Touching upon the almost two decades of history between herself and Kamala Harris, Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass used an approximately one-minute speech at the Democratic National Convention in Chicago Monday to tout the vice president's commitment to youth and families of California and across the nation.
Bass has known the Democratic presidential candidate since Bass was speaker of the Assembly from 2008-2010. Harris swore in Bass into office as Los Angeles' first woman mayor in 2022.
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"Our bond was forged years ago, by a shared commitment to children. A belief that it is everybody's responsibility to care for every child -- no matter where they come from or who their parents are," Bass said. "Kamala knows that each generation has an obligation to the next."
Bass noted that when Harris was California's attorney general from 2011-17, she created the state's Department of Children's Justice and worked to give youth in the juvenile justice system resources and support they needed.
"I know Kamala, and she feels the importance of this work in her bones," Bass said. "...And trust me, Kamala has done that her entire life."
Bass is expected to return to Los Angeles Tuesday, according to her office.
Prior to Bass' remarks, Rep. Robert Garcia, D-Long Beach, spoke for about 90 seconds about having his mother and stepfather die in the summer of 2020 due to complications from COVID-19.
Garcia said he will "never forget" when Harris called him after they died, and how she told her own story of losing her mother.
"We all know that later that year, Joe Biden and Kamala Harris were elected president and vice president, and what a difference they made together," Garcia said. "They got people vaccinated, they got the virus under control, they safely reopened our schools and they passed the American Rescue Plan -- a historic economic package that helped small businesses and created jobs across the country."
Republicans have criticized the law, saying it fueled inflation and lowered real wages.
Roxanne Hoge, communications for the Los Angeles County Republican Party, told City News Service that people watching the convention should be reminded that "everything Democrats have managed to do with their one-party rule in Los Angeles is a cautionary tale and the rest of the country should pay close attention to not what they say but to what they have done."
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