The entire nation has watched for almost a week as violent protesters have destroyed a large swath of the downtown area of Los Angeles. It has come with the usual throwing of rocks, concrete, and Molotov cocktails at law enforcement, the burning of cars, and the looting of businesses. Because nothing says "we care about illegal immigrants" more than pillaging Apple and Nike stores. But as the pricetag for all the destruction mounts up for the city, if one Republican Senator has his way, it could go much higher.
Senator Bernie Moreno (R-OH) has proposed that Los Angeles be stripped of hosting the 2028 Olympic Games, primarily due to the ongoing anti-ICE riots. During a Tuesday Senate hearing, Moreno also went on to suggest that the city may not even be capable of hosting the 2026 FIFA World Cup as well, stating:
“Won’t we be better off as a nation, just to make an acknowledgement of that and move it to someplace that actually will have law and order, that will have the proper amount of protections for American citizens and the tens of millions of visitors that are going to come to both of those events?'”
During that hearing, Sen. James Lankford (R-OK) pointed out that it was President Donald Trump who had pushed for the U.S. to host the games. He said:
“We’re going to continue to welcome the world to the United States. We want to make this the most secure, and demonstrate the freedom that happens here in the United States, and literally invite the world to come enjoy that freedom with us.”
The CEO of LA2028, Reynold H. Hoover, obviously disagreed with Moreno's assessment, saying that "only the best of America will be showcased for the 2028 Olympic Games." But the massive incompetence of both California Gov. Gavin Newsom and LA Mayor Karen Bass to get a handle on the violent anti-ICE protests makes Moreno's concerns valid ones.
Los Angeles was awarded the 2028 Olympic Games in 2017. Then-Mayor Eric Garcetti projected that the city would bring in a cool $1 billion in profit from hosting the Games. But a lot has changed since then. Both Newsom and current Mayor Bass have presided over costly, mismanaged wildfires in January of this year, and now violent protests, the damage from which could take years to clean up.
Blue-state governors and mayors don't have a very good track record of cleaning up after street protests that go awry. One needs only look as far as Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz in the aftermath of the 2020 George Floyd protests in Minneapolis. Five years after the protests, there are plenty of empty lots where businesses burned and have never come back. Add to that, business owners who say that the combination of excessive costs, dealing with insurance companies, and the difficult process of obtaining permits by the city, have made it that much more difficult for them to rebuild.
The post-wildfire era in California is not much better. Residents there are complaining about a slow process, hindered even more by blue city-blue state red tape and bureaucracy. If Gavin Newsom and Karen Bass can't competently handle the aftermath of wildfires, Bernie Moreno has a point. How can they ensure law and order will be in place for thousands of visitors in town for the Olympics?
It's pretty hard to imagine that Gavin Newsom and Karen Bass could make things worse than they already are. But stranger things have happened.
Editor's Note: President Trump isn't going to allow lawlessness to reign in America. We will not have a repeat of 2020's "Summer of Love."
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