Will the LA Fires Reignite Rick Caruso’s Political Ambitions?

The former Republican and mayoral candidate is riling up California's moderates amid the destruction, but will it work?

As houses smoldered and the breadth of destruction from fires that raged through Los Angeles was just beginning to become clear, real estate developer Rick Caruso called into a local Fox station to cast the first stone.

“It looks like we are in a third world country here,” Caruso told the on-air correspondents on Jan. 8. “We have a lot of tough questions that we need to ask the mayor and City Council and our representatives and the county rep.”

It was just over 24 hours since two major fires had ignited across the city. The first in coastal and affluent Pacific Palisades, the second hours later further inland in working-class Altadena. Fueled by parched brush and abnormally strong 100 mph winds, the fire spread easily among homes and businesses. Gusts downed power lines and kept firefighting planes grounded. Some residents were caught so unprepared that they ultimately had to flee the threat on foot.

But as Caruso spoke to the TV station that evening, at a time when many locals had still not learned the fate of their homes, he called out one politician in particular for what he saw as negligence, his former mayoral campaign rival, Karen Bass.

“This is basic stuff. This isn’t high science here. It’s all about leadership and management that we are seeing a failure of, and all of these residents are seeing the ultimate price for that,” he said.