US vice president JD Vance sparked outrage on Friday during a tense visit to Los Angeles, where he accused California governor Gavin Newsom and LA Mayor Karen Bass of encouraging violent immigration protests and mistakenly referred to Senator Alex Padilla as “Jose Padilla,” a name associated with a convicted al-Qaida plotter.Vance’s visit came after days of violent clashes between police and protesters, following federal immigration raids across Southern California. The Trump administration’s decision to send in 4,000 National Guard troops and 700 Marines has been heavily criticised by state and local leaders, who accuse the White House of escalating tensions rather than calming them.Speaking to reporters after touring a federal Joint Operations Center and mobile command centre, Vance doubled down on blaming California officials. “Gavin Newsom and Karen Bass, by treating the city as a sanctuary city, have basically said that this is open season on federal law enforcement,” he said.“What happened here was a tragedy,” Vance continued. “You had people who were doing the simple job of enforcing the law and they had rioters egged on by the governor and the mayor, making it harder for them to do their job. That is disgraceful. And it is why the president has responded so forcefully.”Vance also referred to Democratic Senator Alex Padilla as “Jose Padilla,” a week after the senator was tackled and handcuffed while speaking at a news conference hosted by Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem. “I was hoping Jose Padilla would be here to ask a question,” Vance said. “I guess he decided not to show up because there wasn’t a theatre. And that’s all it is.”Critics were quick to call out the remark, noting that “Jose Padilla” is the name of a man convicted of terrorism-related charges during the Bush administration. Governor Newsom responded on X, saying the name mix-up was “no accident.”Governor Newsom fired back during a press conference, accusing Vance of spreading “utter nonsense.” He denied claims that state officials encouraged violence, saying, “The Vice President’s claim is categorically false. The governor has consistently condemned violence and has made his stance clear.”Mayor Karen Bass also condemned the comment. “How dare you say that city officials encourage violence? We kept the peace,” she said, calling the federal operation a “stunt” that wasted hundreds of millions of dollars.Earlier that day, Newsom had urged Vance to meet with victims of January’s deadly wildfires while in California and to speak with US President Donald Trump about unlocking $40 billion in federal wildfire aid. “I hope we get that back on track,” Newsom posted on X. “We are counting on you, Mr Vice President.” Vance did not respond to those remarks during his Friday appearance.
