They're rioting in Los Angeles -- again. For living in a city with great weather, sunshine, a beach, pretty girls and boys, and Hollywood, Angelinos are oftentimes in a foul mood. It doesn't take much for them to turn their coastal paradise into a nightmare straight out of Dante's "Inferno."
This time, the riots are because federal authorities have decided to arrest people who are in the United States illegally. People are protesting and, let's face it, rioting, because Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) has been rounding up people who do not have the legal right to be in the United States.
As crowds swelled around a federal building, ICE officers could see they were in trouble. A few dozen ICE agents were surrounded by more than 1,000 screaming, spitting protesters. Where was LAPD? Where was the L.A. County Sheriff's Department?
Finally, a couple of hours later, L.A. Sheriff's deputies showed up.
They were not there to help with the immigration enforcement action, their commander stressed.
"As deputies arrived, it appeared that federal law enforcement officers were in the area, and that members of the public were gathering to protest. The Sheriff's Department was not involved in any federal law enforcement operations or actions and responded solely for traffic and crowd control management," the sheriff's department said in a statement Saturday.
Yeah. That will calm them down.
Translation: Don't take your rage out on us. If you're going to throw a rock, aim for the ICE agent.
The statement continued:
"We remind the public to exercise their right to protest peacefully, with respect for the safety of all community members. Our primary responsibility is to ensure public safety for all individuals present-both demonstrators, residents, and bystanders-by addressing potential safety concerns while supporting the safe and lawful expression of First Amendment rights."
And people wonder why Trump called out the National Guard?
ICE Acting Director Todd Lyons could barely contain his rage at Mayor Karen Bass and the LAPD, who left his agents to fend for themselves.
"What took place in Los Angeles yesterday was appalling," Lyons said. "As rioters attacked federal ICE and law enforcement officers on the LA streets, Mayor Bass took the side of chaos and lawlessness over law enforcement."
That sounds like politicized exaggeration. In fact, it's the truth. Her honor issued a statement taking the side of the protesters.
"As Mayor of a proud city of immigrants, who contribute to our city in so many ways, I am deeply angered by what has taken place. These tactics sow terror in our communities and disrupt basic principles of safety in our city. My Office is in close coordination with immigrant rights community organizations. We will not stand for this," Bass said.
Lyons complained about how long it took for help to arrive to support his beleaguered agents.
"Our brave officers were vastly outnumbered, as over 1,000 rioters surrounded and attacked a federal building," Lyons' statement continued. "It took over two hours for the Los Angeles Police Department to respond, despite being called multiple times. The brave men and women of ICE were in Los Angeles arresting criminal illegal aliens, including gang members, drug traffickers and those with a history of assault, cruelty to children, domestic violence, robbery, and smuggling."
The cops say they came just as soon as the danger passed.
"Contrary to the claim that LAPD delayed its response for over two hours, our personnel mobilized and acted as swiftly as conditions safely allowed," the statement said. "Our response time was impacted by significant traffic congestion, the presence of demonstrators, and, notably, by the fact that federal agents had deployed irritants into the crowd prior to LAPD's arrival. This created a hazardous environment for responding officers. Within 55 minutes of receiving the call, we began to disperse the hostile and riotous crowd."
Let me get this straight. Local police couldn't figure out a way to get to the federal building by detouring around traffic and crowds? Sheesh.
Just who were the protesters demanding to stay in the U.S.?
Federal sources highlighted to Fox News some of last week's arrests in the Los Angeles area, which included violent and drug offenders.
Rolando Veneracion-Enriquez, 55, of the Philippines, has a criminal history that includes a burglary in Ontario, California, for which he was sentenced to four years in prison, and sexual penetration with a foreign object with force and assault with intent to commit rape in the city of Pomona, for which he was sentenced to 37 years in prison. He was arrested on Saturday and served a notice to appear.
Jose Gregorio Medranda Ortiz, 42, of Ecuador, was arrested Friday and served administrative deportation. His criminal history includes being sentenced to more than 11 years in prison for conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute five kilograms or more of cocaine while on board a vessel in Tampa, Florida.
California Governor Gavin Newsom whined that calling up the National Guard was "purposely inflammatory." It wouldn't have been necessary if Mayor Bass had taken immediate control of the situation with a large show of force.
Why do liberal Democrats believe that it's bad to scare violent protesters into behaving by calling out police to demonstrate that they're not going to stand for any violent disruptions?
Of course, we can now expect to see riots in other cities. The fuse has been lit on another "long. hot summer." But unlike 1967, there's no great moral crusade to explain it. It's a blatantly political effort to create opposition to Donald Trump's immigration policies.
Democrats are making a huge mistake if they make this a hill they want to die on.
Help PJ Media continue to tell the truth about the Trump administration's accomplishments. Join PJ Media VIP and use promo code FIGHT to get 60% off your membership.