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SHERMAN OAKS, LOS ANGELES () — In a fiery debate in Sherman Oaks Wednesday night, Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass did not hold back, accusing Nithya Raman of having a weak legislative record, including when it comes to fighting for Hollywood.
“I did the first tax credit when I was speaker of the house. You were nowhere,” Bass said with Raman sitting next to her. “Even when it came time to vote for the entertainment industry, you walked on votes. As a matter of fact, I believe you have missed several thousand votes because you don’t show up to work.”
Raman pushed back, saying council members routinely miss meetings because of other official responsibilities.
“(Bass) knows, as well as I do, that I have had regular absences because I’ve been appointed to external boards that lead me to miss regular council meetings because these bodies that I’ve been appointed to by the previous mayor, by this mayor, sometimes conflict with our council days,” Raman said.
On homelessness, Raman went after Bass’ signature program, Inside Safe, which she has called too expensive and not sustainable.
“This mayor has spent $400 million on Inside Safe, refused audits,” Raman said.
Bass defended the program and disputed Raman’s characterization of its costs.
“You have said this on many occasions that Inside Safe costs $85,000… $100,000 when you know perfectly well that the county reimburses for those surfaces,” Bass said.
Raman responded: “We also pay for county taxes, so we are paying for all those costs.”
On the LAPD, Bass blamed Raman’s vote against increasing the size of the department for the issues facing recruiting.
“You have a lot of nerve talking about the hiring of police officers when we finally reached the point where we had a decent sized class and you voted against it,” Bass said.
“It passed by the way,” Raman interjected.
Bass continued her criticism, saying: “You still voted against it. She talks out of both sides of her mouth. She wants to study everything. I believe in data. But the city council and the city of L.A. is not an academic institution. We need to act.”
Raman defended her record on public safety funding.
“I voted for budgets that have maintained and even expanded our police force,” Raman answered. “What I have voted against is a contract that bankrupted our city.”
Once allies, Bass and Raman spent much of the evening arguing over the power of a mayor, contrasted with the power of a councilmember. Bass argued that homelessness declined in Raman’s district because of the mayor’s Inside Safe initiative.
“Right now at City Hall, no one is in charge. Mayor Bass only looks at Inside Safe. That’s the only program her office manages. We are investing hundreds of millions of dollars in 8,000 beds not being managed. You deserve accountability,” Raman said.
The two Democrats also disagreed over political support at City Hall and whether endorsements from fellow councilmembers could affect Raman’s ability to govern.
“I did run at the last minute,” Raman said. “Many of them had endorsed this mayor beforehand, including me. I had also endorsed this mayor before I ran. When you’re a councilmember, you have to work with the sitting mayor in order to get what you need for your constituents.”
“She has no support from the councilmembers because nobody can work with her,” Bass said. “That is a problem. The people don’t want to be on her committee. Your committee met today. You called the meeting today. It was your last meeting, and you didn’t even show up to your last meeting.”
The attacks will only continue as this campaign moves into the fall. Early voting is less than two months away.
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