Former Los Angeles School Supt. Austin Beutner launched his mayoral campaign Monday criticizing not only Mayor Karen Bass, but also President Trump and his immigration crackdown.
Beutner, a philanthropist and former investment banker, used a four-minute campaign video to describe Los Angeles as a city “under attack,” with the message punctuated by footage of U.S. Border Patrol agents.
“The Trump administration’s attacks on our values and our neighbors are simply unacceptable,” Beutner, a Democrat, said while standing on a tree-lined residential street. “Targeting people based solely on the color of their skin is unacceptable and un-American.”
“I will work to fight these injustices, keep everyone safe, and build a better Los Angeles,” he added.
The White House did not immediately respond to The Times’ inquiries about Beutner’s video. Four months ago, Department of Homeland Security spokeswoman Tricia McLaughlin said claims that agents were engaging in racial profiling and that people were being targeted because of the color of their skin were “disgusting and categorically false.”
The video begins with a description of the devastating bicycle accident that changed Beutner’s life about 17 years ago, leading him to enter public service and “take a different path.” Shortly thereafter, he assumed the high position of first deputy mayor of Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa and concluded business deals on the mayor’s behalf.
The video features Beutner, 65, as a pragmatic problem-solver and highlights his nonprofit Vision to Learn, which provides vision tests and glasses to children in low-income communities. It also highlights his work leading L.A. Unified through the COVID-19 pandemic and his efforts to pass Proposition 28, the 2022 bill that supports arts education in California public schools.
In the video, Beutner takes aim at City Hall for the rising cost of housing and the huge increase in homeownership and small apartments. Beutner called Los Angeles a “drifting” city and criticized the mayor’s efforts to reduce homelessness, one of her signature initiatives.
“The city spent billions of dollars to fix a problem that became a bigger problem,” Beutner said.
Bass spokesperson Douglas Herman pushed back against the criticism, saying the city needs to “move past divisive attacks.” He said violent crime is down across the city, and murders are down to the lowest level in 60 years.
“When Karen Bass ran for mayor, homelessness and public safety were the top concerns of Angelenos, and she achieved great results,” he said in a statement. “Today, for the first time in Los Angeles, homelessness decreased for the second year in a row. Thousands of people were moved off the streets and into housing.”
“There are still challenges ahead, but this administration has proven it can get there,” Herman added. “Mayor Bass is committed to building on this historic momentum in his second term.”
Beutner’s video, posted two days after announcing his candidacy for mayor, drew sharp criticism of the city’s preparations and response to the Palisades fire, which destroyed thousands of homes and killed 12 people.
In many ways, Beutner’s criticism of President Trump’s immigration crackdown echoes the message Bass delivered months ago, when federal agents were arresting street vendors, day laborers and other workers in Los Angeles.
In June, federal agents carried out an “all-out assault on Los Angeles,” including “grabbing random people” on the streets, “chasing Angelenos in parking lots,” and arresting immigrants who appeared in court for their annual exams. Her approach to this issue helped her regain her political footing after she was in the doldrums after the Palisades fire.
In early September, the Supreme Court agreed that immigration officials can stop and detain individuals suspected of entering the United States illegally simply because they speak Spanish or have dark skin.
The high court’s ruling invalidated a Los Angeles judge’s temporary restraining order that prohibited staff from stopping people because of their race or apparent ethnicity.
