While on CNN's State of the Union Democrat Rep. Karen Bass told host Jake Tapper that the trial for the murder of Ahmaud Arbery is “off to a bad start.”
On #CNNSOTU Democratic @RepKarenBass tells CNN’s @jaketapper that the trial for the murder of Ahmaud Arbery is “off to a bad start.” https://t.co/iGiPI495S6
— State of the Union (@CNNSotu) November 14, 2021
After months of speculation, Rep. Karen Bass on Monday, Sept. 27, officially announced on social media that she is running to be Los Angeles’ next mayor.
With my whole heart, I'm ready. Let's do this -- together.
— Karen Bass (@KarenBassLA) September 27, 2021
I'm running for mayor.https://t.co/CLkJfFddHT
Rep. Bass gave the following reasons for running on her campaign website:
Thirty years ago, Karen Bass saw a city in crisis and stepped up to lead. As a Los Angeles native and a nurse, she saw crime and addiction tearing families and communities apart. So she dedicated her career to helping: by founding Community Coalition, one of the most impactful and respected nonprofit organizations in Los Angeles. What started as an effort to reduce violence by closing liquor stores and helping people with drug addiction turned into a thirty-year force in creating economic, education, and housing opportunities.
Today Los Angeles faces another emergency. A public health and humanitarian crisis: homelessness.
40,000 people sleep on the streets of LA every night – more than in any other city in the nation.
Karen is running for Mayor because she knows that solving this crisis means addressing the root causes of homelessness: lack of affordable housing, health care, job training, mental health services, and drug and alcohol counseling.
Today’s homelessness crisis demands urgent attention to root causes, not just surface-level fixes or divisive talking points by politicians.
There are no simple answers, but Karen has the experience, values, and support to get the job done.
California Congresswoman Karen Bass authored the George Floyd Justice in Policing Act, and was one of the lead Democratic negotiators for the bill. She joins MSNBC's Jonathan Capehart to discuss the future of police reform as Congress remains unable to secure a deal to pass the legislation.
California Democratic Rep. Karen Bass is preparing to launch a 2022 campaign for mayor of Los Angeles, and could make her announcement as soon as next week, according to a person familiar with her plans.
Responding to favorable polling numbers and encouragement from supporters, Rep. Karen Bass said she is "seriously considering" running for mayor of Los Angeles in 2022.
A poll released on Aug. 23 by a California-based public opinion research firm found that more than a quarter of a sample of the city's Democrats supported Bass against other current and potential candidates for the 2022 mayoral election.
In an interview with KPCC/LAist, Bass said, "I have been overwhelmed and humbled by people pushing for me to do this, and I will say that I am seriously considering it."
She said that running for mayor "was not something I had thought about before -- I was planning to run for reelection. I am evaluating the situation now."
There’s evidence that Bass would enter the campaign as a frontrunner. A survey by opinion firm FM3 Research that asked Democratic voters about current and potential candidates found strong support for Bass — nearly a quarter of respondents picked her as their first choice for mayor. Bass' hypothetical competitors languished in the single digits, according to the results of the late-July early-August snapshot.
During an appearance on ABC’s “This Week,” Bass told host George Stephanopoulos, Rep. Karen Bass (D-Calif.) said that the "maximum" sentence is "absolutely needed" after a jury convicted former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin of two counts of murder and one count of manslaugher in George Floyd's death.
On the significance of the Derek Chauvin verdict, Rep. Karen Bass tells @gstephanopoulos "I was definitely relieved," adding: "We need the verdict to be at the maximum level." https://t.co/UpcGAa1Mv3 pic.twitter.com/siZLrQgnyP
— This Week (@ThisWeekABC) April 25, 2021
Rep. Karen Bass (D-Calif.) on Sunday said she is “hopeful” that Congress will come together to pass police reform in the wake of two recent fatal police shootings of people of color.
Rep. Karen Bass on police reform: "All communities deserve to be protected and served by law enforcement and you shouldn't have law enforcement that protects and serves one community and acts as though they're in a war zone in another community ... that's what we have." #CNNSOTU pic.twitter.com/KTsmzXLdkz
— State of the Union (@CNNSotu) April 18, 2021
The California Legislative Black Caucus met via Zoom with other Black leaders Friday and urged Governor Gavin Newsom to appoint an African American woman to fill the U.S. Senate seat that will be vacated when Kamala Harris takes office as the first African American female Vice President of the United States.
Speakers at the Zoom conference included the leader of the California Legislative Black Caucus, Dr. Shirley Weber; the Vice Chair of the Caucus, Steven Bradford; a newly elected Los Angeles Councilmember, Mark Ridley Thomas and the Chair of the California Democratic Party African American Caucus, Taisha Brown.
The group unanimously recommended either Karen Bass or Barbara Lee as appointees to the California Senate seat vacated by Harris.
Karen Bass formerly served in the California State Assembly for six years, the last two as speaker. As a Los Angeles native, Bass is currently the Congresswoman for the 37th congressional district of California.
As such, Bass was elected chair of the Congressional Black Caucus in 2018, serves as Chair of the United States House Foreign Affairs Subcommittee on Africa, Global Health, Global Human Rights and International Organizations and for the United States House Judiciary Subcommittee on Crime, Terrorism and Homeland Security.
The other highly qualified candidate suggested by the Caucus is Barbara Lee. Lee was elected to the State Assembly in 1990, where she served for six years prior to being elected to the State Senate.
As a legislator, Lee authored almost 70 bills and resolutions that were signed into law by then Republican Governor Pete Wilson. These different pieces of legislation addressed a wide variety of issues ranging from public safety to environmental issues.
In 1995, Lee authored the California Schools Hate Crimes Reduction Act, which affords protection from hate crimes to all students in public schools regardless of their race, gender identity, sexual orientation, or other. During her time in the State Senate, Lee was a strong advocate for African Americans, and for women.
In 1998, Lee was elected as Congresswoman for California’s then 9th district where she took controversial stances on many different issues. She has been a strong advocate for legislation to end poverty, ending the HIV epidemic and the only member of Congress to vote against the authorization of use of force following the September 11 attacks.
As Dr. Shirley Weber noted in her remarks Friday morning, both women “have confidently built strong coalitions across diverse communities, and will do so in the senate.”
During an oversight hearing before the House Judiciary Committee Rep. Karen Bass grilled AG William Barr for his role in defending cruel and violent tactics used by police. She also addressed his failures to address inequality and injustice in America's law enforcement system.
Watch their exchange below:
Congresswoman Karen Bass, chair of the Congressional Black Caucus, is undergoing vetting as a candidate to be Joe Biden's running mate, CBS News has learned according to sources familiar with the process.
The five-term congresswoman represents Los Angeles and endorsed Biden for president in mid-March.
It is not immediately clear where Bass stands in the vetting process but her name has been floated for consideration by powerful Democrats like House Majority Whip James Clyburn. "Karen Bass would be a big plus…she is a great person in my mind, I work with her every day," Clyburn told CNN in June when asked about Biden's vetting process.
Bass' vetting comes as pressure builds on Biden to pick a woman of color to join him on the ticket.
From her perspective, Bass told Garrett she "would certainly like to see" a woman of color chosen as Biden's running mate but added it was not "imperative."
Neither Bass' congressional office nor Biden's campaign immediately responded to a request for comment.
The Congressional Black Caucus is at work on a package of policing reforms the House could advance later this month in response to the death of George Floyd, Rep. Karen Bass, D-Calif., the chair of the caucus, told ABC News.
A federal chokehold ban, a review of police training standards and a reform of the legal doctrine that shields police officers from legal liability are some of the proposals circulating among the group, which House Democratic leaders have tasked with leading the chamber's response to Floyd's death and the ongoing protests.
"We are going to do everything we can, while the nation has a height of awareness on the issue, to pass transformative legislation," said Bass. "We want to make sure that, in this time period, we are very visible so that African Americans around the country understand that this is our experience as well."
Thousands of Black migrants from around the globe seeking new lives in America are instead stuck in limbo in Mexico. Amid reports of their mistreatment and an African migrant’s death, several members of Congress recently traveled across the U.S.-Mexico border to meet the asylum seekers.
Reps. Karen Bass (D-CA), Barbara Lee (D-CA), and Yvette Clarke (D-NY) of the Congressional Black Caucus visited Tijuana, Mexico, on Friday. Also making the trip was Rep. Juan Vargas (D-CA), a member of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus whose California district includes the border.
The Congresswomen told BET they heard “horrific” stories from about 50 “mostly young men and women” hailing from Africa, the Caribbean and beyond. All have been impacted by the Migrant Protection Protocols, known informally as the “Remain In Mexico” policy. Implemented in January 2019 by the Trump Administration, the U.S. now returns non-Mexican migrants to Mexico to await immigration court decisions.
Immigration advocates told the visiting members of Congress there are at least 5,000 Black asylum seekers currently in Tapachula, Mexico -- part of an estimated 15,000 Black migrants throughout Mexico. They hail from across the Black Diaspora, with most from Cameroon, the Congo, Ethiopia, Eritrea and Haiti, according to advocates. Black migrants say they’ve faced racism, physical and sexual violence, language barriers and other trauma.
“African and Caribbean immigrants who immigrate to the United States of America are treated as if they are invisible,” said Bass, chairwoman of the 55-member CBC. “Many arrived in South America and then walked north, all to be dehumanized and mistreated at our southern border. We [went] to the border to hear what they have been through. They are an important piece of this story.”
Today, more people than ever live in countries other than the one of their birth, either by choice or necessity. According to the United Nations, the number of migrants globally in 2019 reached an estimated 272 million -- 51 million more than in 2010. Women constituted 48 percent of migrants, and about 38 million migrants are children.
Pew Research Center data indicates 4.2 million Black immigrants reside in the U.S. The reasons for their arrival vary; some are fleeing war and conflict, economic insecurity, or gender-based bias and violence. Climate change is increasingly a factor in people being displaced. Many envision new lives in America where the Statue of Liberty inscription notes in part: “Give me your tired, your poor/ Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free.”
Yet the story of immigration under Donald Trump’s presidency has been rife with controversy. On the campaign trail, Trump promised to do away with Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals, known as DACA. Created in 2012 by President Barack Obamavia executive order, DACA enabled certain undocumented immigrants who’d arrived in America before their 16th birthday to receive work permits and exemption from deportation for two years. The Supreme Court is currently deciding whether DACA is lawful and can continue; a ruling is expected in 2020.
The Trump administration has also put in place a travel ban impacting several majority Muslim countries. There was also a “zero tolerance” policy that resulted in thousands of families being forcibly separated at the southern U.S. border; babies have been torn from their mothers, and children and adults have been detained in cages. Meanwhile, Trump’s reported `s**thole’ comment about Haiti and African nations (which he denied), and determination to build a border wall have led to protests from advocacy groups and legal challenges.
“Trump’s white nationalist agenda has been harming immigrants since Day 1 of his presidency,” said Lee, a Senior Democratic Whip and senior member of the House Appropriations Committee. “These cruel and bigoted policies have no place in a nation built by immigrants from all walks of life, and we all must keep pushing back so that his xenophobic vision of America does not become our America.”
After visiting Mexico, the CBC members and Rep. Vargas returned to San Ysidro, California, for a Congressional Field Hearing hosted by the House Foreign Affairs Subcommittee on Africa, Global Health, Global Human Rights and International Organizations. Bass, who also chairs that subcommittee, said the purpose was to examine the global migrant surge from a humanitarian perspective and hear testimony from experts.
“How is it that some of the poorest nations around the world can take in people in crisis,” she asked. “What can we learn from these countries? What are the international protocols, norms, standards, and practices that should be followed? I want to know, what can we learn from other countries around the world. But mostly, I want to understand where the United States is with regard to these practices, norms and standards.”
The hearing included testimony from Doug Stephens, a lawyer and former U.S. asylum official who has challenged the legality of the Mexico policy; Kate Clark, Senior Director of Immigration Services for the Jewish Family Service of San Diego which is aiding migrants; Charanya Krishnaswami, Americas Advocacy Director for Amnesty International USA; and Nana Gyamfi, Executive Director of the Black Alliance for Just Immigration (BAJI).
Gyamfi, dedicated her remarks to the late Nebane Abienwi, a 37-year-old asylum seeker from Cameroon. He died on October 1, 2019, reportedly in the custody of the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).
Abienwi reportedly arrived at the San Ysidro Port of Entry on September 5, 2019, requesting asylum. About two weeks later, he was sent to the Otay Mesa Detention Center in San Diego. Reportedly, he experienced a hypertensive event in ICE custody, and was transported to a medical center on September 26, 2019. After undergoing treatment for a brain hemorrhage, he was later taken off life support (reportedly against his family’s wishes) and died.
“I want us to take a moment to think about why someone would risk their lives and travel thousands of miles from home to a strange land?” said Gyamfi in testimony provided to BET. “They have experienced physical harm, sexual assault, death of their family and friends, loss of personal items including documentation, family heirlooms, life’s savings and whatever little personal safety that they had. The individual and collective trauma that they hold is unimaginable.”
Gyamfi testified that the asylum process at Tapachula, Mexico, requires migrants to be taken into custody and held in the largest detention center in Latin America, known as Siglio XXI (Century 21). BAJI has been going to Tapachula since August of this year, she said. “Black migrants complain of racist maltreatment in the detention center, including being fed maggot-filled food, being denied health care and sanitary conditions, being forced to sign paperwork written in a language they do not understand, and being stripped of their nationality and declared ‘stateless.’”
Gyami added that U.S. foreign policy — from the failed war on drugs to trade issues — have exacerbated tenuous conditions abroad, spurring migration across the globe.
Rep. Clarke is the daughter of Jamaican immigrants and chairs the CBC’s Task Force on Immigration. The Congresswoman told BET she believes the crisis at the Mexican border is a direct consequence of the Trump administration’s threats of punitive measures to Mexico. There’s also been pressure on Central American countries such as Guatemala, Honduras and El Salvador, known as the Northern Triangle.
Advocates say migrants from the Northern Triangle journeying to the U.S. often cross the border between Guatemala and Mexico. When that region saw an increase in Black migrants earlier this year, Mexico honored the migrants’ right to asylum and allowed them transit, exit visas and travel to its northern border to apply for asylum in the U.S.
However, after President Trump threatened to impose harsh tariffs on Mexico if it didn’t stem the flow of migrants to the border, the country changed its immigration policy to require migrants to apply for asylum and residency in Mexico. “It’s a bullying tactic,” said Clarke, “to bring the hammer down on nations that are vulnerable themselves.”
Trump and administration officials have countered criticism of its immigration policies by saying they are meant to secure U.S borders, prevent criminals from entering, and protect American workers and resources. In a November 14 press briefing, Mark Morgan, Acting Commissioner of U.S. Customs and Border Protection, suggested Congress was to blame.
“If you recall, earlier this year we sounded an alarm — actually, quite a bit — with respect to the border crisis and asking Congress repeatedly to act to fix the loopholes in our broken immigration system, and close the gaps driving this crisis. Unfortunately, not a single piece of meaningful legislation has been brought forward.”
He continued, “And as a result, this country stood by and watched as the crisis worsened, as we reached our peak in May of over 140,000 apprehensions in a single month. However, in the continued absence of congressional action, the President, along with his administration, as well as our hardworking men and women of the Customs and Border Protection and our partner agencies, has taken action. Through continued engagement with the government of Mexico and the Northern Triangle countries, we have initiated a network of initiatives, policies, and of regulations to stem the flow of the migration. Together, we are approaching this as the regional crisis that it is, and we have seen incredible success.”
Immigration has proven a partisan issue in Congress, but legislation has been introduced. Among the latest is the Refugee Protection Act of 2019. U.S. Senators Patrick Leahy (D-VT), Kamala D. Harris (D-CA), Cory Booker (D-NJ) and Rep. Zoe Lofgren (D-CA) are among the lawmakers who led the introduction of the measure. In a press release, the measure is described as a “comprehensive blueprint for restoring and reinvigorating U.S. refugee and asylum systems.” The Senate bill is cosponsored by at least 16 lawmakers, while a companion House bill is cosponsored by at least 31 members.
“The United States must always be a place where refugees are welcomed and encouraged to contribute to society,” said Harris, who added that the measure would help guarantee that refugees and asylum-seekers are welcomed and supported, and “that our immigration system respects the basic dignity of every human being.”
The Congressional Black Caucus (CBC) released the following statement criticizing President Donald Trump’s despicable attack on Representative Ilhan Omar (D-MN) by tweeting a video accusing the Congresswoman of supporting terrorist responsible for the 9/11 attacks on the World Trade Center.
CBC Chair Representative Karen Bass (D-CA) said the following:
“There was a time when Presidents of either party could be looked too for leadership in pulling our country together and denouncing hate, but it’s clear that those days are over so long as Donald Trump is in the White House. His attacks on Representative Omar, as well as those from right wing media and commentators, not only spew hate and division, they are putting the life of a member of Congress in danger. These attacks are despicable and must stop so that our nation can focus on the real issues that need to be addressed to ensure our national security.”
Last month, Congress passed a massive lands bill that, among other things, added four national monuments, including Medgar Evers' home located in Jackson, Mississippi. President Donald Trump signed the legislation into law earlier this week.
Mississippi Governor Phil Bryant, a Trump ally, felt it appropriate to thank the president and the state's Republican senators, but left out Bennie Thompson the African American congressman who has worked over the years, has testified at hearings, proposed legislation and called for a study of the feasibility of the National Park Service taking over the Evers' home.
"Thank you to @realDonaldTrump for signing legislation today to designate Medgar and Myrlie Evers home as a National Monument," he tweeted. "@SenatorWicker & @SenHydeSmith have worked very hard on this for some time and are to be commended."
The head of the Congressional Black Caucus weighed in Friday on a simmering dispute in Mississippi over who deserves credit for the push to designate civil rights icon Medgar Evers' home a national monument.
Rep. Karen Bass, D-Calif., chairwoman of the Congressional Black Caucus, called Mississippi Republican Gov. Phil Bryant "despicable" and accused him of ignoring the work of Rep. Bennie Thompson, the lone Democrat and African-American in the state's delegation, who has advocated for years for Evers' home to be named a national monument.
"I don’t know much about the governor of Mississippi, but he is clearly despicable," Bass said in a call with reporters Friday. "There is no way in the world that he should not have acknowledged the decades of work that Congressman Bennie Thompson has put in. So for him to specifically ignore him is really just an example of his pettiness."
“You can take my word the entire Congressional Black Caucus was highly offended that he would be so disrespectful of one our most important members and a member who chairs a full committee – the Homeland Security Committee," Bass said. “For him to disrespect him in the manner that he did, I hope the governor of Mississippi knows that the slight will not go unnoticed."
Evers' widow, Myrlie Evers-Williams, told SiriusXM radio host Joe Madison Friday she was "incensed'' that only a few were credited, noting that Thompson and others worked for 16 years to get the historic designation.
"I have given too much to sit down and be quiet about something that I feel is unjust,'' said the 87-year-old civil rights veteran. "How dare that be taken and given credit to one or two people who are new."
Thompson tweeted:
After years of working to enact the home of Medgar and Myrlie Evers as a national monument, I am proud to announce it has been signed into law. I hope this enactment affords my long-time friend Myrlie Evers some assurance that her husband’s legacy lives on. pic.twitter.com/lFInLfyZnW
— Bennie G. Thompson (@BennieGThompson) March 13, 2019
The Chair of the Congressional Black Caucus, Rep. Karen Bass (D-CA), issued the following statement after President Trump declared a national emergency to build his border wall.
"This declaration has more to do with the President’s bruised ego than actually doing what is best for America. The author of The Art of The Deal couldn’t make a deal to build a wall. This is a fake solution to a fake crisis and we must stand firm in keeping the nation focused on the real issues impacting Americans.
“There are families who can’t make ends meet because their wages are too low. Citizens are being denied equal access at the ballot box because of voter suppression. We have a criminal justice system that still treats Americans better if they are rich and guilty than if they are poor and innocent. Black boys and girls are dying prematurely from gun violence while Black women are losing their lives during childbirth.
“These are just some of the real crises confronting America. Mr. President, it’s time to finally demonstrate the leadership worthy of the office you hold.”
“Ralph Northam served in our nation’s military, treated thousands of families as a medical doctor, and had the audacity to ask for Black votes when he wanted to become governor, yet never once mentioned that he thought it was ok to be in black face or dressed as a Klansman.
“An apology now isn’t enough. The governor needs to learn that it’s not about what you do once you’re caught. Instead, it’s about the things you do when you think no one is watching.
“We now know what Ralph Northam did when he thought no one was watching. The person in that photo can’t be trusted to lead. Governor Northam must resign immediately.”
Congressional Black Caucus chair Rep. Karen Bass released a statement calling for Rep. Steve King (R-Ia.) to be removed from his committee assignments Saturday his comments about white supremacy this week.
Like Donald Trump, Steve King has sought again and again to give comfort to white supremacists, something that should never be allowed in the halls of Congress or the Oval Office. If Republicans really believe these racist statements have no place in our government, then their party must offer more than shallow temporary statements of condemnation. Instead, they must actually condemn Mr. King by removing him from his committee assignments so that he can no longer affect policies that impact the very people he has made clear he disdains. Republicans should make clear Mr. King is no longer welcomed in their party or Congress. Anything less than these substantive actions is another tacit acceptance of racism from the Republican Party.
On Thursday, the day of the official swearing-in of the 116th Congress, the Congressional Black Caucus swore in its own group of members, a total of 55 ― its largest number in history.
This year’s CBC surpasses its previous record of 49 House and Senate members in the 115th Congress.
“With the largest caucus in history... the CBC is poised to play a leading role in standing up to the Trump Administration and pressing forward on key issues like protecting voting rights and the Affordable Care Act,” executive director Kevin Harris said by email.
Established in 1971, the Congressional Black Caucus states as its mission “to ensure African Americans... have the opportunity to achieve the American Dream.” Its legislative priorities include reforming the criminal justice system and combating voter suppression.
