Karen Bass Said Her Ill-Timed Africa Trip Should Be Investigated. We Asked How That’s Going

Democratic Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass and city hall have been radio silent since Bass called for an investigation into the circumstances that led to her flying to Ghana amid warnings that her city was facing elevated wildfire risks.

Despite elevated wildfire risks and previously saying that she would not travel internationally as mayor, Bass ventured to Ghana at the invitation of the Biden administration in January just days before flames engulfed huge swaths of the Los Angeles area. Under heavy scrutiny, Bass subsequently stated that the circumstances that led to her going on the junket should be investigated, but her office did not respond to multiple requests for comment about any progress that may have been made in the weeks since.

Bass appeared to blame her staff for the ill-timed Ghana junket in February, suggesting that she should have been made aware of dangerous conditions so that she would not have left the city for a trip. She also openly suggested that her lack of advance notice should be probed.

“Would I say it was a mistake, absolutely. The idea that I was not present was very painful,” said Bass. She further stated that sufficient “preparation didn’t happen” in advance of her departure for Ghana.

“It didn’t reach that level to me to say ‘Something terrible could happen and maybe you shouldn’t have gone on the trip,’” Bass said. “I think that’s one of the things we need to look at, everything that happened, including that, needs to be examined.”

The Daily Caller News Foundation