During a Senate Homeland Security & Government Affairs Committee hearing last month, Sen. Bernie Moreno (R-OH) asked LA28 Olympic and Paralympic Games CEO Reynold Hoover about event security at the 2028 Los Angeles Summer Olympics.
00:00First thank you Mr. Chairman for holding this hearing. I think it's extremely timely.
00:04Obviously we're all seeing the same thing on the news every night for the
00:08last three or four nights. It looks like law and orders completely gone downhill
00:15in Los Angeles and throughout California. You have a governor that refuses to
00:20follow the law. You have a mayor who doesn't see a problem with looting. He
00:25blames it. They both blame it on issues around deportations which obviously have
00:29nothing to do with why you would go in and pillage a store or rob places. I just
00:35got to ask you the obvious question Mr. Hoover and I appreciate by the way your
00:39service to this country. The obvious question I think on the minds of most
00:42Americans is given that these two big events coming up in 26 and 28 are going
00:48to see that basically the same political leadership in California and in LA. Don't
00:53we just make a decision now to say they're they're incapable of handling two
00:58big high-profile events like this and aren't we better off as a nation just to
01:03make an acknowledgement of that and move it to someplace that actually will have
01:08law and order that will have the proper amount of protections for American
01:13citizens and the tens of millions of visitors are going to come to both of
01:17those events. Why fight the upward battle of what is clearly an administration both
01:24locally and at the state level that's just unwilling to follow basic civil
01:29protections? Senator I think there's no place in the world like LA to host the
01:36world's largest Olympics ever and I think my experience has been in the year
01:39that I've been here that both at the local level at the state level and at the
01:45federal level the security coordination and the coordination and cooperation
01:49between all levels of government have been extraordinary and I am confident that
01:55come July 14th of 2028 when we do the opening ceremonies in the Coliseum and the
02:00stadium in Inglewood the world will be watching and see America at its best. I
02:05share your optimism for America but look we also see the TV screens on today and
02:11unlike previous big events like this you didn't usually have elected leaders that
02:17just refused to follow the law basic elements people on freeways people
02:23breaking stones on the ground to throw them at police officers bricks being
02:28delivered canisters being thrown this is total and complete chaos and we don't
02:33even have any kind of event like this going on the country's a big place that we
02:39have a huge diverse geography we have places all over America that would be
02:44better equipped to handle this and I just don't see why we don't just
02:48acknowledge the obvious which is by the way going to be an enormous cost to the
02:53federal government when you don't have local officials who will do the bare
02:57minimum to protect their own citizens how are they going to protect people
03:01coming in to visit on top of when you look at the threats that exist you have drug
03:06cartels that are being squeezed by this administration that were made into
03:10billion-dollar entities by the Biden administration that have resources to
03:14wreak incredible amounts of havoc you have the terrorists in the Middle East
03:19calling for the death of American politicians including the president vice
03:22president United States this presents an enormous challenge in normal situations
03:27but we have when you have completely incompetent leaders again not just at the
03:33local level but the state level who feel that the administration is doing too
03:38much to protect their citizens I have to repeat that you have the governor and the
03:43mayor saying the president of the United States is doing too much to protect
03:47businesses and to protect their own civilians how are we not heading towards a
03:51complete and utter disaster
03:55let me just I think answer your question this way senator you know on the 2nd of
04:01July 1979 I took an oath on the plane at West Point to dedicate my life of
04:06public service and I wasn't looking for a job they found me I've been on this is
04:11my one-year anniversary as I mentioned earlier this is end of my plea beer but I
04:16came out of retirement to do this to unite the world around sport and unite LA and
04:21unite the nation our 50-state relay will hit all 50 states it's never been done
04:26before that is the thread that will bind the nation and the to LA and the games the world
04:32will be watching I think we have a great opportunity and I'm very confident in where
04:36we are now in our state of planning both from a security perspective and an operational perspective to deliver the world's greatest games in the largest the largest games ever and I'm I'm confident that we will get there
04:49well just to be clear because I want to make this clear for the record I have total and complete faith in you and your abilities that's not the question I have in mind but you're not able to do this and execute without the help of local officials it's just it's just not possible look as if it were you planning it and you could put those two in the basement somewhere then I'm sure and give them have them give you your authority to do what their job is supposed to do I would be totally happy and
05:19ready to rock and roll to make this happen but I have grave concerns unless we see movement and mr. chairman I think what we should do is ask those two people the mayor of Los Angeles and the governor of California to come in and explain how their behavior is going to be different in 26 and 28 to assure the American people that we are able to put on an event that this country that is worthy of this country so I like I said
05:46Mr. Hoover I'm totally 100% and confident in your abilities and have zero faith in the abilities because of the incompetence that both of them have already shown
