Latest news with #Democratic-majority
Yahoo
2 days ago
- Politics
- Yahoo
Karen Bass in hot seat as Trump targets Los Angeles – but it's not her first crisis
In the mid-1990s, Karen Bass was in the streets of Los Angeles, protesting alongside Latino activists against new laws that targeted undocumented immigrants and were expected to land more young men of color in prison. These days, Bass is monitoring the status of protests against US immigration agents from a helicopter, as the Democratic mayor of Los Angeles. Bass, a 71-year-old former community organizer, is leading the city's response to an extraordinary confrontation staged by the federal government, as federal agents have raided workplaces and parking lots, arresting immigrant workers in ways family members have compared to 'kidnappings', and Donald Trump sent in the national guard and hundreds of US marines in response to local demonstrations. As Trump and other Republicans have tried to paint Bass as the negligent guardian of a city full of wild criminal behavior, Bass has pushed back hard. The political career of Los Angeles' first Black female mayor was forged during the chaos and violence of the 1992 LA uprising, which left more than 50 people dead, and in the long struggle afterwards to rebuild a more equal city. When the Trump administration tried to depict a few protests in downtown Los Angeles as rioting equivalent to the aftermath of the Rodney King trial in 1992, Bass scoffed: 'There is zero comparison,' noting that, as a Black community leader in South Central Los Angeles, 'I was at the epicenter when it was occurring.' Bass has earned widespread praise within California for her forceful denunciation of Trump's immigration raids, and her focus on the safety of LA's immigrant residents, and the terror the raids have caused. She has repeatedly described immigrants as central to the city's identity. 'We are a city of immigrants, and we have always embraced that,' Bass said. She has also made clear that what's happening in Los Angeles has wider importance, and that the tactics the administration is testing out in one Democratic-majority city are likely to be used elsewhere. 'I don't think our city should be used as an experiment,' she said last week. As city leadership, she's been holding it down Eunisses Hernandez, LA city council Bass, a force in California state politics before she spent a decade in Congress, built her reputation on consensus-building and pragmatism, not political grandstanding. Once a favorite of congressional Republicans for her willingness to work across the aisle, she is now denouncing Trump administration officials for the 'outright lie' of their characterization of Los Angeles as a war zone, and saying bluntly that 'this is chaos that was started in Washington DC.' 'As city leadership, she's been holding it down,' said Eunisses Hernandez, a progressive Los Angeles city council member who represents a majority-Latino district north of downtown. 'All of our leaders are navigating unprecedented waters.' In the short time Bass has been mayor – she was inaugurated in December 2022 – she has been faced with a series of escalating post-Covid crises, starting with the city's long-running struggle with homelessness and rising housing costs, then a historic double Hollywood strike in 2023, followed by ongoing economic problems in the city's crucial film and TV business. As multiple wildfires raged across the city this January, she was slammed for having left the city for Ghana during a time of high wildfire risk and dodging questions about her absence. Her leadership during the wildfires left her political future in question, with half the city's voters viewing her unfavorably, according to a May poll. The challenges Bass faces in leading Los Angeles through this new crisis are also only beginning, even as the first wave of Los Angeles' anti-immigration raid protests have quieted in the wake of Saturday's large nationwide demonstrations against the Trump administration. 'Our city is under siege,' said Roland Palencia, an organizational consultant and longtime local activist. 'The plan here is basically, strangle the city: economically, politically, every which way.' At least 2,000 members of the national guard and hundreds of US marines are still staged in downtown Los Angeles. A legal battle over whether Trump illegally deployed the national guard over the protests of California's governor is still playing out: after a Tuesday hearing, a federal appeals court seemed likely to keep the national guard under Trump's control as the litigation continues. I do not believe that individuals that commit vandalism and violence in our city really are in support of immigrants Karen Bass While denouncing the Trump administration for causing chaos in Los Angeles, Bass has also had to confront some of those taking to the streets, demanding that protests be 'peaceful' and responding sharply to anti-Ice graffiti on downtown buildings and businesses, noting that the city was supposed to host the Fifa World Cup in 2026. 'I do not believe that individuals that commit vandalism and violence in our city really are in support of immigrants, they have another agenda,' she said on 10 June. 'The violence and the damage is unacceptable, it is not going to be tolerated, and individuals will be arrested and prosecuted to the full extent of the law.' Meanwhile, federal agents are still conducting unpredictable immigration raids across the Los Angeles area, detaining people at work, in parking lots, and even at a weekend swap meet. Family members have been left without any information about their loved ones' whereabouts for days: lawyers and elected officials have described horrific conditions in the facilities where suddenly detained immigrants are being held. On Tuesday, Bass lifted the evening curfew that she had set for a swath of downtown Los Angeles a week before, one that major Los Angeles restaurants had complained had cost them tens of thousands of dollars. But the economic shock waves of the immigration raids are still rippling through the city, with many immigrants, even those with legal status to work in the US, afraid of going to work, or even leaving the house. The message Angelenos have taken from the federal raids so far, Hernandez said, was 'It doesn't matter whether you're documented or not: if you look brown, if you look Latino, if you look like an immigrant, we're going to stop you.' A third of Los Angeles county's roughly 10 million residents were born outside the United States. Half are Latino. An estimated 1 million people here are undocumented. Since the federal government stepped up the raids, swaths of the city once bustling with immigrant businesses and immigrant customers are unusually quiet, community members and local politicians say. 'It is pretty profound to walk up and down the streets and to see the empty streets, it reminded me of Covid,' Bass told the Los Angeles Times during a Father's Day visit to Boyle Heights, a historic Latino neighborhood. Bass has urged Angelenos to help local businesses harmed by the Trump administration's targeting. 'Now is the time to support your local small business and show that LA stands strong and united,' she posted on X on Tuesday. But Hernandez, the city council member, warned that the economic pain of the raids could escalate even further, particularly as immigrant families afraid to send breadwinners to work over the past two weeks faced the threat of being evicted from their homes. 'We cannot afford to have more people fall into the eviction to homelessness pipeline,' she said. When small businesses lost money, Hernandez added, the city's revenue was hurt, as well: 'Our budget – a significant portion of it is made from locally generated tax dollars,' she said. 'That revenue is drying up.' And the city government, already struggling with a huge budget deficit after the wildfires this January, also faced new crisis-related costs, Hernandez said: 'We're spending millions upon millions in police overtime.' She noted that the police department had estimated Ice-raid-related overtime costs at $12m within the first two weeks. Many journalists and activists have criticized the Los Angeles police department's own response to the protests of the past two weeks as violent and heavy-handed. The city of Los Angeles is currently facing a lawsuit from press freedom organizations over the police department's use of force against journalists. Palencia, the longtime activist and organizational consultant, said Bass's commitment to Los Angeles' immigrant community, and to Latinos in particular, was not in doubt. Bass's connection to the Latino community is deep, Palencia said, forged both through her early political activism as the founder of the Community Coalition, a non-profit which built ties between Black and Latino communities in order to jointly confront the challenges of the crack epidemic in the 1990s, and through her own family. Bass's ex-husband was Latino, and she remains very close to her four Mexican American stepchildren and their children. But, Palencia argued, leaders like Bass and the California governor, Gavin Newsom, will need a long-term leadership plan, one that gives more guidance to all the state's residents on how to respond to a new and dangerous situation. Even though Los Angeles had had a quieter week, the feeling that the city was 'under siege' continued, Palencia said. 'It's kind of like a cat-and-mouse situation,' he said. 'It's very fluid – and it can blow up any time.'
Yahoo
10-06-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
NY lawmaker lambastes failed commemoration of Oct 7 attack, as Dem leadership accused of 'antisemitism'
The New York assemblyman behind an effort to formally commemorate the Oct. 7, 2023, terror attack in Israel lambasted leadership for tanking what was supposed to be a "poignant" bill remembering the tragedy. Assemblyman Lester Chang, R-Brooklyn – one of the few GOP members from New York City in the 103-47 Democratic-majority chamber – said he had been working on a resolution for New York state to officially remember the terror attack since hostage negotiations began a year ago. "I'm a Navy veteran of 24 years and I did a tour in Afghanistan. So I understand what war is all about," said Chang. "I've seen atrocities out there." Once American figures like then-candidate Donald Trump began helping hostage negotiations, Chang said he directed his staff to craft a message – which he said took more than a month of back-and-forth to make sure it was "balanced" and did not have a partisan streak. House Gop Unveils Resolution To Condemn Boulder Terror Attack, Call For Mass Deportation Of Overstayed Visas "We submitted it in January, as a resolution, and it was rejected… because [leadership] said it was 'controversial,'" Chang said. Read On The Fox News App "We were astounded but not surprised. So we converted it to a bill," he said, adding that, in the end, a bill would be better because a resolution only commemorates an event for that year, while a bill would codify the remembrance for eternity. With a handful of Democratic co-sponsors, Chang and colleagues believed they had the right balance to attempt to put it up for a vote, but as the New York Post reported, it was reportedly ultimately blocked by House Speaker Carl Heastie, D-Bronx, and other top Democrats. Chang said the bill, destined for the smaller governmental operations committee, was redirected to the larger Ways and Means committee, and that four members were "switched out." The top Republican on that panel, Assemblyman Ed Ra, told the New York Post that remembering Oct. 7 and/or combating antisemitism should never be "political." Republican Assemblyman Ari Brown, who, like Ra, represents Long Island, accused Albany Democrats of "veiled antisemitism," telling the Post the legislature is "rotten" with it. Morning Glory: The Israel-iran War Is Closer To Its End Than Its Beginning The assembly also tanked a resolution from Brown that complimented Chang's bill. Compounding that was, as Chang described, no GOP bills have been successfully put through the process at all this session. "Having me as a Republican [sponsor] – that would [procedurally] choke them – not because of me, the person, but as a member of that party." Chang said he would just as soon "give this bill to a Democrat" to sponsor if it meant commemorating the Oct. 7 attack. He added that, as a person of Chinese ancestry who represents largely Asian and Italian Bensonhurst, he has no religious horse in the race. "That should make it more poignant as a non-Jewish person pushing this bill in a mostly Christian and Buddhist district," he said. At least seven Democrats did come out in support of the Oct. 7 remembrance legislation, all of whom hail from New York City. Senate Minority Leader Rob Ortt, R-Niagara Falls, echoed Chang's concerns in comments to Fox News Digital. "Many New Yorkers had loved ones injured or worse in the terror attacks in Israel on Oct. 7," Ortt said. "The least we can do is commemorate this tragic day." "Instead of taking commonsense action, Albany Democrats would rather play politics, and have time and again refused to defend our Jewish brothers and sisters." Fox News Digital reached out to Heastie for comment and response to the allegations but did not hear article source: NY lawmaker lambastes failed commemoration of Oct 7 attack, as Dem leadership accused of 'antisemitism'
Yahoo
09-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Lawmakers push tech leaders on AI, energy in race with China
Leaders from Silicon Valley were met Thursday with a new tone from Congress, where Republican lawmakers urged policymakers to prioritize tech innovation over regulations. Over the course of more than three hours, four major technology leaders, including OpenAI CEO Sam Altman, pitched their ideas to senators on how to stay ahead of China in the artificial intelligence (AI) race. Altman warned the Senate Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee that the U.S. is ahead now, but China might not be that far behind. 'It is our belief that the American models including some models from OpenAI, Google and others are the best models in the world. It's very hard to say how far ahead we are, but I would say not a huge amount of time,' Altman said during the hearing titled 'Winning the AI Race: Strengthening U.S. Capabilities in Computing and Innovation.' Other witnesses were Microsoft Vice Chair and President Brad Smith, CEO of semiconductor maker AMD Lisa Su, and Michael Intrator, co-founder of AI cloud computing startup CoreWeave. To keep ahead of China, Altman and the other witnesses called on Congress to prioritize AI infrastructure like data centers, training workers like electricians to help build these products and the need for open and broad access to public data. While the hearing touched upon a variety of topics from AI's energy use to discrimination in models, the push for a light-handed approach underscored both witness testimony and questions from mostly GOP lawmakers. 'Adopting a light-touch regulatory style for AI will require Congress to work alongside the president. … We need to advance legislation that promotes long-term AI growth and innovation,' Senate Commerce Committee Chair Ted Cruz (R-Texas) said in his opening remarks. Cruz called out Europe's regulation-heavy stance, warning it 'killed tech in Europe.' The tech leaders echoed this idea, while noting they would still support a streamlined federal approach that would make clear the rules and speed up development. 'One federal framework that is light touch that we can understand and lets us move with the speed that this moment calls for seems important and fine,' Altman said, later noting a state-by-state approach would be 'burdensome.' While more than 100 bills were introduced last Congress to place new rules and guardrails on AI, very few made it past the finish line. States have taken the matter into their own hands, creating a patchwork of legislation for companies to deal with. Altman's support for this approach is a sharp reversal from two years ago, when he appeared before a Democratic-majority Congress and emphasized the need for regulation and guardians on AI development. Two years later, Republicans and President Trump are back in control, with the message of prioritizing innovation over regulation to lead in the global tech space. Altman signaled an alignment with this approach, at one point going further than the other tech leaders. When asked by Sen. Maria Cantwell (D-Wash.) if the National Institute of Standards and Technology should set standards for AI model, Altman said, 'I don't think we need it. It can be helpful.' The other witnesses said yes when asked. Altman later said he would support a 'risk-based approach' to regulations when suggested by Sen. Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.). The conversation took various twists and turns, but witnesses usually came back to the need to build and power the infrastructure used for AI development. 'We are moving towards a period of this race where the size, the magnitude of the infrastructure that is being required to move our artificial intelligence, the labs that are building it, the companies that are building it forward at the velocity that is necessary is going to be a specific challenge,' Intrator said. 'It's tough, and it will get harder as we move through time,' he added. 'Because the existing infrastructure that does have opportunity … some level of elasticity, is going to be consumed and once that is consumed,' he added. Smith said he hopes the permitting process for data centers will be sped up to accelerate this process. Altman touted the Stargate investment project as a part of this goal. The project, launched with Trump, OpenAI and the CEOs of Oracle and SoftBank, is intended to invest up to $500 billion in American infrastructure. The OpenAI co-founder's appearance on Capitol Hill comes one day after he visited one of the Stargate projects underway in Abilene, Texas. To further boost this project, Altman said OpenAI will offer a program where it will help countries build up their data center capacity in exchange for the country's investment in Stargate. Smith with Microsoft took this call a step further, telling senators the country must recruit and train skilled labor like electricians and pipe fitters, along with researchers at national labs and universities to speed up the construction and growth of the data centers. 'The United States needs hundreds of thousands of new electricians, something we should all want to get behind,' Cantwell said. Democrats on the committee took a more cautious approach when it came to the companies' demand for more energy supply. Multiple party members hammered witnesses over the environmental impact of data centers and AI infrastructure. Sen. Ed Markey (D-Mass.), one of the chamber's most aggressive advocates for action on climate change, pressed the witnesses on how the design, training and deployment of AI models pose a 'real risk for our environment.' 'The massive data centers that are critical for AI development require substantial amounts of electricity, putting stress on the grid and potentially raising costs for consumers,' Markey said. 'The truth is we know too little about both the environmental costs and benefits of AI; Mr. Altman, do you agree that the federal government should help with studying and measuring the environmental impact of AI?' Markey asked. 'I think studying and measuring is usually a good thing; I do think that the conversation about the environmental impact of AI and the relative challenges and benefits has gotten somewhat out of whack,' Altman responded. Altman suggested AI can be used to help address climate and environmental challenges, a more commonly used argument by AI developers to defend the vast amounts of energy the technology requires. 'Yes, AI may find a cure for cancer — it may — but AI could also help to contribute to a climate disaster. That's also equally true,' Markey said. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
The Hill
08-05-2025
- Business
- The Hill
Lawmakers push tech leaders on AI, energy in race with China
Leaders from Silicon Valley were met on Thursday with a new tone from Congress, where Republican lawmakers urged policymakers to prioritize tech innovation over regulations. Over the course of more than three hours, four major technology leaders, including OpenAI CEO Sam Altman, pitched their ideas to senators on how to stay ahead of China in the artificial intelligence (AI) race. Altman warned the Senate Commerce, Energy and Science Committee that the U.S. is ahead now, but China might not be that far behind. 'It is our belief that the American models including some models from OpenAI, Google and others are the best models in the world. It's very hard to say how far ahead we are, but I would say not a huge amount of time,' Altman said during the hearing titled 'Winning the AI Race: Strengthening U.S. Capabilities in Computing and Innovation.' Other witnesses included Microsoft vice chair and President Brad Smith, Lisa Su, the CEO of semiconductor maker AMD and Michael Intrator, co-founder of AI cloud computing startup CoreWeave. To keep ahead of China, Altman and the other witnesses called on Congress to prioritize AI infrastructure like data centers, training workers like electricians to help build these products and the need for open and broad access to public data. While the hearing touched upon a variety of topics from AI's energy use to discrimination in models, the push for a light-handed approach underscored both witness testimony and questions from mostly GOP lawmakers. 'Adopting a light-touch regulatory style for AI will require Congress to work alongside the president…We need to advance legislation that promotes long-term AI growth and innovation,' Senate Commerce Chair Ted Cruz (R-Texas) said in his opening remarks. Cruz called out Europe's regulation-heavy stance, warning it 'killed tech in Europe.' The tech leaders echoed this idea, while noting they would still support a streamlined federal approach that would make clear the rules and speed up development. 'One federal framework that is light touch that we can understand and lets us move with the speed that this moment calls for seems important and fine,' Altman said, later noting a state-by-state approach would be 'burdensome.' While more than 100 bills were introduced last Congress to place new rules and guardrails on AI, very few made it past the finish line. States have taken the matter into their own hands, creating a patchwork of legislation for companies to deal with. Altman's support for this approach is a sharp reversal from two years ago, when he appeared before a Democratic-majority Congress and emphasized the need for regulation and guardians on AI development. Two years later, Republicans and President Trump are back in control, with the message of prioritizing innovation over regulation to lead in the global tech space. Altman signaled an alignment with this approach, at one point going farther than the other tech leaders. When asked by Sen. Maria Cantwell (D-Wash.) if the National Institute of Standards and Technology should set standards for AI model, Altman said, 'I don't think we need it. It can be helpful.' The other witnesses said yes when asked. Altman later said he would support a 'risk-based approach' to regulations when suggested by Sen. Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.) The conversation took various twists and turns, but witnesses usually came back to the need to build and power the infrastructure used for AI development. 'We are moving towards a period of this race where the size, the magnitude of the infrastructure that is being required to move our artificial intelligence, the labs that are building it, the companies that are building it forward at the velocity that is necessary is going to be a specific challenge,' Intrator said. 'It's tough, and it will get harder as we move through time,' he added. 'Because the existing infrastructure that does have opportunity…some level of elasticity, is going to be consumed and once that is consumed,' he added. Smith said he hopes the permitting process for data centers will be sped up to accelerate this process. Altman touted the Stargate investment project as a part of this goal. The project, launched with Trump, OpenAI and the CEOs of Oracle and SoftBank, is intended to invest up to $500 billion in American infrastructure. The OpenAI co-founder's appearance on Capitol Hill comes one day after the OpenAI CEO visited one of the Stargate projects underway in Abilene, Texas. To further boost this project, Altman said OpenAI will offer a program where it will help countries build up their data center capacity in exchange for the country's investment in Stargate. Smith with Microsoft took this call a step further, telling senators the country must recruit and train skilled labor like electricians and pipe fitters, along with researchers at national labs and universities to speed up the construction and growth of the data centers. 'The United States needs hundreds of thousands of new electricians, something we should all want to get behind,' Cantwell said. Democrats on the committee took a more cautious approach when it came to the companies' demand for more energy supply. Multiple party members hammered witnesses over the environmental impact of data centers and AI infrastructure. Sen. Ed Markey (D-Mass.), one of the chamber's most aggressive advocates for action on climate change, pressed the witnesses on how the design, training and deployment of AI models pose a 'real risk for our environment.' 'The massive data centers that are critical for AI development require substantial amounts of electricity, putting stress on the grid and potentially raising costs for consumers,' Markey said. 'The truth is we know too little about both the environmental costs and benefits of AI, Mr. Altman, do you agree that the federal government should help with studying and measuring the environmental impact of AI?' Markey asked. 'I think studying and measuring is usually a good thing, I do think that the conversation about the environmental impact of AI and the relative challenges and benefits has gotten somewhat out of whack,' Altman responded. Altman suggested AI can be used to help address climate and environmental challenges, a more commonly used argument by AI developers to defend the vast amounts of energy the technology requires. 'Yes, AI may find a cure for cancer, it may, but AI could also help to contribute to a climate disaster. That's also equally true,' Markey said.
Yahoo
06-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Blue state Republican calls on county sheriffs to defy sanctuary law, Dem governor rumored for 2028 run
EXCLUSIVE — Rep. Mary Miller, R-Ill., is calling on sheriffs in her state to defy Democratic Gov. J.B. Pritzker and the state's sanctuary laws and instead uphold federal immigration law. Miller said the state's sanctuary policies have transformed the Land of Lincoln into a "cesspool of crime and drugs." She is calling on sheriffs in the state to "act now" and ignore Pritzker's attempts to circumvent President Donald Trump on immigration law and instead work directly with U.S. Customs and Immigration Enforcement (ICE) on deportations. This comes as Pritzker and Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson, also a Democrat, have emerged as some of the nation's leading resistance voices against the Trump administration, especially when it comes to his crackdown on illegal immigration. The Democratic-majority Illinois legislature passed the TRUST Act in 2017, which limits local law enforcement's ability to cooperate with ICE and bars them from enforcing immigration law. Illegal Immigrant Released By Biden Admin Pleads Not Guilty To Murder Of Georgia Grandmother Pritzker, who is seen as a possible 2028 presidential candidate, has continued to fight the administration, even denouncing Trump as an "authoritarian" and calling for mass protests to disrupt the president's agenda, saying Republicans "cannot know a moment of peace." Read On The Fox News App The Democratic governor has also vowed to resist the administration's immigration agenda and has said that Trump and border czar Tom Homan are "the ones who are threatening people." ICE has said that state and local policies inhibiting law enforcement from cooperating with ICE endangers federal agents and communities by allowing public safety threats to walk free. The Trump Department of Justice (DOJ) has filed legal charges against Pritzker, Johnson and several other Chicago officials for refusing to honor ICE detainers, which the department said, "obstructs ICE from assuming custody of an alien in a safe and controlled manner." In its filing, the DOJ said that "when a detainer is not honored or an alien is released from a non-federal facility without notification or transfer to ICE, ICE must conduct investigations and perform targeted enforcement actions to re-apprehend the alien. And while ICE is undertaking re-apprehension efforts, the alien remains at-large in the community and free to commit further crimes or otherwise threaten public safety." Dhs Unleashes Possible Money-saving Measure For Illegal Aliens To Self-deport: 'Safest Option' US Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents walk down a street during a multi-agency, targeted enforcement operation in Chicago on Sunday, Jan. 26, 2025. Though police departments are typically under the direct control of city officials, sheriffs are elected by the people they serve and often have more leeway to enforce the law unimpeded by political pressure. As such, Miller is urging sheriffs across the state to stand against Pritzker and state authorities and enforce immigration law. "I call on every local sheriff in Illinois to defy these dangerous directives, cooperate with ICE, and support President Trump's deportation efforts," Miller said to Fox News Digital. She said that "Pritzker's sanctuary state policies have transformed Illinois into a cesspool of crime and drugs brought by the illegals he is actively resettling." Father Whose Son Died From Fentanyl Warns Overdoses 'Can Happen To Anyone' As States Fight Deadly Crisis U.S. Representative Mary Miller (R-IL) gives remarks after receiving an endorsement during a Save America Rally with then-former President Donald Trump at the Adams County Fairgrounds on June 25, 2022 in Mendon, Illinois. "Our communities are being overwhelmed, innocent girls are being raped, and Americans are being ruthlessly murdered," she added. "These are the tragic consequences of his failed leadership." "We must act now before one more innocent American life is lost or harmed," she said. Pritzker's office did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital's request for comment. Original article source: Blue state Republican calls on county sheriffs to defy sanctuary law, Dem governor rumored for 2028 run
