Work in Progress: Mayor Karen Bass

Summary

Work in Progress: Mayor Karen Bass

Podcast: Work in Progress with Sophia Bush
Host: Sophia Bush
Guest: Mayor Karen Bass, 43rd Mayor of Los Angeles
Release Date: June 12, 2025

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Introduction

In the June 12, 2025 episode of Work in Progress with Sophia Bush, host Sophia Bush engages in a profound and timely conversation with Mayor Karen Bass, the 43rd mayor of Los Angeles. The episode delves into the myriad challenges facing Los Angeles amidst national political turbulence, focusing on public health, immigration policies, and community resilience.

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Mayor Karen Bass's Background

Sophia opens the discussion by highlighting Mayor Bass's extensive background in public health and community organizing. With degrees spanning emergency medicine, philosophy, and extensive experience in the US House of Representatives and California State Assembly, Bass embodies a multifaceted approach to governance and community service.

Sophia Bush [03:10]:
"Mayor Bass has carried her passion for public health through her entire career, her many degrees, and she has been a community organizer for nearly as long."

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Current Challenges Facing Los Angeles

The conversation shifts to the pressing issues currently impacting Los Angeles, particularly the aggressive immigration enforcement actions emanating from the White House. Sophia expresses concern over the administration's policies that threaten to undermine public health services, deregulate environmental protections, and destabilize low-income families.

Sophia Bush [06:33]:
"One in 9 Americans lives in California and 1 in 35 Americans lives in Los Angeles County. There are 40 states in this country with less population than we have in LA County."

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Impact of Federal Policies on LA

Mayor Bass addresses the recent ICE raids in Los Angeles, emphasizing their disproportionate impact on immigrant communities. She underscores the emotional and economic toll these actions have on families and the broader community.

Mayor Karen Bass [17:56]:
"We have no idea how long this is going to go on. Is it going to be every day? How many are they going to do a day? Where is it going to be?"
Sophia Bush [20:05]:
"They’re deporting U.S. citizens. They’re deporting our kids. This is not acceptable."

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Dealing with Misinformation

A significant portion of the discussion focuses on combating misinformation and disinformation surrounding the ICE raids and their consequences. Mayor Bass highlights the role of social media in exacerbating fear and misunderstanding among the public.

Mayor Karen Bass [10:52]:
"Everything was fine. There was nothing happening on Thursday, that warranted Friday, and then that led into Saturday, Sunday, and Monday."

Sophia Bush [12:35]:
"If we don't know our history, we're doomed to repeat it."

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Community Impact and Responses

Mayor Bass elaborates on the economic ramifications of the raids, noting the vital roles immigrants play in sectors like construction, hospitality, and manufacturing. She underscores the fear and uncertainty inflicted on the community, which disrupts daily life and economic stability.

Sophia Bush [41:37]:
"It’s not so much the numbers, because we don't even know the numbers. But when you do things like this, then people don’t want to go to work. They’re afraid to go to work."

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Strategies for Empowering Residents

The interview concludes with actionable strategies to empower residents amid these challenges. Mayor Bass emphasizes the importance of community awareness, education about legal rights, and fostering solidarity to navigate and resist oppressive policies.

Mayor Karen Bass [45:00]:
"The most important thing is for people to be well informed about their rights… knowing the specific questions to answer is what people need to make sure that they're well educated about."

Sophia Bush [44:58]:
"For those of us who want to know how to defend our neighbors… do you want us to know right now?"

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Conclusion

Sophia and Mayor Bass wrap up the conversation on a note of resilience and hope, acknowledging the strength of the Los Angeles community in the face of adversity. The episode serves as a poignant reminder of the ongoing struggles and the collective effort required to foster a safe, inclusive, and thriving city.

Mayor Karen Bass [46:11]:
"Always thank you so much for what you do for our city, Mayor."

Sophia Bush [46:13]:
"Bye bye."

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Notable Quotes with Timestamps

• Sophia Bush [03:10]:
  "Mayor Bass has carried her passion for public health through her entire career, her many degrees, and she has been a community organizer for nearly as long."

• Sophia Bush [06:33]:
  "One in 9 Americans lives in California and 1 in 35 Americans lives in Los Angeles County. There are 40 states in this country with less population than we have in LA County."

• Mayor Karen Bass [10:52]:
  "Everything was fine. There was nothing happening on Thursday, that warranted Friday, and then that led into Saturday, Sunday, and Monday."

• Sophia Bush [12:35]:
  "If we don't know our history, we're doomed to repeat it."

• Sophia Bush [20:05]:
  "They’re deporting U.S. citizens. They’re deporting our kids. This is not acceptable."

• Sophia Bush [41:37]:
  "It’s not so much the numbers, because we don't even know the numbers. But when you do things like this, then people don’t want to go to work. They’re afraid to go to work."

• Mayor Karen Bass [45:00]:
  "The most important thing is for people to be well informed about their rights… knowing the specific questions to answer is what people need to make sure that they're well educated about."

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This episode of Work in Progress with Sophia Bush offers an insightful exploration of the complexities facing Los Angeles under current federal policies, highlighting Mayor Karen Bass's leadership and the resilience of the community. Through candid dialogue and actionable insights, listeners gain a deeper understanding of the intersection between local governance and national politics.

Transcript

[Ryan Seacrest]

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[Sophia]

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[Karen Bass]

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[Ryan Seacrest]

You hope to see you back here.

[Karen Bass]

I'm Lester Holt. It's carried forward. Tom Yamas is there for us. Firefighters are still working around the clock. As the world changes, we look for endures. We are coming on the air with breaking news right now. We look for a constant and from one era to the next, trust is the anchor for NBC Nightly News, I'm Tom Yamas. A new chapter begins NBC Nightly News with Tom Yamas evenings on NBC. Hey, it's Ryan Seacrest for Albertsons and safeway. Now through June 24th, score hot summer savings and earn four times the points. Look for in store tags on Items like Pepsi 2 liter bottles, poppy prebiotic sodas, all laundry detergent and Kinder's seasoning blend. Then clip the offer in the app for automatic event long savings. Enjoy savings on top of savings when you shop in store or online for easy drive up and go pickup or Delivery subject to availability restrictions. Visit Albertsons or Safeway.com for more details.

[Sophia]

Hi, everyone. It's Sophia. Welcome to work in Progr.

[Ryan Seacrest]

Foreign.

[Sophia]

As many of you know, I consider myself very blessed to be a Californian and even more blessed to be an Angelino. I loved growing up in la, and I love the city for its diversity and its energy and its art and its people. And as my home city is being ravaged by ice and aggression, coming from the White House, I can't believe I have to even say that out loud, but here we are. I wanted to ask some questions of someone who has been tasked with holding us together and tasked by us, by the people. Today's guest is none other than our esteemed Mayor Karen Bass. She serves as our 43rd mayor of Los Angeles. And prior to becoming mayor, she served in the US House of Representatives in the 33rd and 37th district in California, also in the State assembly, and was the speaker, speaker of the California State assembly during her final term. Karen is also an Angeleno. She is someone who inspires me so much. She's carried her passion for public health through her entire career, through her many degrees, and she has been a community organizer for nearly as long. I don't know many emergency medicine physician assistants or clinical instructors who've also studied philosophy, but Mayor Bass has done it all. I so appreciate the way she looks at our human responsibilities, how we show up for each other, how we make space for each other, and how we go farther together. So today, as the president wants to put a target on the city of Los Angeles back, I want to talk to the woman who's actually standing in front of our city with a shield and making sure that everyone in Los Angeles and in the surrounding areas knows they're safe with us. Let's dive in with Mayor Karen Bass. Mayor Bass, thank you so much for joining us today. It means the world to have you call in from Los Angeles. And first and foremost, I just want to thank you for all of your efforts to hold the city together in such a. A fraught time for the nation.

[Ryan Seacrest]

Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. I appreciate that. It is a tough time, but, you know, we've been down this road before. We'll be okay, but it doesn't mean that we don't fight our way.

[Sophia]

Absolutely. Absolutely. And something I admire so much about you, for folks who might not be from our city or necessarily know everything about your background, is that you've always been so deeply invested in public health in California, in our city of Los Angeles, you know, From Keck Medical School to Cal State University, you have leaned towards studying health and science, and you've been a community organizer since the 1980s. You are the definition of a person who shows up for good for their community. So I want the world to know how long you've been at this before we dive into what's happening in the present moment.

[Ryan Seacrest]

Well, thank you. I appreciate you raising that. And I do think that a lot of times people do not see the centrality of health in so many social and so economic issues.

[Sophia]

Absolutely. And I think perhaps it's a great background for the moment we find ourselves in. You know, we are experiencing, six months into this second Trump administration, so much national trauma with people realizing that this administration wants to cut our health services, wants to deregulate our clean air and water protections, wants to destabilize families that are low income from having any access to things like food, I mean, basic resources. And that all speaks to public health in our city in particular. I think it's incredibly relevant because what folks who don't live near us might not know is that 1 in 9Americans lives in California and 1 in 35Americans lives in Los Angeles County.

[Ryan Seacrest]

Oh, that's.

[Sophia]

Yes. I mean, a massive statistic. There are 40 states in this country with less population than we have in LA County. Madam Mayor. And I say that for our listeners at home, just to give them the backdrop of how big our city is and the way our city shows up for its people, including our incredible immigrant communities, is because these are our neighbors and our friends.

[Ryan Seacrest]

You know, that's. That's exactly right. But I will tell you that after serving 12 years in Congress and watching year after year after year, Republicans wanting to cut everything, anything that has to do with people who are poor, and what I believe is at the root of it, is that they have absolutely no experience with people who are struggling economically and they can't get themselves out of. Well, you just need to do X, Y and Z. Not that there's any systemic barriers, not that there's any reasons. It's the fault of the individual, therefore, they don't deserve. But corporations deserve everything.

[Sophia]

Oh, wow. What an insane thing, isn't it, that we treat corporations like people more than people. You know, I. I think you illustrate such a beautiful point that if you're not on the ground, if you don't know people, if you don't know their struggle, if you've never known a family that's trying to decide between paying rent or putting food on the table, you might not Understand what those decisions feel like.

[Ryan Seacrest]

Right?

[Sophia]

Clearly, Mike Johnson, who's the speaker of the House, doesn't, you know, he's out there saying that their six figure salary of $174,000 a year and free health care as elected officials is not enough to support a family in America while he's trying to cut things like SNAP for families that live below the poverty line. Social services help people generate more successful lives. They don't make people lazy. We know this. We know that immigrants in our country commit crimes at first, far lower rates than citizens. But for some reason, these talking points that we know not to be true about how, oh, it's that guy over there, it's, it's his fault that you're not doing better, or he's the one who took your job, or he's someone you can't trust, they get through. Because fear takes hold, especially when, when it's making you afraid of something irrational. Understanding the, the human tendency to be afraid and what we're up against at the federal level in terms of harm being done. How, how does that make you, as the mayor of our great city, analyze where this kind of rhetoric is coming from? How does it make you operate in our community, knowing how much we in LA love all of our neighbors? How do you kind of contextualize the, the misinformation they're spreading about these communities? As you know, ICE is moving through Los Angeles.

[Ryan Seacrest]

Well, you know, I think that oftentimes we do not pay attention or even are knowledgeable of history. And so it's very, very important to link events that are happening today with events that happened in the past to give people some sort of insight into as to where it could go. For me, the way I deal with it here is really lifting up the reasons why people struggle. Because in Los Angeles, it's a very, very expensive city and the income divide is massive. For example, in our city, we have 62 billionaires. We have, I don't even know how many millionaires. And so to explain to people how much it costs to rent, to rent an apartment, to, you know, put gas in your car, you total those up and paint a very real picture. And then you take away the belief that this isn't, this is the lack of individual effort. I mean, if they just worked harder, they would be a billionaire like me. And I'm a billionaire because I'm so brilliant, as opposed to, I inherited $400 million from my. And then, by the way, I made it all by myself.

[Sophia]

Must be nice, honey, right?

[Ryan Seacrest]

I think it's important to illustrate in very practical terms, link it to history, paint a picture why people are struggling, attach the policies that contribute to that, and then put it in its historical context. That's the way I analyze things. And I think it's so important because we tend to be an in the moment culture and we don't link up to the past. We don't link up to systemic structures. We just talk about what is in front of us.

[Sophia]

Right. And if we don't know our history, we're doomed to repeat it. You know, there's a reason the phrase exists.

[Ryan Seacrest]

Absolutely.

[Sophia]

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[Karen Bass]

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[Sophia]

Thanks. And here's my old phone to trade in.

[Ryan Seacrest]

You don't need a trade in when.

[Karen Bass]

You switch to T Mobile. We'll give you a new iPhone 16 Pro. Plus we'll help you pay off your old phone up to 800 bucks and you still get to keep it.

[Sophia]

There's always a trade in.

[Ryan Seacrest]

Not right now.

[Karen Bass]

@ T Mobile.

[Sophia]

I feel like I have to give you something in return for karma.

[Karen Bass]

That's okay.

[Sophia]

I don't really have much in my purse. Oh, let's see. Hand sanitizer. It's lavender.

[Karen Bass]

I'm good.

[Sophia]

Seriously, Let me check this pocket. Oh, mints.

[Ryan Seacrest]

Really, I'm fine.

[Sophia]

Oh, I have raisins. I'm a mom. Wait, wait one sec. I've got cupcakes in the car.

[Karen Bass]

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[Sophia]

I am curious knowing the history of of our city as well as you do. Having worked on advocacy as well as you have. I mean I have watched the number of unhoused people you've gotten off the streets and into safe housing, into restorative repair organizations in in ways that no one has been able to. In the city, in. In so many years prior to your becoming our mayor, it's. It is such a massive city. To understand, again, one in 35Americans in Los Angeles county, how do you then work at the state level, like with our governor? Because y' all are. You're doing the work, you know, from helping us recoup from the fires to dealing with this. And I can imagine, although you are not the mayor of San Diego, when you knew ICE raids began in San Diego, were you then in communication with the state, understanding how quickly they'd be in Los Angeles? Did you know Los Angeles was next? Is it kind of a guessing game with these agencies? Do they. Do they tell you anything?

[Ryan Seacrest]

No, as a matter of fact, right now, we have no idea how long this is going to go on. Is it going to be every day? How many are they going to do a day? Where is it going to be? No, we are not knowledgeable of any of that. In terms of other mayors. Yes, mayors are in contact with each other all the time. As a matter of fact, once a week we meet, and that is not all of the mayors in California, but it's the mayors from the 13th largest cities. And we typically have an advocacy agenda that always centers on homelessness. But there might be other issues. Yes, Mary, Gloria and I are definitely in regular contact. But again, that is part of the reason for the sense of fear and terror and just angst, you know, anxiety. You are an undocumented person. You've been working every day for 20 years, you know, supporting your family legally. And then I go to work today, should I go to this kid's school and drop them off? You know, should I go to the store? I mean, that level of fear and anxiety, I mean, I think the. Well, I mean, you just can't imagine it. You know, am I going to be walking down the street? Is somebody going to snatch me? You know, and so that. It's exactly your point of, are you in contact with. No, they do not communicate with us. In terms of state legislature, yes, I'm very, very comfortable there. I served there for six years, and speaker in my last two years. I have a fine relationship with the governor. We collaborate on a lot of things. You know, we spent the first five months of the year collaborating on the fires, and now we're collaborating on the presidential overreach.

[Sophia]

Right. Well, and that's just it. The. The overreach is the problem. What the president is doing is blatantly unconstitutional. It is a violation of the law. And what frustrates Me is as a constituent, you know, I'm not an elected official, but I pay attention to politics. He would not call the National Guard in on an actual violent mob beating and killing police officers and trying to kill elected officials in our state House.

[Ryan Seacrest]

Right.

[Sophia]

But he sent the National Guard in against the will of California state elected officials when protests were still peaceful. And I'd love if you could speak to that because I know there's a lot of misinformation and disinformation, and I know it began with certain issues around the wildfires and y' all have done as best you can to tell people what the facts are. But now it seems the misinformation is even worse because AI is powering crazy videos, crazy images that are not real. So how are you, how are you dealing with that? Letting the public know what is happening? Letting people know that prior to the, the escalation that began with uniformed officers, these protests were largely peaceful.

[Ryan Seacrest]

Well, they were largely peaceful, but even when they weren't, it was a small amount of folks last Saturday night, for example, when the President was tweeting that he led the peace in LA because the National Guard did a splendid job. The National Guard was not even here. They didn't arrive until the next day. And the big outburst that he was talking about was about 120 people and 20 arrested. And so it doesn't make sense any way, shape or form what you're referring to around AI I'm actually not aware of, but we have just been communicating on every platform possible what is really happening and has been violence. I had to do a curfew. Vandalism is really what has been the most prolific graffiti, just everywhere. And then on Monday night there was looting of stores. And there was a little bit of that on Sunday, but on Monday it got worse. The point is, is that the National Guard is not doing any of that. They are guarding one building. They are guarding the federal building. Anything else that's happened has happened with local police. And local police, they might have other people with them, the sheriffs, other departments, but I think it's always important to know why this even happened, because one week ago today, Los Angeles was completely peaceful. Nothing was happening. The problem started on Friday when ICE came and did raids on several workplaces. And they also did a high profile, pretty aggressive arrest of David Huerta, one of our beloved, well respected labor leaders. That is what tick the whole thing off. And so you would hear like it was a purposeful provocation because again, everything was fine. There was nothing happening on Thursday, that warranted Friday, and then that led into Saturday, Sunday, and Monday. So it is important to look back at the origin. But one thing that you said that I think is really important now, this is even remembering recent history. Okay. In Trump's first term, he did everything he could to change the judiciary in terms of nominating and having and pass judges that, interestingly, were all around in the same age range, which is around in their 40s. So what you said is blatantly illegal. I'm not sure anymore, because it depends on a court ruling where if this had happened six years ago, we would have said, well, I mean, that's just ridiculous. The courts will throw that out. I mean, we don't even need to worry about it. Oh, no, we need to worry about the courts at every level. So it's important to remember what happened before, because I think a lot of people would just say, I'm not worried about it. It's just, you know, we can just rely on the courts.

[Sophia]

Absolutely. And, you know, to try to reshape a democracy's judiciary, to give yourself monarch powers, is simply un American, and it bears repeating for all of us. And, you know, something that you just said is. Is something I really want to noodle on for a beat for our friends at home, because the. The provocation, as you reference, is really crucial here when you consider, again, one in 35Americans lives in LA County. And we know the blueprint of Project 2025 is to weaponize the American military against our own citizens, starting with blue cities, to come to the biggest democratic city in America and provoke its people, enact violence, arrest a labor leader for standing, quote, unquote, in their way to raid children's graduation ceremonies and pick up people who. And this is important as well. You referenced this. Are here legally. Being undocumented is not illegal. People who are going through their hearings and their asylum procedures, some of whom it takes 15 years for, are here legally. They are doing it the right way. They are simply not documented yet. That's why these people are being arrested at their court hearings with their families. They are provoking our people by doing harm. They are choosing cruelty. They denied Maxine Waters her absolute congressional right to go into that ICE facility and check on David Huerta, even though it is the law that she be allowed in. They are coming to our cities to act lawlessly and harm our neighbors to try to provoke a response. And what's interesting to me is the protests that began, as you said, very peacefully, even within 24 hours, for, again, one in 35 people in the whole country lives in LA and 27 people got arrested. That's not a big deal for us. It's not a big protest. It's a couple of people being a little squirrely and like LA has seen way bigger things happen. And so to say that that is the reason to deploy the National Guard when we have the LAPD at its size and budget source level is simply laughable. And I think these things really are important to hammer home for our listeners so they can go out armed with these facts and make sure they don't get bamboozled by, you know, the guy saying the National Guard saved us on Saturday when they didn't even get there till Sunday. Like, come on, bro, you gotta fact check yourself a little bit here.

[Ryan Seacrest]

Well, there is an opinion about facts, right?

[Sophia]

True. Yeah, you speak the truth. Madam Mayor, can I ask you a question? Just on a. I, I know we're talking about all the politics, but I'm also really worried about our neighbors. And so to take it local for a minute. Yes, for the folks in la, but look, we know ICE is coming everywhere. Do you know who they're targeting is because they've said it's criminals. We know it's not. It's mothers and fathers, it's people who are, you know, at their asylum hearings who are upstanding res. Is it strictly based on skin color and low income areas? How, how are they finding these folks who pay their taxes and participate in their communities?

[Ryan Seacrest]

Let me just say, and let me make it a little worse. You talked about people going through their asylum hearings. There are people with green cards who are turning in, turning up for their annual appointment, which is supposed to happen. Right. So they are definitely here legally. All they're doing is their check in appointment and then they get detained and maybe with their families. So if we remember, yes, we started with violent drug dealers, gang members, and now we're at a place where exactly what you said, it's parents, it's people at a graduation. I know that ICE agent showed up near my grandson's school and what they did was they snatched a couple of street vendors selling food. I mean, again, I just have a hard time connecting that up with the original goals. But I do want to speak for a minute to the violence that has happened, that has happened especially. I don't believe that anybody that is doing that is actually doing it in support of the immigrant community. They couldn't be.

[Sophia]

No.

[Ryan Seacrest]

Because if they supported the immigrant community, they would not be provoking and providing a reason Quote, unquote, for there to be federal intervention. In part, what I think is happening here is that it's social media driven and those things that is typical where social media gathers people to do a street takeover or something like that. So I think that that's really important. And then some of the other stories I've heard, people being picked up at, a customer being picked up at a car wash and his son being left there to make his way home and take care of his family. I had somebody tell me that they went to their grocery store and the shelves were empty. Why? Because people weren't showing up to work. So look at the economy in Los Angeles. We have very specific sectors of our economy that cannot function without immigrant labor. If you think about construction, if you think about hospitality, that's just. But there's a lot of manufacturing jobs. And by the way, the plant that was raided on Friday was owned, was Korean owned. And the people that were detained were both Korean and Latino. And so one of the biggest problems that the immigrant rights organizations are having, and you know, we're fortunate in LA to have a well established, well respected immigrant rights community. And they, for years and years, but they said they've never experienced where they could not contact people. They couldn't to their lawyers, which is, you know, to me, denying them due process and also the family members. So when you have, when the raid is happening in a workplace and then people start calling their family on their cell phone and then the family shows up at the workplace watching their relatives being carted out into who knows where they downtown, if they're in another county, if they've been shipped off to El Salvador. The latest I heard is that he's talking about taking the people from LA and bringing them to Guantanamo rather than, I heard that too, closing Guantanamo because there's no need for it anymore. You know, you are looking to occupy it with as many people as possible. And just think about all the money that the city of LA is having to spend. All of the money that is being spent on the military that has absolutely no role here. Do you know if all of the soldiers that he's talking about are rolled out into our city, do you know there'll be more military in Los Angeles than remains today in Iraq? And so those kind of things are just really, really crazy. That is happening. And talk about creating a sense of fear and terror, but I do feel like that we're a test case. I think they're like, flood the zone with strategy and tactic and let's see how it plays with the American people. Let's see how it plays in Los Angeles. But the trap you're kind of in is that if people rebel too much, then that becomes the pretense. Well, let's roll troops. The other thing I think that's so important, and I love what you're saying in terms of one of 35 people. I'm. I'm gonna have to use that. I think, I think that is great. But when you look at our city, that is 500 square miles. Protests occupy about four or five streets.

[Sophia]

Yes.

[Ryan Seacrest]

Maybe, maybe a square mile. The curfew that I impose covers about six square miles.

[Sophia]

Right.

[Ryan Seacrest]

That's for a curfew. Six square miles out of 500.

[Sophia]

Yes.

[Ryan Seacrest]

The unrest, the vandalism has been about five streets.

[Sophia]

Yes.

[Ryan Seacrest]

So the portrayal on TV, and this isn't even AI. The portrayal on the news, especially the national news, is that there's massive civil unrest happening. I mean, what did Trump say? The city would have burnt down. The city would have been. Had he not saved the day. And I'm going to go back to the fact that the National Guard is guarding one building. These response has been Los Angeles Police Department, sheriffs and other adjacent departments that are providing mutual aid. It is not necessary to one, take power away from the governor and federalize the National Guard. Now, anytime we have needed the National Guard, the governor is right there and will cooperate wholeheartedly as he did in the fires. And I played a incredible role, everybody, tremendous fans of the National Saints area.

[Sophia]

Well, but I think there's also something. Let's, let's be practical as well. When you actually respect our armed services, you don't want to waste their time.

[Ryan Seacrest]

Right.

[Sophia]

You don't, you don't want them bust into a city with no lodging, no food, no water, you know, for, for the President of the United States to, to send our military around, like their props, like, you know, extras on the set of his reality TV show, is really, for me, incredibly disrespectful. Not only is it incendiary for the city, not only is it inflammatory, not only is it, you know, absolutely fascist. It's disrespectful to the men and women wearing those uniforms.

[Ryan Seacrest]

Exactly. And it's an unnecessary deployment. But let's talk about the military for a quick second. The military is trained to fight wars on foreign soil.

[Sophia]

Yes.

[Ryan Seacrest]

They do not arrest. They do not do crowd control. They don't do any of that. So what is the purpose here? Is it to turn the military on the American people? Do Angelenos need to be shot. I don't understand it. So when you say a prop, I just don't know any other way of looking at these things.

[Sophia]

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[Karen Bass]

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[Sophia]

Thanks. And here's my old phone to trade in.

[Ryan Seacrest]

You don't need to trade in.

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[Sophia]

There's always a trade in. Not right now.

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[Sophia]

I feel like I have to give you something in return for karma.

[Ryan Seacrest]

That's okay.

[Sophia]

I don't really have much in my purse. Oh, let's see. Hand sanitizer. It's lavender.

[Karen Bass]

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[Ryan Seacrest]

Seriously?

[Sophia]

Let me check this pocket. Oh, mints.

[Ryan Seacrest]

Really, I'm fine.

[Sophia]

Oh, I have raisins. I'm a mom. Wait, wait one sec. I've got cupcakes in the car.

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[Sophia]

Can I ask you about this? I'm very curious and and listen, to be clear, for folks at home, you know there were deportations at these numbers and sometimes higher in the Obama administration and the Clinton administration. Our government does track folks and yes, I think we all agree no matter how we vote, if there's a dangerous criminal in the country that's not supposed to be here, get them out. But people's moms and dads and and children. This is not acceptable. Why? Why do you think this is causing such chaos when other presidents have also worked with federal enforcement? Is, is it different because it's meant to be a fear tactic?

[Ryan Seacrest]

Well, I think it is different because it's meant to be a fear tactic like you described. But I think it's also the aggressiveness that they have used the fanfare that accompanies it, the rhetoric that accompanies it from D.C. you know, if you're out describing our city as overrun by migrants, a city that absolute chaos, you know, when you. When you do things like that, then it leaves people with, well, okay, this is the reason why it's being done. So you're right. I mean, a lot of people were deported under President Obama, President Biden. What I am not sure of personally is how that was carried out. But what I'm absolutely sure of is the rhetoric that did not take place on this.

[Sophia]

Yes. Yeah, we weren't trying to demonize folks.

[Ryan Seacrest]

The demonizing of people who are in this country. The demonizing of people who. I mean, they've gone from violent felons to saying, anybody that's in the country is illegal if they came here. Now, I heard the news today that he's offering $5 million trump cards. I don't know how he does that. You heard that? But the trump. If you pay $5 million, you get a gold card and you get entry into the country.

[Sophia]

Right.

[Ryan Seacrest]

To bring 67 or to invite 67,000 people from South Africa to come here. It's clear that some people are welcome and some people aren't. But the thing that is so bizarre is that if you were to expel every undocumented person or person who was in wobbly status, the city would stop.

[Sophia]

Well, the nation would stop.

[Ryan Seacrest]

I don't know who would do childcare. I don't know who. Gardening, landscaping, and childcare I'm referring to as nannies, people in homes. I don't know who's going to do that work. And maybe there's other people that could do that work, but they're not going to be found immediately at such massive numbers.

[Sophia]

Exactly. And by the way, I just want to clarify. It's not that our immigrant communities are. Are only valuable to us because of the work they do. It's that the work they do is invaluable. These are our neighbors. These are our friends, and they are also integral parts of our society, our communities, our neighborhoods, our cities, our states, this country. You know it. I don't think, to your point, people would have a clue how to deal with the vacuum in this society were all of these people suddenly gone from our country? And why would we want them to be right?

[Ryan Seacrest]

Who's going to rebuild the cities? You know, who's going to rebuild the 500,000 units of housing that we need in Los Angeles? Who's going to take care of People in hotels and restaurants. Who's going to do that work? So what he is doing is an absolute blow to our economy. And understand it's not so much the numbers, because we don't even know the numbers. I have heard now that 300 people are detained, okay, that's a relatively small number considering our population of 3.8. However, when you do things like this, then people don't want to go to work. They're afraid to go to work. In the first administration, kids didn't want to go to school, parents didn't want to go to work. They were paralyzed. So it's the intentional drama that is inflicted on the city and is inflicted on our population to say, any day we could come get you, don't block the house. But I don't know, your house isn't sacred. We'll come to your house to get you. Am I on the list? Is it going to happen to me? Will they take from my children? You saw the nine year old that got deported, his father was being deported. And what they've said in this administration is, oh, no, we're not going to separate families. If, if you are of mixed status, then you all go, yeah, well, and.

[Sophia]

They'Re, they're deporting U.S. citizens. They're deporting our kids. Now, it's a lot. Look, it's a lot. That's heavy. I was going to ask you about, you know, what folks should do if a family member is picked up by ice. Who should they call? But part of the strategy, as you said earlier, is to ensure that people don't know how to communicate with their loved ones. And really the overarching feeling that it seems the administration wants us all to be racked with is fear, uncertainty, not knowing the answer to these questions. As a leader of the city and also a community organizer with decades of getting people together for good under your belt, for those folks that are scared to go to work, scared to walk the streets, scared of what neighbors they can trust. For those of us who want to know how to defend our neighbors.

[Ryan Seacrest]

What.

[Sophia]

Do you want us to know right now?

[Ryan Seacrest]

Well, I will tell you. The most important thing is for people to be well informed about their rights, which you could certainly find on the city's website, but you could also find on the website of organizations like Chirla that, you know, provide that information and also to know your rights. Like, for example, if I showed up at the house, I don't have to open the door. What kind of warrant do they have? And so knowing the specific questions to answer is what people need to make sure that they're well educated about. Thank you. Thank you, thank you, thank you. I appreciate the time on your show.

[Sophia]

Absolutely. Thank you so much for joining us. Please go. Be well, be safe. And thank you for holding the line.

[Ryan Seacrest]

Well, I appreciate it. I am going to continue to do this. I know that this time will pass. And one in 35. I got it.

[Sophia]

It's pretty great in LA county, right? I was like, oh, okay.

[Ryan Seacrest]

All right. It's been wonderful to speak to you, so thank you so much and thank you for your kind words and support. It means a lot right about now.

[Sophia]

Always thank you so much for what you do for our city Mayor.

[Ryan Seacrest]

Okay, bye.

[Sophia]

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[Karen Bass]

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[Sophia]

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[Ryan Seacrest]

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