process that is expected to take years and billions of dollars.
Amid what seemed at the time like daily reports of new fires breaking out, LA Mayor Karen Bass (D), found herself facing a different kind of heat - from fed-up residents, from the normally Democrat-compliant press, and from President Donald Trump himself, who visited the area and put Bass and her fellow Democrat leaders on blast to their faces.
"Well, you did something, Brad, where every insurance company in the country left California," Trump said to Rep. Brad Sherman (D-CA) during a roundtable on live TV that included Bass. "That's why you have no insurance - because you made it so impossible. People that think like you made it so impossible."
READ MORE: Trump Destroys LA Mayor Karen Bass on Live TV—Let Wildfire Victims Clear Their Properties Already
One big thing Bass was heavily criticized for was taking a trip to Ghana on behalf of then-President Joe Biden as the fires began to rage. She made matters worse for herself by holding a scripted presser soon after returning, in which she embarrassingly read off the letters "U R L" instead of the website address people could use to get more information about the wildfires.
Recently, Bass sat down for an interview with Fox Los Angeles where questions were asked about that trip and if she regretted it. Though she admitted it was a mistake, she claimed in so many words that she didn't receive any warnings about the wildfires ahead of time:
L.A. Mayor Karen Bass says she "wasn't aware of warnings" before leaving for Ghana .
— Elex Michaelson (@Elex_Michaelson) February 19, 2025
Timeline:
Jan. 3: National Weather Service puts out a fire weather warning
Jan. 4: Mayor Bass leaves for Ghana
Jan. 6: "Particularly Dangerous Situation" warning issued
Jan. 7: Palisades… pic.twitter.com/fVq3WRoBTy
Further, there were warnings of a windstorm event that was predicted to be "damaging," which were tweeted out from Bass' official account as she traveled:
There is an expected destructive and potentially life-threatening windstorm starting Tuesday morning through Wednesday afternoon.
— Mayor Karen Bass (@MayorOfLA) January 7, 2025
Red Flag No Parking Restrictions will go into effect in certain areas tomorrow morning.
Stay safe LA! Join @NotifyLA here: https://t.co/C2EO2lzTXO https://t.co/ChmYDOhJPr
The CBS News timeline of events is even more damning for Bass:
Jan. 2nd: The National Weather Service for Los Angeles warned there was potential for moderate to strong Santa Ana Winds and extreme fire conditions Tuesday through Thursday.
Jan 3rd:The White House announced that Bass would join a Presidential Delegation to attend the inauguration of Ghana’s president.
The National Weather Service said that a Fire Weather Watch is in effect Tuesday through Friday for portions of Los Angeles and Ventura counties.
Bass left on the 4th for her trip, per her public schedule, and did not return until Jan. 8th.
The former Congresswoman is running for reelection in 2026 but, as we reported, there appears to be a rightward shift in LA in the aftermath of the wildfires. If that trend holds, Bass will have a lot more time on her hands to take those overseas trips and contemplate where it all went wrong.
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