Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass has responded to criticism levied at her by developer and former mayoral rival Rick Caruso with a critique of her own: that he’s “sad and bitter.”
Upon news that an arrest was made in the sparking of the Palisades Fire, Caruso released a statement calling the impacts of the January fires “a failure of government on an epic level, starting with Mayor Bass.”
“Her and the city’s incompetence, mismanagement, and failure to plan, prepare, and predeploy directly led to people dying, thousands of lives being upended, and put on full display the consequences of ineffective and incapable leadership,” Caruso said on social media.
Wednesday night, Bass responded during an appearance at Bloomberg’s Screentime event, Bass reported by outlets like the Hollywood Reporter and the Wrap.
“Well, the way he characterized me sounded like Trump,” Bass reportedly said. “But I just was saddened by it, honestly, because that response was beneath him … This is when the city needs to stand together. Why would you do that? So he’s better than that and I was just disappointed and sad.”
Caruso has previously criticized Bass and other officials for what he describes as an overly slow rebuilding process in the Palisades.
