California Republican Rep. Young Kim is putting the pressure on House Democrats to prove their opposition to the Los Angeles riots by supporting her resolution condemning the violent protests in response to the Trump administration’s deportation raids.
Kim, who represents a Southern California district and is serving her third term, introduced a resolution Tuesday formally condemning the violence perpetrated against law enforcement during the LA riots and called on California’s state Democrats to work with the Trump administration to restore order to the city. The congresswoman expressed optimism in a Tuesday interview with the Daily Caller News Foundation that her resolution will get a quick floor vote.
Kim expects her Democratic colleagues to back the measure, arguing public safety should not be a partisan issue. Her resolution comes as House Democratic leadership denounced the violent unrest committed during the Los Angeles riots when pressed by the DCNF on Tuesday.
“Anyone who is lawless or loots or commits a crime should be punished — that is the House Democratic Caucus position,” Democratic California Rep. Pete Aguilar, the House Democratic Caucus chair, told the DCNF.
“They better vote [yes] on this one and show their support,” Kim told the DCNF. “Don’t just say it — follow your rhetoric with actions by supporting this resolution.”
“I wanted to send a strong message that we are there to support the work that they [law enforcement] are doing as they continue to fight to contain the situation,” Kim added. “At the same time, the core message of the resolution is to condemn the violence, the chaos that we see as the rioters continue to be more violent.”
Kim disputed Democratic Rep. Maxine Waters’ repeated assertions that “no violence” has taken place in Los Angeles — despite well-documented footage showing individuals throwing rocks and fireworks at law enforcement officers and setting self-driving cars on fire. The California Republican also pushed back on her Democratic colleagues’ claims that President Donald Trump — not left-wing agitators — is responsible for the outbreak in violence that has occurred in the city over the past four days.
“Before the National Guard [troops] were called in there, the situation was already escalated, escalated to the level that we’re seeing,” Kim said, referring to the president’s decision to deploy National Guard troops in response to the unrest. “I’m glad there was a decisive leadership from the administration to send the guards, and I’m glad they did it sooner than later.”
Kim also defended the work of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) to carry out raids in Los Angeles, especially its efforts targeting illegal immigrants with criminal backgrounds. Los Angeles is a sanctuary city that refuses to cooperate with federal immigration authorities. ICE released information Monday showing the agency detained at least 11 illegal immigrants during the LA raids who were previously convicted of violent crimes, including murder, sexual battery and cruelty to children.
“These individuals, many of them, had already deportation orders issued against them … they should just cooperate with federal agents — ICE agents — and the situation would not have escalated to the level,” Kim said. “Their [ICE’s] job is to go after those individuals … who are here illegally and those who have criminal records, those who are supposed to be deported. That’s what we’re going after.”
The resolution also faults Democratic California Governor Gavin Newsom and Democratic Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass for failing “to contain the rapidly escalating disorder, failing to support overwhelmed law enforcement personnel.”
Every member of California’s Republican delegation is cosponsoring the resolution, a spokesperson for Kim told the DCNF.
Kim is one of 26 GOP lawmakers whose seats House Democrats’ campaign arm is seeking to flip during the midterms.
The National Republican Congressional Committee offered praise for Kim’s resolution and leadership on condemning the LA riots in a statement Tuesday.
“Congresswoman Young Kim exemplifies leadership, rallying California Republicans toward a commonsense resolution that has earned her the unwavering trust of Californians,” NRCC spokesman Christian Martinez said. “This is yet another testament to why California Republican Representatives rank among the most effective in the nation.”
Spokespersons for Newsom, Bass and Waters did not immediately respond to the DCNF’s request for comment.
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