A massive wildfire has torn through Los Angeles’ affluent Pacific Palisades neighborhood this week. It’s left destruction in its wake and exposed critical failures in the city’s emergency response system. As flames devoured multi-million dollar homes and residents fled for safety, firefighters encountered a shocking obstacle: dry hydrants with no water to fight the inferno.
Former L.A. mayoral candidate Rick Caruso highlighted the severity of the crisis, comparing the city’s infrastructure failures to those of a “third-world country.” The devastating scene unfolded while Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass was notably absent, having departed for a trip to Ghana, Africa. Because apparently, in progressive Los Angeles, checking diversity boxes matters more than checking water pressure.
It was against this backdrop of chaos and mismanagement that veteran actor James Woods, who lost his home to the wildfire, launched a blistering critique of Fire Department Chief Kristin Crowley’s leadership priorities. Woods pointed to Crowley’s official department biography, which emphasizes her commitment to “creating, supporting, and promoting a culture of diversity, inclusion, and equity” while basic safety infrastructure apparently crumbled.
“Refilling the water reservoirs would have been a welcome priority, too, but I guess she had too much on her plate promoting diversity,” Woods wrote in a series of viral social media posts that ignited nationwide attention to the crisis.
The firefighters risking their lives to saves our homes deserve the highest praise and gratitude. The politicians who deprived them of the means to do their job, and literally left them using purses to quell the conflagration should be in prison. pic.twitter.com/f8HT7IrNlY
— James Woods (@RealJamesWoods) January 9, 2025
Misplaced Priorities In Woke LA
The controversy has exposed a deeper pattern of misplaced priorities within Los Angeles’ emergency services. Under Mayor Bass’s leadership, the city slashed nearly $20 million from the fire department’s budget this fiscal year, with additional cuts proposed for the future. These reductions came even as the department’s leadership doubled down on social initiatives.
Crowley, who made headlines in 2022 as the department’s first female and LGBT chief, has faced mounting criticism for what many see as a focus on identity politics at the expense of basic emergency preparedness. Let that sink in: while Californians watched their homes burn, their fire department leadership was busy crafting DEI mission statements.
You can’t make this stuff up.
In an emotional appearance on Fox News, Woods called for accountability at the highest levels of California’s government.
“This isn’t a social justice exercise that you are in charge of,” Woods declared. “This is about getting water to areas that need water because there are fires and hundred-mile-an-hour winds burning houses to the ground.”
Watch Woods talk more about this in the video below.
Woods Calls Out Gavin Newsom
If this sounds like a case study in progressive mismanagement, that’s because it is. The actor’s criticism extended beyond local officials to California Governor Gavin Newsom’s broader approach to fire management.
“If it is true that Gavin Newsom is the absolute blithering idiot that I believe he is in the way he has handled fire management in this state again and again and again,” Woods stated. He then went so far as to call for formal inquiries into California’s emergency response failures.
While progressive leaders have attempted to blame climate change for the disaster, conservatives point to years of mismanagement and misplaced priorities. Indeed, the current crisis has revealed how progressive policies have impacted even basic government functions like emergency services, with potentially deadly consequences for California residents.
As the fires continue to threaten lives and property, the controversy has sparked a broader debate about the role of government and the importance of prioritizing essential services over ideological initiatives. For residents watching their neighborhoods burn while hydrants run dry, the consequences of these policy choices have become impossible to ignore.
Please join us in saying a prayer for Woods and all those impacted by these devastating fires.
Key Takeaways:
- Democrat-led LA slashed fire department budget by $20M while prioritizing DEI initiatives.
- First LGBT fire chief focused on ‘diversity culture’ as basic infrastructure crumbled.
- James Woods exposes systematic failure of progressive leadership during crisis.
- Empty hydrants, absent mayor highlight consequences of misplaced priorities.
Sources: Breitbart, The Daily Beast
