President Joe Biden demanded the resignation of three Los Angeles City Council members Tuesday who were caught on leaked recordings making racist remarks and conspiring to exploit the redistricting process for political gain.
โHe believes that they all should resign,โ White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre told reporters at a briefing. โThey should all step down.โ
In addition to the president, multiple Democratic politicians have denounced the comments of the officials, who are all Democrats. On the audio in question, now former city council president Nury Martinez, members Kevin de Lรฉon and Gil Cedillo, and now former labor leader Ron Herrera can be heard using racist rhetoric to ridicule a black child, knock colleagues, and maneuver the cityโs redistricting process to gain an electoral advantage.
Speaking about L.A. District Attorney George Gascรณn, Martinez said, โFโ that guy, heโs with the Blacks.โ She also mocked the Black son of Mike Bonin, a white council member. โAnd then thereโs this white guy, with his little Black kid, whoโs misbehaved,โ Martinez said. She then compared him to โa little monkeyโ in Spanish.
โTheyโre raising him like a little white kid, which, I was like, this kid needs a beatdown,โ she said.
On Monday, Herrera resigned from his post as head of the Los Angeles County Federation of Labor, the Los Angeles Times reported. Martinez announced she would be taking a leave of absence following the scandal. She updated Tuesday that she would โtake some time to have an honest and heartfelt conversation with my family, my constituents, and community leaders.โDe Lรฉon and Cedillo have not yet made any announcements.
Pressure has mounted on the remaining three to leave their positions. Democratic California Senator Alex Padilla, who hails from Los Angeles, decried the derogatory words in a statement obtained by Politico.
โAt a time when our nation is grappling with a rise in hate speech and hate crimes, these racist comments have deepened the pain that our communities have endured,โ Padilla said. โLos Angeles deserves better.โ
Bonin, whose son was the target of the explosive conversation, called for the trioโs immediate resignations in a statement.
โWe are appalled, angry and absolutely disgusted that Nury Martinez attacked our son with horrific racist slurs, and talked about her desire to physically harm him,โ Bonin said. โItโs vile, abhorrent, and utterly disgraceful.โ
Jean-Pierre said the White House believes it is important to hold Democrats to a higher standard and condemn unacceptable behavior. She claimed that Republicans often condone disgraceful remarks on their own side.
โWhen a Democrat says something racist or antisemitic, we hold Democrats accountable,โ she said. โWhen a MAGA Republican says something racist or antisemitic, they are embraced by cheering crowds.โ







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