The Haze of Misjudgment: Mayor Bass’s Africa Trip Amid California Fires
Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass acknowledged her lack of awareness regarding critical fire warnings during her recent travel to Africa, which has generated significant public scrutiny.
“I felt absolutely terrible not being here for my city,” Bass revealed to a Fox 11 Los Angeles reporter in a heartfelt interview.
“Would I say it was a mistake? Absolutely,” she continued, her voice tinged with regret. “The idea that I was not present was very painful,” she reflected, explaining that the necessary “preparation didn’t happen” to alert her prior to the trip to Ghana.
Had she been properly informed of the impending fire danger, she stated, she would have reconsidered even a brief trip south to San Diego. “It didn’t reach that level for me to think, ‘Something terrible could happen, and maybe you shouldn’t have gone on the trip,'” Bass articulated with a sense of introspection.
“I think that’s one of the things we need to look at; everything that happened, including that, needs to be examined,” she added, disclosing that at least two investigations are currently underway regarding the city’s handling of the fires.
The National Weather Service issued a “fire weather warning” on January 3, a move that seemed to echo throughout the state. The mayor departed for Africa the following day and returned on January 8, right as the flames in the Pacific Palisades licked at the edges of communities.
The Palisades Fire became a destructive force, ravaging the area and claiming thousands of homes and businesses, leaving a haunting void in its wake.
In a separate conversation with NBC Los Angeles, she acknowledged her trip to Africa was “absolutely” a miscalculation. Now, she finds herself on a path to restore the community’s trust after enduring the backlash for her absence during such a critical time. “I have to demonstrate that every day by showing what we’re doing, what is working, what are the challenges,” she insisted, her determination palpable.
Bass was in Ghana to witness the swearing-in of the president when the fires erupted, despite the known high risk at that time. While the Palisades Fire surged on January 7, she didn’t arrive back in L.A. until the following day. Upon landing, she faced multiple questions from reporters, including a confronting inquiries from a Sky News journalist. Her response was, understandably, not what she might have wished for. “Yes, it was an ambush,” she lamented, recalling the shock of being hit by a camera after nearly 17 hours of travel. “In hindsight, I wish my response had been better,” she confessed.
Interestingly, she claims the Biden administration had encouraged her trip on their behalf, adding a layer of complexity to an already tangled situation.
With a growing petition of over 170,000 signatures circulating on Change.org demanding her resignation, Bass faces a dawning realization of the weight her position carries. The responses she’s received come from all sides, including sharp remarks from former mayoral candidate Rick Caruso and even the famously outspoken Bill Maher, who suggested that Bass exemplified a modern-day Nero amidst the raging fires.
“LA’s mayor, Karen Bass, fiddled in Ghana while the city burned,” Maher quipped, expressing the sentiments of many who felt abandoned.
Representative Ro Khanna, D-Calif., even floated the idea of Disney CEO Bob Iger running for mayor in 2026, a commentary that Bass received without much concern, her focus unwavering. “I am focused on one thing and one thing only, and that is to make sure that our city can recover and rebuild,” she reiterated, summoning up an air of resilience. “I want all the individuals affected in the Palisades area to find their way home again.” Her words linger, asking the public to reflect on the fragility of leadership amid the challenges faced by a city under fire.
In a world where leaders are often expected to maintain an unyielding presence, the contrast of Bass’s absence underscores a shocking reality—sometimes, even those at the helm can be caught off guard amidst the unfolding drama of their city’s needs.
