The liberal bastion of Los Angeles hasn’t had a Republican mayor in office since 2001. Yet, according to Democratic Mayor Eric Garcetti, and the silence from NBC Nightly News anchor Lester Holt, the city’s exploding homelessness problem was getting worse due to “conservative cuts to programs.”
During his Wednesday report, Holt freely admitted that L.A.’s “homelessness has jumped 16 percent in a year. Half of Americans living on the streets are in California” and that it has “sparked concerns about safety and sanitation.” Those were facts the liberal media often tries to hide and sweep under the rug.
He also showed how the city’s almost 700 homeless encampments have spread from the infamous Skid Row to being clustered are iconic landmarks:
Tonight, they’re the images alarming Californians. In L.A., the homeless on places like the Hollywood Walk of Fame and along the iconic Venice Boardwalk.
(…)
What was once largely confined to the city’s notorious Skid Row can be seen all across Los Angeles. Hundreds of homeless encampments have sprung up including this one in the shadow of city hall.
“Authorities here spent over $600 million on the issue last year and have more than doubled the number of people housed since 2015, but they have failed to keep pace with demand,” Holt added, sounding a bit critical. But as the report went on, it became clear that he was skirting around mentioning the root of California’s homelessness troubles.
Standing in the city’s “homeless response command center,” Holt asked Mayor Garcetti about President Trump “blam[ing] this blue state's Democratic leadership” for the increasing numbers.
“This is not a partisanship issue – partisan issue at all,” Garcetti began, before getting partisan. “Conservatives didn't start homelessness, though conservative cuts to programs certainly exacerbated it, and liberals didn’t cause homelessness.”
Holt did note that one of the reasons people were becoming homeless was due to the sky rocketing rent prices. But, of course, he obfuscated the fact that the sky-high rent and cost of living in L.A. and California were driven by Democratic tax and regulatory policies. So, in other words, they're the exact same policies that have caused the state to experience a mass exodus.
Not only have Democrats claimed victory in the last five mayoral elections in L.A. over that same time period, but only two of the last five governors have also been Republican. So, it was irresponsible for Holt to let Garcetti’s smear stand without even a hint of pushback. But, of course, Holt probably counts himself a believer in those alternative facts.
The transcript is below, click "expand" to read:
NBC Nightly News
September 18, 2019
7:13:18 p.m. EasternLESTER HOLT: Also here in California, President Trump, on a political fundraising tour, says his administration is considering taking action to deal with the worsening homeless crisis that has left thousands living on the streets of Los Angeles. I got reaction to that from L.A.'s mayor and spend some time on the streets here talking to the people at the heart of the crisis.
[Cuts to video]
Tonight, they’re the images alarming Californians. In L.A., the homeless on places like the Hollywood Walk of Fame and along the iconic Venice Boardwalk.
(…)
HOLT: What was once largely confined to the city’s notorious Skid Row can be seen all across Los Angeles. Hundreds of homeless encampments have sprung up including this one in the shadow of city hall.
(…)
HOLT: In L.A., homelessness has jumped 16 percent in a year. Half of Americans living on the streets are in California. It sparked concerns about safety and sanitation.
How many homeless encampments are seeing in Los Angeles?
ERIC GARCETTI (Mayor of Los Angeles): A little shy of 700.
HOLT: Mayor Eric Garcetti, calls it a crisis. I met up with him in the city’s homeless response command center. Authorities here spent over $600 million on the issue last year and have more than doubled the number of people housed since 2015, but they have failed to keep pace with demand.
Have you done a self-review of your role in this?
GARCETTI: Absolutely we do all the time.
PRESIDENT DONALD TRUMP: Look at Los Angeles with the tents and the horrible, horrible disgusting conditions.
HOLT: President Trump blames this blue state's Democratic leadership.
How do you react to that?
GARCETTI: This is not a partisanship issue – partisan issue at all. Conservatives didn't start homelessness, though conservative cuts to programs certainly exacerbated it, and liberals didn’t cause homelessness.
(…)
HOLT: Mayor Garcetti says within the next ten months L.A. will have opened 29 new homeless shelters, but is also now focusing on helping those who are on the verge of homelessness before they end up on the streets.
