LA-Area Fire Chief Mops the Floor With Mayor Karen Bass Over Disastrous Wildfire Response – RedState
It has now been more than a year since the catastrophic wildfires that destroyed entire neighborhoods in Los Angeles’ Pacific Palisades and Altadena neighborhoods. Planning for such an eventuality and the Keystone Cops’ response drew sharp criticism from Donald Trump, billionaire developer Rick Caruso and actor Spencer Pratt, who lost his home in the fire and is now running to replace Karen Bass as mayor of Los Angeles.
Some of the harshest words, however, came Wednesday from someone who probably knows a thing or two about fires: Redondo Beach Fire Chief Patrick Butler. Redondo Beach is located in Los Angeles County, approximately 20 miles from downtown Los Angeles.
Speaking at a Senate Homeland Security Committee hearing, the chief did not mince his words:
“During the critical period of preparation, the mayor was out of the country despite knowledge of the potentially life-threatening conditions,” Butler said, referring to Bass’s controversial trip to Ghana, Africa, before the fires.
“The responsibility for continued citywide leadership and coordination rests with the mayor, and in this case, that responsibility has not been met. »
“This was not a failure of the firefighters’ efforts,” Butler added. “It was a failure of leadership above them.”
Watch:
“When leaders delay, postpone, and downplay risks, disasters are MANUFACTURED. The fire was not caused by weather alone, it was caused by the decisions of leaders.”
— FIRE CHIEF Patrick Butler, 36 years of service 🔥EVISCERATED 🔥 Mayor Bass and CA Leadership“What I observed was not… pic.twitter.com/tbZ2BfiQuO
– Heatherheather007 (@LibertyValkyrie) January 29, 2026
What I observed was not simply a difficult fire under extreme conditions, it was the FORESEEABLE RESULT of a breakdown in leadership, preparation and command discipline.
MORE: Trump, Tired of California Failure Theater, Issues Order Directing Administration to Take Charge of Rebuilding Los Angeles After Fire
Newsom’s nightmare: Interim report documenting decline in FireAid fraud on eve of Palisades fire anniversary
The January fires destroyed more than 16,000 homes and caused at least 31 deaths (although some studies claim hundreds more were “attributable” to the disaster). Bass and Gov. Gavin Newsom have been rightly torn over empty tanks, firefighters obsessed with DEI instead of preparedness, a California State Parks executive order that prevented firefighters from fully extinguishing the initial outbreak, and now, a recovery effort mired in bureaucracy, red tape, and regulations.
As I’ve written, perhaps this is a symbol of what you get when you give free rein to progressive leadership, which is exactly what happened in the Golden State.
Too bad you didn’t help your fellow Americans during the fires in California for which your politicians were responsible. https://t.co/uBGYKxUtQH
— 🇺🇸 Bière30 🇺🇸 (@bblBeer30) January 30, 2026
Meanwhile, another man with firefighting experience told the committee that state leaders should have prepared for situations like this:
…Retired Los Angeles Fire Department battalion chief Rick Crawford described the Palisades fire as a “case study” in how government leaders can turn a wildfire into a deadly disaster, emphasizing that the inferno was not “unpredictable.”
“Wildfires are not disasters the moment they ignite,” Crawford said. “They become disasters when warnings are recognized but fail to trigger executive action. »
Gavin Newsom, who is not known for taking responsibility for anything that happens under his watch, claimed the hearing was simply about scoring political points, saying it was “another opportunity for MAGA Republicans to try to tell a false narrative about these disasters.”
What part of the story is false, Mr. Newsom?
I had dinner Thursday night with a couple who lost their home in the Palisades. They continue their fight, but their hearts are wounded. Would you like to tell them, Karen Bass and Gavin Newsom, what a great job you did? I don’t think anyone but your union donors is buying this horse manure.
You failed them, you failed in Los Angeles, and you failed in California.
Editor’s Note: Gavin Newsom, Karen Bass and the “progressives” are ruining California.
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