Los Angeles police are facing criticism from taxpayers for providing continuous security to Kamala Harris after President Donald Trump removed her official security team.
Elite officers from the LAPD have been reassigned from their usual duties to protect the former Vice President’s residence in Brentwood around the clock, according to FOX 11.
Numerous LA locals, including reality television star Spencer Pratt, criticized the city’s Democratic leadership on social media for allocating resources to safeguard Harris.
Pratt expressed his frustration on X, writing: ‘NEWSOM AND KAREN BASS HAVE ENOUGH RESOURCES TO HAVE LAPD AND CHP PROTECT KAMALA HARRIS BUT NOT ENOUGH TO MAKE SURE PEOPLE AREN’T TRESPASSING ON OUR DIRT LOT IN THE PALISADES AND DOING SELFIES??????!!!!’
LA Republican official Lisa Cusack also weighed in, writing: ‘Democrat elites truly have no souls.’
In response to FOX 11’s inquiry regarding Harris’ LAPD protection, LA Mayor Karen Bass commented that Trump is engaging in ‘political retaliation’ against Harris.
‘This is yet another act of retribution in a sequence of political retaliation measures such as firings, security clearance revocations, and more,’ Bass stated.
Kamala Harris is being protected by the LAPD after the Trump administration revoked her Secret Service protection. Harris is pictured with Secret Service agents in 2024
Officers with an elite LAPD division have been pulled from working cases to provide protection to the former Vice President’s Brentwood home 24/7
Trump revoked former Harris’ Secret Service protection that otherwise would have ended next summer
‘This puts the former Vice President in danger and I look forward to working with the Governor to make sure Vice President Harris is safe in Los Angeles.’
The LAPD told Daily Mail on Thursday: ‘For security reasons , the LAPD never discusses the existence of these assignments or provides details surrounding protective operations.’
Last week, President Trump revoked former Harris’ Secret Service protection that otherwise would have ended next summer.
Former vice presidents typically get federal government protection for six months after leaving office, while ex-presidents do so for life.
But then-President Joe Biden quietly signed a directive, at Harris’ request, that had extended protection for her beyond the traditional six months.
A recent threat intelligence assessment the Secret Service conducts on those it protects, such as Harris, found no red flags or credible evidence of a threat to the former vice president, said a White House official.
The administration found no reason Harris’ protection should go beyond the standard six-month period for former vice presidents, the official said.
When reached for comment on Harris’ LAPD protection by FOX 11, LA Mayor Karen Bass replied with a statement accusing Trump of ‘political retaliation’ against Harris
Many LA residents, including reality star Spencer Pratt , took to social media to slam the city’s Democratic government for using resources to protect Harris
Trump’s move to drop Harris’ federal protection came as the former vice president, who became the Democratic nominee last summer after a chaotic series of events that led to Biden dropping out of the contest, is about to embark on a book tour for her memoir, titled ‘107 Days.’
The tour has 15 stops, including visits abroad to London and Toronto. The book, which refers to the historically short length of her presidential campaign, will be released September 23, and the tour begins the following day.
Trump’s vice president from his first term, Mike Pence, did not have extended Secret Service protection beyond the standard six months.
Still, it is not unusual for Secret Service protection to continue well beyond the statutory six-month window, particularly when former officials face credible and ongoing threats.
But Trump’s decisions to revoke the protection have stood out both for timing and for targets.
During Trump’s second presidency, he repeatedly has cut off security for adversaries and figures who have fallen from favor, including his onetime national security adviser John Bolton and members of Biden’s family, including the former president’s adult children.
Outgoing presidents can extend protection for those who might otherwise not be eligible; Trump did so for his family after leaving office in 2021.
