Sanctuary or Surrender?

In California, the only thing being protected is the mob.

I live in Los Angeles, and after what I witnessed this past weekend, I can’t blame anyone outside of California for thinking we’ve completely lost our minds.

Downtown looked like a scene out of a failed state, not a major U.S. city. Rioters swarmed ICE field offices. DHS and FBI vehicles were attacked. Federal agents were pelted with bricks and bottles. Storefronts were smashed, buildings defaced, and traffic was shut down by mobs burning Waymo vehicles, waving Mexican flags, and hoisting banners that said “Abolish Borders” and “No Cops, No ICE, No Prisons.” All this was done in broad daylight, with the cameras rolling and the authorities standing down until it was too late.

And what did our so-called leaders do? They justified it. Governor Gavin Newsom said the violence was rooted in “community frustration.” Mayor Karen Bass called it a “deeply emotional response.”

To those of you watching from Iowa, Florida, or Ohio — yes, this really happened. And no, it wasn’t condemned by our officials. It was practically encouraged. This wasn’t some rogue protest. It was open season on federal agents trying to enforce the law, and the only people taking heat were the ones doing their jobs.

This isn’t the first time Newsom and Bass have watched a disaster unfold and chosen to take no action. They pulled the same stunt during the Palisades fires—standing idly by or junketing in Ghana as brushfires erupted into infernos. Reservoirs were empty, evacuation orders were mishandled, coordination was poor, and precious hours slipped away. Why? Because politics and optics mattered more than an urgent response. And now, they’ve done it again—only this time, the fuel wasn’t just dry grass. It was anti-law enforcement rage, and their own rhetoric struck the match.

Once again, they stood there as riots, like fire, spread, not just failing to put it out, but fanning the flames with every excuse, deflection, and empty slogan. This is their leadership model: do nothing, say something, blame everyone else.

And if the fire metaphor seems overdone, it’s only because California keeps giving us literal and figurative burnouts. These riots weren’t an accident. They were the predictable result of years spent demonizing federal immigration enforcement while romanticizing street-level resistance as virtuous rebellion.

The madness didn’t stop with the mayor and governor. No, more lunacy erupted when Democratic lawmakers — both in Sacramento and D.C. — criticized ICE not for conducting raids, but for failing to announce them in advance.

Seriously. Multiple legislators were outraged that federal agents didn’t provide “advance notice” of immigration enforcement actions. That’s like asking the DEA to give the cartel a heads-up before a drug bust. “Dear Sanctuary City: Please inform your undocumented fugitives that we’ll be swinging by tomorrow morning at 9 a.m. sharp. Bagels provided.”

This is not how a serious state behaves; it’s how a padded cell with a press office behaves.

Let’s be clear: ICE is enforcing federal law. If Gavin Newsom, Karen Bass, or the progressive peanut gallery have a problem with the law, they should lobby Congress to change it. But turning a blind eye to violence, or worse, suggesting it's some form of righteous protest, isn’t leadership. It’s cowardice in a tailored suit.

Eventually, things got so bad that someone had to step in and clean up the mess—not Newsom, not Bass.

Trump.

While the bricks were flying and downtown resembled Caracas more than California, it was President Trump who authorized the National Guard to restore order. The man that California Democrats never miss a chance to vilify ended up doing the one thing they refused to do: protect the streets of Los Angeles.

He didn’t hold a listening session. He didn’t tweet out a poem. He deployed help.

Say what you will about Trump’s style — at least someone acted like a grown-up while Newsom and Bass were still searching for a politically safe adjective to describe rioters setting the streets on fire.

Which brings us to the question that no one in Sacramento wants to answer:

What does “sanctuary” even mean anymore?

Does it mean you’re free to throw bricks at federal agents?
Does it mean mobs can destroy property with impunity?
Does it mean the law only applies to people who vote the right way?

Because if “sanctuary” now means immunity for rioters and obstruction for law enforcement, then it’s not a sanctuary at all. It’s surrender. It's Newsom and Bass smiling for the cameras while pretending not to smell the smoke, again.

California has always flirted with the edge. But now we’re living in a madhouse, one where criminals are protected, officers are abandoned, and the only consistent principle is that responsibility lies with someone else.

Here’s a radical idea: If you don’t like the law, change it. If you don’t like ICE, make your case to Congress. But don’t cloak yourself in moral language while providing cover for people who assault officers, vandalize buildings, and terrorize communities.

That’s not progress. It’s a collapse.

And it’s not happening despite leadership; it’s happening because of it. Newsom and Bass didn’t just let the flames rise — they fanned them. First in the hills, now in the streets.

If no one in power is willing to grab a hose, it’s time for the rest of us to find someone who will.