LOS ANGELES (AP) \u2014 Karen Ruth Bass, a former physician assistant who shattered glass ceilings with her rise to a leadership post in the California legislature and later a prominent spot in Congress, took a ceremonial oath of office Sunday as mayor of Los Angeles.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
A progressive Democrat, Bass becomes the first woman and second Black person to hold the city\u2019s top job and will formally assume her duties Monday amid\u00a0multiple crises\u00a0in the nation\u2019s second most populous city.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
She was sworn in ceremonially by Vice President Kamala Harris, a longtime friend and former California attorney general. The formal oath was administered privately by the city clerk.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Bass will be tasked with easing rising crime rates, restoring trust in a City Hall shaken by\u00a0racism\u00a0and corruption scandals and addressing the issue of over 40,000 people living in trash-strewn encampments or rusty RVs that have spread into virtually every neighborhood.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Striking a tone of unity, Bass said the many, disparate arms of government must come together to confront homelessness.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
To move in a new direction \u201cwe must have a single strategy\u201d that brings together government, the private sector and other stakeholders,\u201d Bass said, speaking in a downtown theater near City Hall.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
She said if people link arms rather than point fingers, lives will be saved. She called that \u201cmy mission\u201d as mayor.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
She also urged residents to become involved in city government, echoing John F. Kennedy\u2019s presidential inaugural address in which he said, \u201cAsk not what your country can do for you \u2013- ask what you can do for your country.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cI call on the people of our city to not just dream of the L.A. we want, but to participate in making the dream come true,\u201d Bass said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Bass \u2014 who was on President-elect Joe Biden\u2019s short list for vice president \u2014 claimed the post last month after overcoming\u00a0more than $100 million in spending by rival Rick Caruso,\u00a0a billionaire developer and Republican-turned-Democrat who campaigned as a centrist and promised a strong emphasis on public safety.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Caruso would have represented\u00a0a turn to the political right\u00a0for the heavily Democratic city. Bass swayed voters by arguing she would be a coalition builder to help heal a troubled city of nearly 4 million.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWe are going to build a new Los Angeles,\u201d Bass had promised at an election night rally.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
A marquee outside the theater featured a photo of a beaming Bass with the slogan \u201cA new day for Los Angeles.\u201d The backdrop for the stage, topped by U.S flags, was an oversized shot of the steps and columns of City Hall.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
In a surprise appearance, Stevie Wonder got the crowd dancing, playing \u201cLiving for the City.\u201d He and Bass shared a hug.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Bass, 69, ran as the consensus pick of the Democratic establishment and\u00a0was endorsed by Biden,\u00a0former President Barack Obama and former first lady and Secretary of State Hillary Clinton.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Despite her close ties with the Democratic political community, she has described herself as a change agent who plans to declare a state of emergency on her first day in office\u00a0to deal with homelessness.\u00a0She has signaled she will seek to marshal \u201call of the resources, all of the skills, the knowledge, the talent of the city\u201d to get homeless people into housing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Details on the emergency order have yet to emerge, though she has said she intends to get over 17,000 homeless people into housing in her first year through a mix of interim and permanent facilities.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
She also will contend with entrenched urban problems that include a housing shortage, crumbling streets and some of the nation\u2019s worst traffic.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThe mayor\u2019s first priority and likely the main one for some time to come is homelessness,\u201d said Raphael Sonenshein, executive director of the Pat Brown Institute for Public Affairs at California State University, Los Angeles.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThe voters don\u2019t expect a miracle but will be looking for a clear and credible path toward measurable and visible improvement,\u201d Sonenshein said. \u201cIt\u2019s an opportunity for an energetic reset on a crisis that has seemed stuck, and also a chance to restore confidence in local government in Los Angeles.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
She replaces beleaguered Democrat Eric Garcetti, who ends two bumpy terms with his nomination to become U.S. ambassador to India\u00a0stalled in the Senate,\u00a0apparently over sexual misconduct allegations against a former top Garcetti adviser.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Bass takes office as the City Council contends with a racism scandal that led to the\u00a0resignation of its former president\u00a0and a powerful labor leader, while one councilman snared in the scandal has resisted calls to resign. Meanwhile, three current or former council members have been indicted or have pleaded guilty to corruption charges.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Bass made history in the state Assembly by becoming the first Black woman to serve as speaker of any state legislature. She also served as chair of the Congressional Black Caucus in 2019 and 2020.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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