Vice President JD Vance delivered remarks on Friday after landing in Los Angeles and touring federal law enforcement operations.
Vance accused California Gov. Gavin Newsom and LA Mayor Karen Bass of encouraging violent protesters and accused Newsom of “endangering law enforcement.”
Vice President JD Vance delivers remarks at the Wilshire Federal Building in Los Angeles, June 20, 2025.
Daniel Cole/Reuters
“Gavin Newsom and Karen Bass, by treating this city as a sanctuary city, have basically said that it is open season on federal law enforcement,” the vice president said.
“What happened here was a tragedy. You had people who were doing the simple job of enforcing the law, and they had rioters egged on by the governor and the mayor, making it harder to do their job. That is disgraceful, and it is why the president has responded so forcefully,” said Vance.
“If you let violent rioters burn great American cities to the ground, then of course, we are going to send federal law enforcement in,” Vance said when asked if he was pleased with Thursday’s federal appeals court ruling.
Vice President JD Vance shakes hands with troops at the Wilshire Federal Building on June 20, 2025, in Los Angeles.
Jae C. Hong/AP
When asked by a reporter to comment on Democratic lawmakers getting handcuffed recently, Vance incorrectly referred to Sen. Alex Padilla as “José Padilla.”
“I was hoping José Padilla would be here to ask a question. But, unfortunately, I guess he decided not to show up because there wasn’t the theater, and that’s all it is,” Vance said. “It’s pure political theater. These guys show up. They want to be captured on camera doing something.”
Padilla was forcibly removed from Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem’s news conference earlier this month in LA, taken to the ground and handcuffed by law enforcement officers.
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