Bass condemns ICE standoff at Boyle Heights hospital
Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass this weekend condemned immigration agents who lined up across the ambulance entrance at Adventist Health White Memorial Medical Center in Boyle Heights early Saturday, and faulted the hospital’s leadership for not stepping in faster.
Federal agents were at the medical center with a person in their custody who needed medical treatment around midnight, according to the Los Angeles Police Department. The hospital’s president said the hospital refused agents’ requests to be present during a physician-patient consultation. Agents then formed a line across the ambulance entrance, which the hospital said it had neither requested nor authorized, and the hospital shifted the ambulances to nearby hospitals for about two hours.
Protesters gathered outside, and LAPD officers said they were there to keep emergency access open, not to assist with immigration enforcement, according to ABC7.
“Overnight, federal immigration agents gathered in force outside of the ambulance bay at Adventist Health White Memorial Medical Center in Boyle Heights, effectively sealing off a critical entrance. For patients and families in medical crises, that presence was frightening at the worst possible moment. A hospital should be the one place where people feel safe. No one should have to think twice about receiving care or fear that a loved one’s treatment could be interrupted because of their immigration status,” said Bass.
“I condemn ICE’s action and call on the Trump Administration to stop all immigration enforcement in and around health care facilities. Hospital leadership also had a duty to step in right away to protect patients and neighbors, and by all appearances, that did not happen. All of Los Angeles stands with Boyle Heights, and we will use every lawful tool available to protect the community. Because in Los Angeles, we stand together, and we fight,” Bass added.
Horvath says Raman win shows voters were ready for change
Los Angeles County Supervisor Lindsey P. Horvath (D-Santa Monica, Beverly Hills, West Hollywood, Calabasas, Malibu, Pacoima), the only county supervisor to back Mayor-elect Nithya Raman, said voters were ready for change and that Raman will need to quickly build working relationships at City Hall and with the county, in an interview Friday on NBC4.
“Well, I think people were ready for change. I think Councilmember Raman’s experience inside City Hall helped her develop plans that were actionable. And people are excited about that, but they’re mostly ready for change. They didn’t want another four years of what they lived through,” said Horvath.
Horvath, who considered running for mayor herself, said she has no regrets about passing on the race.
“It was a tough process to come to that decision because a lot of people were asking me to step into that leadership role. But for me, that wasn’t the right one. That wasn’t the right time. And so now I get to support someone in that role who I want to succeed. My district overlaps with nine City Council districts in the city of Los Angeles. So LA’s success is my district’s success, is the county’s success,” said Horvath.
On homelessness, Horvath said the city and county must work closely as the county takes over management of the region’s homeless system.
“We’re in this moment of change already where the county is stepping into that leadership role as the Continuum of Care. But how we partner with the city will matter,” said Horvath.
Raman will also need the City Council, many of whose members backed Bass. Horvath, a former West Hollywood councilmember, said practical politics will win out.
“The City Council can’t get things done without the support of the mayor. And while I know that there are certainly personal differences, I also know she has friends around that horseshoe, and people who want to get things done will find ways to work with the mayor,” said Horvath.
On whether Raman should replace LAPD Chief Jim McDonnell, Horvath said it’s Raman’s call, noting she has a good working relationship with McDonnell, and predicted Raman will invest in alternative crisis response.
Rivas blasts Miller’s promotion to White House chief of staff
U.S. Rep. Luz Rivas (D-San Fernando, Van Nuys, Pacoima, Arleta, Panorama City, Sylmar) condemned President Trump’s choice of Stephen Miller, the architect of the administration’s immigration crackdown, as White House chief of staff.
Miller, a Santa Monica native and Santa Monica High School graduate, has driven the administration’s immigration enforcement push, including the raids that have swept Southern California. Rivas tied his promotion to the video of an ICE agent pointing a gun at a bystander in North Hollywood, which LACP reported last week.
“Stephen Miller is Trump’s architect of the cruel ICE raids that have torn apart communities, kidnapped our neighbors, and murdered innocent people. Over the past two years, under Stephen Miller’s direction, the Trump Administration and its ICE thugs have made our communities less safe. I have heard from families across the San Fernando Valley that they are afraid to leave their homes in the fear of being cruelly separated from their loved ones. Just last week, horrifying videos of ICE agents chasing down and drawing guns on innocent people in North Hollywood circulated on social media – this is part of Stephen Miller’s and Trump’s plan to traumatize our communities,” said Rivas.
“This week, the American people sent a resounding message that they demand action to lower costs and get ICE out of our communities. Instead, the Trump Administration is doubling down on its harmful, racist, and anti-immigrant agenda that does nothing to address the affordability crisis that Donald Trump, Stephen Miller, and Republicans have created. Our communities will not be safe until Stephen Miller is fired and ICE is abolished,” said Rivas.
Chu bill would open tax credit to younger, older workers
U.S. Rep. Judy Chu (D-Pasadena, Monterey Park, San Gabriel, Alhambra) and Rep. Gwen Moore (D-Wis.) last week reintroduced the EITC Age Parity Act, which would let workers without children claim the Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) regardless of age.
Workers without a qualifying child can now claim the credit only if they’re between 25 and 64. The bill would lower the minimum age to 18 and eliminate the upper limit. The credit lifted 4.4 million people above the poverty line in 2024, including more than 2 million children, according to Chu’s office. Golden State Opportunity endorses the bill.
“The EITC is one of the most impactful and transformative anti-poverty tools we have at our disposal. Unfortunately, arbitrary age limits exclude millions of hardworking Americans who could benefit from it greatly. Right now, a 23-year-old stocking shelves and a 66-year-old still working to make ends meet, neither with children at home, are shut out of the EITC for no reason other than their age. I’m proud to reintroduce the EITC Age Parity Act with Rep. Moore to lift more families out of poverty and put more money back in the pockets of millions of workers,” said Chu.
