As Los Angeles stares down a fiscal emergency, Mayor Karen Bass has decided the solution is to double down on protecting illegal immigrants—offering cash handouts and citywide directives, all while the city’s honest taxpayers get left holding the bag.
At a Glance
- Mayor Bass has ordered every city department to shield illegal immigrants and report all federal enforcement activity directly to her office.
- The city has promised direct cash assistance and expanded services to those affected by federal raids—even with a billion-dollar budget deficit.
- A legal battle is escalating as Los Angeles joins a lawsuit against the Trump administration’s immigration enforcement tactics.
- City departments must now prioritize resources for illegal immigrants, requiring new liaisons, reporting, and multilingual communications.
Mayor Bass’s Sanctuary Decree
On July 11, Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass signed Executive Directive No. 12, instructing every city department to develop plans to support undocumented immigrants and actively shield them from federal immigration enforcement. The order mandates that each department appoint an “immigrant affairs liaison” and funnel reports of any ICE or CBP activity straight to the mayor’s office.
The directive also calls for a package of direct financial assistance and expanded city services for immigrants impacted by federal raids. While Los Angeles faces a crippling budget deficit and a declared fiscal emergency, the mayor has decided that taxpayer money is best spent supporting individuals who are in the country illegally.
Legal War Declared on the White House
The directive is a direct response to recent, large-scale ICE raids under the Trump administration, including a high-profile operation in MacArthur Park. Rather than focusing on the rule of law, Mayor Bass and the city attorney have announced that Los Angeles will join a lawsuit against the administration, arguing that federal immigration enforcement is “unlawful” and “disruptive.”
This legal standoff continues a long tradition in Los Angeles. The city’s sanctuary policies date back to the LAPD’s Special Order 40 in 1979, which has long prohibited local police from enforcing federal immigration law. With the Trump administration aggressively pursuing enforcement, the showdown has reached a fever pitch.
Taxpayers Last, Illegal Immigrants First
With city services stretched thin, schools underfunded, and crime on the rise, the mayor is channeling scarce resources into a political battle with the federal government. City employees are being redirected from their core duties to serve as immigrant liaisons, while departments scramble to create new protocols—all at the expense of the city’s legal residents.
Critics argue that these sanctuary policies not only undermine federal law but also divert resources from citizens who are struggling with inflation and declining public services. For frustrated taxpayers, this is yet another example of a government with deeply misplaced priorities, where the needs of law-abiding citizens come last.