'That Is Absurd, That Is Insulting': Zoe Lofgren Torches GOP Over Condemnation Of Anti-ICE Protests

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During remarks on the House floor Friday, Rep. Zoe Lofgren (D-CA) spoke about protests against Immigration and Customs Enforcement raids in Los Angeles.

Transcript

00:00Mr. Speaker, I oppose the Kim resolution. Now, had it just condemned violence and thanked the

00:09National Guard and the Marines who did not ask for this assignment, I think we'd all be on board.

00:17Instead, the resolution really is engaging in partisan games with misleading and inflammatory

00:25provisions. You know, Trump said he was going to go arrest and deport violent criminals. People are

00:32okay with that. Instead, armed masked ICE agents, some refusing to identify themselves aggressively

00:41and in some cases even violently, took down day workers at Home Depot, bus boys, gardeners, a union

00:50leader. And regular people in Los Angeles objected to that. And as First Amendment provides, they

00:59peacefully protested against it. Unfortunately, there were some hooligans and rowdies who infiltrated

01:06that group and they committed violent acts and vandalism. And for that, they should be prosecuted.

01:16They should be brought to justice and condemned, which we do. However, the resolution really

01:26creates a misleading picture of what happened. On the first page, it says, whereas these protests

01:33quickly escalated into violent riots across Los Angeles were acts of arson, widespread looting,

01:40policing, property destruction, lighting streets on fire. Well, the fact is that these demonstrations

01:50were largely confined to about a 10-block area of downtown Los Angeles. The police, LAPD, had the

02:01situation under control. And there's an elaborate system of mutual aid in California. Had they needed

02:10additional forces? It was readily available under mutual aid. I would like to point out to my colleagues

02:16on the other side of the aisle in case they need a reminder, L.A. County is 4,060 miles, square miles, not

02:24the 10 blocks. So when President Trump deployed the Marines and National Guard in L.A., it was not at the

02:33request of local officials, the chief of police or the governor. It was unprecedented, unnecessary,

02:41and a clear attempt to take over the state's law enforcement authority. In fact, I think it did

02:49aggravate tensions in the area. Now, the National Guard remains in Los Angeles to this day. They really,

02:57they have nothing to do. We heard a report from the former commander that less than 20% are doing

03:04anything, and they've been taken away from jobs where they were needed. For example, helping in efforts

03:11to prevent forest fire prevention and the like. You know, as the elected chair of the California

03:20Democrat delegation, I was proud to join my colleague, Ms. Berrigan, in introducing a resolution

03:26that, unlike this one, is based in fact. Our resolution condemns the president's authoritarian

03:34response to First Amendment expressions of dissent. Unlike the Kim resolution, it expresses support

03:41for law enforcement and for the National Guard and for the Marines, and it condemns violence by those who

03:49committed it. Now, why is this important? You know, in the resolution, it's so partisan. It says,

03:56whereas California's leadership has prioritized protecting illegal immigrants and violent individuals

04:04over United States citizens. That is absurd. That is insulting to our elected officials, but it's right in

04:11keeping with what the president has said. He has indicated publicly he intends to target cities and states

04:19that are democratically elected, that have Democrats elected in government. What a strange thing to say.

04:26The executive order that nationalized the California National Guard applies to anywhere in the United

04:35States. It's not just LA. It's not just California. I think this resolution, really, and false as it is,

04:43is serving as a predicate, as a foundation for the use for the military to be used in places all over the

04:52United States at any pretext, any pretext, so that the military can go in and assume civilian authority

05:00away from those who are democratically elected. That's why it's important that we do not approve this

05:08resolution with its false whereases, that we do not participate in a scheme to replace the democratically

05:18elected officials in cities and counties and states across the United States. I'll just end with this.

05:26Who should we be more concerned about? What should we be more afraid of?

05:30the gardeners that are being arrested by ICE, the busboys, the farm workers, or the concept that the

05:40administration may be taking the steps to replace, with the military, civil authority that has been

05:50duly elected around the United States? With that, Mr. Raskin, I yield back.

05:56The gentleman in reserves.

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