Democrats around the country, including California&#8217;s Gavin Newson, are up in arms over spikes in gas prices caused by President Donald Trump&#8217;s war against Iran. 
Missing in their condemnations is any acknowledgement that nobody is better at spiking gas prices than Democrats.
An analysis of AAA gasoline prices found that drivers in states led by Democrats are paying an average of 41 cents more than drivers in Republican states. Blue states currently average about $4.78 per gallon while red states average $4.37 per gallon
Drivers are hit by the blue-state premium regardless of whether the United States is at war with Iran or not. 
States such as California, Washington, Oregon, and New York have implemented various carbon pricing systems, low-carbon fuel standards, emissions mandates, or cap-and-trade programs that place additional costs on fuel producers and refiners. 
Consumers in those states often see those carbon emission fees reflected at the gas pump as producers pass the costs on alongside already high state taxes. California charges a $0.70 tax per gallon of tax, Illinois $0.66, Washington $0.59 with the rest trailing from there with a majority of these states having automatic increases for inflation. 
Leading the pack is California, where gas is currently $6.14 per gallon. The price is driven up by massive taxes, and costly green initiatives that make high gas prices inescapable for drivers.
Economist Severin Borenstein of UC Berkeley&#8217;s Haas School of Business Energy Institute <a href="https://www.nbclosangeles.com/news/local/california-gas-tax/3862685/?utm_source=chatgpt.com">said</a> that California&#8217;s gas is over a $1.50 higher than the national average “due to the higher taxes we have, the environmental fees we have and that we use a cleaner burning gasoline.”
California law requires that the only fuel allowed is California Reformulated Gasoline, a highly regulated gasoline blend that is more expensive.
Yet Newsom has used the increase caused by unrest in the Middle East as a political cudgel against Trump. Earlier this year he said that the “average price of gas is up 50 cents nationally since Trump launched his war with Iran — the fastest spike at the pump in years.” 
“No amount of spin from Trump and his lackeys can cover up the fact that Americans shelled out an extra $1.5 billion for gas this past week because of his disastrous war with Iran,” Newsom said.
Democratic Senator Patty Murray, who represents Washington, home of the second-highest gas prices in the country, <a href="https://x.com/PattyMurray/status/2047764846876262883">said</a> last month, &#8220;Gas prices and energy prices are surging. Trump wants to totally defund programs that help drive down costs.&#8221;
She added that the Trump administration has blamed Joe Biden’s clean energy policies for causing price increases, saying, “I guess I missed the part where Joe Biden declared war on Iran.”
Washington has a 55 cent tax on every single gallon of gas, and also has strict mandates for special blends of fuel that are more expensive.
When it comes to energy prices, Democrats regularly fight against initiatives that would make things cheaper for consumers.
New York&#8217;s Kathy Hochul, for example, blocked a new pipeline from being built that would dramatically reduce costs for energy in her state.
The American Energy Alliance says &#8220;residents are stuck with higher natural gas prices due to having to import natural gas from overseas as a result of regulatory restrictions preventing the construction of much-needed pipeline infrastructure.”
Hochul was backed by liberals in the U.S. Congress, including House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY) and Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY). Their statement lists concerns about &#8220;environmental justice,&#8221; &#8220;climate goals,&#8221; and &#8220;marine ecosystems,&#8221; without mentioning cost of living.
“This project, which would bury 17 miles of fracked gas pipeline under the ocean floor in ecologically sensitive waters near Staten Island and the Rockaway Peninsula, poses significant and far-reaching implications for public health, environmental justice communities, climate goals and marine ecosystems,” they <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2025/10/15/nyregion/house-democrats-hochul-gas-pipeline-nyc.html">said</a>. 
Yet Hochul and other top Democrats in New York are slamming Trump for the Iran war.
&#8220;War with Iran and tariffs are driving up gas prices across the state,&#8221; Hochul said. “ New Yorkers shouldn’t have to foot the bill for the mess Washington Republicans created.”
Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) similarly <a href="https://x.com/SenSchumer/status/2054235351665775040">argued</a> last week that “Americans are paying over $4.50 a gallon for gas because Trump refuses to end this war.&#8221;

Inflation Resurgence Squeezes US Voters As Prices Rise

Why Blue States Always Pay More For Gas

California

Democrats

Donald Trump

Gas Prices

Gavin Newsom

Kathy Hochul

New York

The 911 call placed by a person reporting Britney Spears driving “erratically” prior to her DUI arrest was made public this week, along with a new video showing her arrest.
In the newly released audio, a caller described the driver, later identified as Spears, as swerving “in and out of lanes” and “erratically slamming on the brakes.” 
“I’m reporting an erratic driving person. They are driving a BMW,” the caller is heard saying in an audio recording obtained by <a href="https://pagesix.com/2026/05/21/celebrity-news/britney-spears-harrowing-911-dui-calls-revealed-as-drivers-beg-police-to-help-erratic-singer/">Page Six</a>. 
“It almost sideswiped a couple of vehicles. It’s driving at high speeds. I’m worried they’re going to crash with somebody,” the anonymous 911 caller added. 
Another call was placed to a dispatcher for California Highway Patrol, the outlet noted, and that citizen reported identical behavior. 
“Possible drunk driver. It is a black BMW,” the second caller said. “They’re randomly braking in and out of the lanes. … Almost sideswiped three or four vehicles. I am loosely trailing them.”
A video of the incident also dropped on Thursday, which includes footage of Spears after she was pulled over. The pop singer is heard asking repeatedly about her cell phone, admitting to taking Adderall, Prozac, and Lamictal, and then making the declaration, &#8220;I&#8217;m like a Stepford wife.&#8221;
<iframe loading="lazy" title="Britney Spears makes strange ‘Stepford wife’ confession during DUI arrest" width="500" height="281" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/K_zEA-9I63M?feature=oembed" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" referrerpolicy="strict-origin-when-cross-origin" allowfullscreen></iframe>
There were even more details about the pop star’s arrest earlier this year revealed in the newly released police report. 
In the report, it was noted that the officer detected “the distinct odor of an alcoholic beverage emitting from” the vehicle, per <a href="https://www.cbsnews.com/news/britney-spears-argued-police-denied-intoxicated-march-dui-arrest-footage/">CBS News</a>. Spears reportedly said she had one mimosa seven hours earlier.
She declined when officers asked her to get out of the vehicle, saying she was afraid of traffic, and also declined their offer to drive around the corner to exit. &#8220;I&#8217;ll make you food or lasagna, whatever you want. I have a pool,&#8221; Spears said.
“I could probably drink four bottles of wine and take care of you. I’m an angel,” she allegedly told an officer.
Spears also told law enforcement she had ingested prescription drugs that day, including the bipolar medication Lamictal. When police searched her vehicle, they found a bottle of Adderall that was not prescribed to Spears and a wine glass in the front cup holder, CBS News reported. 
Spears was found to have a blood alcohol level of 0.06% and 0.05% after two Breathalyzer tests administered around an hour after she was pulled over.
Spears took a deal on May 4, pleading guilty to violating California’s “wet reckless” law. This is a lesser charge offered at the county prosecutor’s discretion. She will serve 12 months of probation, enroll in a three-month substance abuse program, and pay a fine of $571, as The Daily Wire previously <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/britney-spears-speaks-out-after-dui-rehab">reported</a>.
On March 4, the California Highway Patrol arrested Spears on suspicion of DUI after officers observed her driving erratically and at a high rate of speed near Thousand Oaks. Spears was the “solo occupant” of the BMW and “showed signs of impairment and submitted to a series of field sobriety tests.”
Her representative released a statement at the time, calling it an “unfortunate incident” and saying that it was “completely inexcusable.”
“Britney is going to take the right steps and comply with the law, and hopefully this can be the first step in a long-overdue change that needs to occur in Britney’s life. Hopefully, she can get the help and support she needs during this difficult time,” the statement said. “Her boys are going to be spending time with her. Her loved ones are going to come up with an overdue needed plan to set her up for success for well-being.”
Spears checked herself into rehab in April.
The singer was charged with a misdemeanor hit-and-run in 2007, though the case was later dismissed. The following year, Spears was hospitalized for a psychiatric evaluation and placed under a conservatorship largely overseen by her father. The arrangement lasted 13 years, ending in November 2021 when a judge terminated it amid the fervent “Free Britney” movement.

Britney Spears

WATCH: Britney Spears Makes Strange ‘Stepford Wife’ Confession During DUI Arrest

Celebrities

Entertainment

A California man has been charged with attempted murder after police say he brutally beat a 69-year-old man known for his support of President Donald Trump. 
The Escondido Police Department arrested 32-year-old Thomas Caleb Butler after accusing him of leaving Army veteran Kerry Sheron in critical condition after a savage beating on Wednesday. Butler, currently behind bars at the Vista Detention Facility, is set to appear in court Friday to face an attempted first-degree murder charge. 
The incident took place outside of Sheron’s Escondido home, which features numerous American flags and Trump memorabilia. The patriotic decor has earned the home the nickname the &#8220;Trump house.” 
A witness was also injured after attempting to defend Sheron after the beating started. Butler was detained by police a half-mile from the scene after he fled.
Sheron’s wife, Maria, <a href="https://www.nbcsandiego.com/news/local/elderly-man-in-critical-condition-after-alleged-assault-in-escondido/4027264/?amp=1">told</a> NBC 7 that she believes that the beating may have been politically motivated and that they’ve received threats about their outspoken support for the president before. She said that doctors told her that the outlook for her husband is not positive. 
&#8220;He tried to kill my husband, you know,&#8221; she <a href="https://www.cbs8.com/article/news/local/wife-believes-husband-was-attacked-for-political-decorations-outside-escondido-home/509-feed08e3-1bf2-45ee-b0d6-3b009ce53878">told</a> CBS 8. &#8220;It&#8217;s terrible. I don&#8217;t know what kind of hate &#8230; what heart, the black heart.&#8221;
&#8220;They don&#8217;t like the flags. I don&#8217;t know why. I support America. My husband is [a] veteran,&#8221; she added. 
One neighbor described the couple as “very caring people” who mind their own business. 
“I&#8217;m calling for a full and immediate investigation,” <a href="https://x.com/repdarrellissa/status/2057524477026590922">said</a> Rep. Darrell Issa (R-CA). “Details still developing, but the truth is that supporters of [Trump] are routinely the victims of leftist violence all across the country.”
A family friend of Butler <a href="https://nypost.com/2026/05/21/us-news/alleged-trump-house-suspect-was-navy-vet-with-severe-ptsd-family-friend/">told</a> The California Post that he was a veteran who suffered “severe PTSD.” The friend also said that Butler supported Trump and previously said he liked the “Trump house.” The friend said Butler “sits in his room and thinks everyone is coming to get him.”

Donald Trump For President Merchandise

Owner Of ‘Trump House’ In Critical Condition After Brutal Beating

Crime

Trump Supporters

Indian national Manvir Singh, 24, got a fast pass into the United States after the Biden administration released him at the border in 2023.
Over a year after the state of California issued him a commercial driver&#8217;s license, Singh caused a fatal collision while behind the wheel of a big rig in Lodi, California, Tuesday, according to the Department of Transportation. Three vehicles were slowing down to come to a complete stop when Singh allegedly failed to stop behind them, causing a multi-car pileup, CBS News <a href="https://www.cbsnews.com/amp/sacramento/news/lodi-highway-99-deadly-crash-big-rig-driver-arrested/?utm_source=chatgpt.com" target="_blank" rel="noopener">reported</a>.
The deceased victims were identified as 20-year-old Clark James Fojas and the other was a juvenile, <a href="https://www.abc10.com/article/news/local/lodi/highway-99-lodi-crash-driver-arrested-two-killed/103-39c25ad9-24eb-424e-b46b-7376adc8d99f" target="_blank" rel="noopener">according</a> to ABC10.
First responders transported five others to the hospital, two of whom sustained major injuries, according to the local news outlet.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
🚨California issued this driver a commercial driver’s license in March 2025🚨
In February of this year, I issued a rule to stop unqualified, untrained foreign drivers like this accused killer from getting CDLs to drive on America’s roads.
RIGHT NOW: <a href="https://twitter.com/FMCSA?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@FMCSA</a> investigators are… <a href="https://t.co/j7EwCRzMF5">https://t.co/j7EwCRzMF5</a>
— Secretary Sean Duffy (@SecDuffy) <a href="https://twitter.com/SecDuffy/status/2057290339321364950?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 21, 2026</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
The San Joaquin County Sheriff’s Office arrested Singh, who is charged with vehicular manslaughter with gross negligence, resisting/obstructing a police officer, and hit-and-run resulting in injury or death, according to jail records. His bail was set at $185,000.
“This criminal illegal alien from India should never have been behind the wheel of a semi-truck and allowed to kill two innocent people in a multi-vehicle crash in California,” Acting Assistant Homeland Security Secretary Lauren Bis said in a statement Wednesday.
“This is yet another example of why illegal aliens should not be operating trucks on American highways. We need Congress to pass Dalilah’s Law to prohibit states from granting illegal aliens commercial driver’s licenses,&#8221; Bis added.
Federal investigators are now probing &#8220;how this illegal got his CDL and will investigate the trucking company who employed this driver,&#8221; Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said Wednesday.
Duffy renewed his calls for Congress to pass Dalilah&#8217;s law, named after Dalilah Coleman, a young girl who survived a similar collision but was left with life-altering injuries. She was five years old at the time of the crash.
&#8220;Dalilah’s law would have revoked this illegal trucker’s license. Congress must pass Dalilah’s Law NOW,&#8221; he said.
Singh is set to appear in court Thursday afternoon, according to ABC10.
The Trump administration has tagged California as one of the major culprits in handing out trucking licenses to illegal immigrants.
Partap Singh, the illegal immigrant from India accused of injuring Coleman, was also given a commercial driver&#8217;s license by the Golden State.
For months, Coleman&#8217;s father, Marcus, a trucker himself, has been trying to reach Democratic California Gov. Gavin Newsom but has yet to receive any response.
In February, Marcus <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/newsom-silent-as-father-pleads-until-trump-spotlights-child-severely-injured-by-illegal-trucker">shared</a> his frustrations with the lack of accountability on Newsom&#8217;s part.
“How do you not see Dalilah? How do you allow politics to blind you from a five-year-old girl at the time whose life is forever changed, and your only answer is it’s the federal government,” Marcus told The Daily Wire at the time.

Untitled design – 2026-05-21T102127.190

Illegal Immigrant Trucker With Blue State License Accused Of Causing Fatal Multi-Car Pileup

illegal immigrants

Truckers

Los Angeles mayoral candidate and reality TV star Spencer Pratt opened up about the personal experience that led him to register as a Republican.
In an interview that aired Wednesday night, CNN anchor Elex Michaelson asked Pratt point-blank, “Why are you a Republican?”
Pratt, best known for his role on MTV’s 2000s-era reality series &#8220;The Hills,&#8221; teased the revelation by saying, “You want to break some news here? This is the first time I’ve ever said this, so this is breaking news. Everyone’s going to freak out.”
&#8220;When I was a hated reality star, I got so many death threats, I had so much security and police, and what did they tell me to do? Get a gun,&#8221; Pratt said. &#8220;I know people don&#8217;t like guns, but L.A. was dangerous if you&#8217;re hated, so I got a gun. My wife got a gun, and then we needed [concealed carry permits].&#8221; 
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
Los Angeles mayoral contender and former reality TV star <a href="https://twitter.com/spencerpratt?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@spencerpratt</a> tells <a href="https://twitter.com/Elex_Michaelson?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@Elex_Michaelson</a> the reason why he became a Republican.
This is part of a special series on the top contenders in the race for <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/LosAngeles?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#LosAngeles</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/mayor?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#mayor</a> <a href="https://t.co/mDqglZvE6B">pic.twitter.com/mDqglZvE6B</a>
— The Story Is (@CNNTheStoryIs) <a href="https://twitter.com/CNNTheStoryIs/status/2057330131501236610?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 21, 2026</a></blockquote>
Pratt said only Republican candidates supported concealed carry rights, a key pillar of the Second Amendment that many Democrats oppose. In 2022, the <a href="https://supreme.justia.com/cases/federal/us/597/20-843/case.pdf">U.S. Supreme Court ruled</a> that the Second Amendment protects an individual’s right to carry a concealed handgun outside the home for self-defense.
&#8220;That was what I aligned with: my safety, my personal safety, my family&#8217;s safety. I know people don&#8217;t like guns, but when people are threatening your life and your own security is telling you, you need to have home protection &#8230; that&#8217;s it,&#8221; Pratt said.
Pratt, running in deep-blue Los Angeles, acknowledged gun rights represent a &#8220;hot button&#8221; issue, but vowed to use law enforcement to protect sensitive sites. 
&#8220;I&#8217;m also going to be the mayor that puts LAPD in front of every school to make schools safe from guns,&#8221; he said, not backing down on his position. &#8220;I know people don&#8217;t like guns, and we need to make everything, especially schools, safe, but that is where I connect to, and once you feel fear, and it&#8217;s real, you want to protect your family.&#8221; 
Beyond the cameras and Hollywood studios, Pratt is criss-crossing the City of Angels, meeting wildfire victims in the Pacific Palisades and <a href="https://nypost.com/2026/05/20/us-news/spencer-pratt-trades-the-debate-stage-for-bbq-in-south-la/">firing up the grill</a> with voters in South L.A. 
One voter, frustrated by what she described as Karen Bass’ inaction, pledged her support for Spencer Pratt.
&#8220;Karen Bass is not doing anything; she&#8217;s been bullsh*tting us,&#8221; the voter said, detailing her daughter&#8217;s painful drug addiction. &#8220;My daughter needs the help. They put her in jail. No treatment, no medicine, and we need more than that.&#8221; 
“She’s not homeless — she has a mother — but she’s downtown right now, walking around, and people probably don’t think she has a mother who loves her,” the emotional woman said as she embraced Spencer Pratt in a hug.
Pratt is set to face incumbent Democratic Mayor Karen Bass and far-Left Councilwoman Nithya Raman in the June 2 mayoral primary.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-media-max-width="560">
She&#8217;s voting for Spencer Pratt because he&#8217;s willing to talk about actual problems facing LA.
The other two just want to hide problems. <a href="https://t.co/sT1D7cINgK">pic.twitter.com/sT1D7cINgK</a>
— Mila Joy (@Milajoy) <a href="https://twitter.com/Milajoy/status/2057313117206700192?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 21, 2026</a></blockquote>

Lucky’s Montecito 25th Anniversary

Spencer Pratt Reveals The Personal Reason He Became A Republican

Los Angeles

News

Republicans

Spencer Pratt

This Saturday, AB Hernandez will compete at the California Interscholastic Federation (CIF) state preliminaries, one more win away from the state finals. The girls lining up beside him have trained for years for this moment. Some of them have been training their whole lives. And the thing that strikes me is that I know exactly what it feels like to watch that work become irrelevant because an institution decided it did not matter.
Hernandez is fresh from a clean sweep in all three jumping events at the CIF Southern Section finals, winning the high jump, long jump, and triple jump against the top girls in Southern California. Photos of the medal ceremony went viral, and you can see why. The CIF implemented a &#8220;pilot program&#8221; that awarded any female athlete who finished behind Hernandez a one-spot promotion, meaning some girls shared the podium&#8217;s top spot with him; two first-place plaques were awarded for one first-place finish. California&#8217;s solution to the male athletic advantage is not to address the advantage. It is to redefine the word &#8220;winner.&#8221;
Here is what that pilot program cannot fix. It cannot give back to the girls who finished 2nd through 4th their actual placement. It cannot give the girl who would have placed first a solo podium moment she earned. It cannot undo the fact that Hernandez, a high school student competing in a California sectional meet, posted results that would have medaled in two events at the 1960 OLYMPICS. His long jump of 20&#8217;4.75&#8243; converts to 6.22 meters. The bronze medal at Rome that year went to a woman who jumped 6.21. His high jump of 1.78 meters places him above the mark that earned a silver medal among the best female athletes on the planet. A kid competing at a California high school track meet is clearing marks that would have put him on an Olympic podium against some of the greatest women in the history of the sport. These are not girls&#8217; high school results. They are elite women&#8217;s Olympic results, being posted against teenagers in a sectional final. No participation trophy reshuffles that math.
It is time to be honest about what happened to my teammates and me on the University of Pennsylvania swim team, and what is happening now to girls in California who have no more power to change it than we did. We were told that men in women’s sports was non-negotiable. These girls are being told the same thing, just with nicer packaging. A co-championship ribbon is still a consolation prize. Calling it &#8220;equity&#8221; does not change what it is.
Governor Gavin Newsom&#8217;s office put out a statement last week calling the outcry from distressed parents a &#8220;cynical attempt to weaponize this debate as an excuse to vilify individual kids.&#8221; The people holding &#8220;Save Girls’ Sports&#8221; signs at that meet are not there because they want to vilify anyone. They are there because their daughters trained through 5 a.m. practices, sacrificed weekends, and poured years into a shot at a podium that is now being handed to someone with a Y chromosome. That is not vilification. That is a mother at a track meet, watching her daughter lose something real, and being told by the governor of California that the problem is her attitude. California passed Assembly Bill 1266 in 2013 and has had over a decade to watch exactly what happens when male athletes compete in female divisions. The results are not ambiguous.
The CIF preliminaries are this Saturday. If Hernandez advances, the state finals begin May 29 in Clovis. Every girl in those jumping events has a name, a personal record, and a coach who believed in her. None of them chose to compete in this situation. None of them has a governor going to bat for them. What they have is a &#8220;pilot program&#8221; and a shared podium, and the quiet, maddening knowledge that the institution responsible for protecting their competitive opportunities decided that was good enough.
It is not good enough. It was not good enough for my competitors and me when we were forced to compete alongside an elite biological male, and it is not good enough in California. They just keep finding new girls to lie to.
***
Paula Scanlan is a senior fellow at American Principles Project and a former member of the UPenn women’s swim team.

Sadie Schreiner, a Transgender Track Athlete, Fights to Compete in Her Sport as a Sprinter

Gavin Newsom Wants Your Daughters To Lose

DW Opinion

female sports

High school sports

Transgender Athletes

Reality check for Democrats — literally.
Spencer Pratt, the once-infamous &#8220;The Hills&#8221; villain turned viral political outsider, is suddenly within striking distance of becoming mayor of Los Angeles, and the new numbers are the kind that should make City Hall break into a cold sweat.
New Cygnal <a href="https://www.cygn.al/news/la-mayor-poll-pratt-within-striking-distance-bass-remains-flat/">polling</a> released this week shows Pratt climbing to 25% support once voters hear more about the race, putting him tied with incumbent Mayor Karen Bass, whose numbers remain completely flat.
That’s a brutal position for an incumbent mayor in a city where voters increasingly believe everything is spiraling in the wrong direction.
Just 30% of voters say Los Angeles is headed the right way, while 58% say the city is on the wrong track.
Their top frustrations? Cost of living, homelessness, and corruption, essentially the entire modern Los Angeles experience.
Cygnal CEO Brent Buchanan said Bass appears “flat, capped out,” while Pratt still has room to grow, particularly among independents, men, and Northeast Valley voters.
And suddenly, what once looked like a Hollywood punchline is starting to look like a genuine outsider campaign.
Pratt has built much of his campaign around viral videos blasting Los Angeles leadership over crime, homelessness, drugs, and wildfire failures, while positioning himself as the anti-establishment candidate in a city voters increasingly feel has been badly mismanaged.
The whole thing even caught President Donald Trump’s attention during a recent exchange with Daily Wire White House correspondent Mary Margaret Olohan.
“Do you see yourself in him at all? A former reality TV star?” Olohan asked Trump.
“I’d like to see him do well. He’s a character. I don’t know. I don’t know him. I assume he probably supports me,” Trump replied. 
When Olohan said she believed Pratt did support him, Trump leaned into the comparison.
“I heard he does,” Trump said. “I heard he’s a big MAGA person. He’s doing well.”
<iframe loading="lazy" title="President Trump shares his thoughts on Spencer Pratt" width="500" height="281" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/bQklPAw66Fw?feature=oembed" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" referrerpolicy="strict-origin-when-cross-origin" allowfullscreen></iframe>
Trump then pivoted into criticism of California’s voting system, arguing the state’s elections are “very dishonest” because of widespread mail-in voting.
“If we had Jesus Christ come down and count the votes, I would have won California,” Trump said.
And honestly, there’s a reason Democrats may be getting a little uncomfortable watching this unfold.
After all, Democrats once laughed off a reality TV star named Donald Trump, too. That worked out great for them.
Trump famously turned “The Apprentice” into a political launchpad before bulldozing his way into the White House. Now, a former reality TV villain with frosted hair and a crystal obsession is mounting his own outsider-style political rise in a city where voters appear increasingly fed up with establishment leadership.
Meanwhile, Pratt’s candidacy is already rattling Democrats enough that far-Left Los Angeles Councilwoman Nithya Raman recently warned supporters Trump was “about to endorse Spencer” while urging donors to stop a “MAGA Republican mayor.” 
Pratt responded with an eye-roll GIF from a mayoral debate.
Which honestly feels like the most Spencer Pratt political response imaginable.
But beneath the memes and reality TV history, there’s something much bigger happening here: voters in one of America’s bluest cities appear so frustrated with the status quo that they’re willing to seriously consider a celebrity outsider promising to clean things up.
And for Democrats in Los Angeles, that may be the biggest reality check of all.

Why Democrats May Be Headed For Reality Check Round Two

President Trump

President Donald Trump told The Daily Wire Wednesday morning that he would like to see former reality TV star Spencer Pratt “do well” in his upstart bid to become mayor of Los Angeles. 
Trump made the comments when talking to reporters before boarding Air Force One to speak to members of the Coast Guard in Connecticut. Daily Wire White House correspondent Mary Margaret Olohan asked Trump if he saw any part of himself in Pratt, who is running a surprisingly strong campaign to lead the heavily Democratic city. 
“Do you see yourself in him at all? A former reality TV star?” Olohan asked. 
“I&#8217;d like to see him do well. He’s a character. I don&#8217;t know. I don&#8217;t know him. I assume he probably supports me,” Trump said. “Does he support me?”
“I think so,” Olohan replied. 
“I heard he does,” Trump said. “I heard he&#8217;s a big MAGA person. He&#8217;s doing well. I don&#8217;t know. You know, you have a rigged vote out there, that&#8217;s the problem. The votes are rigged. You have a really rigged vote in California. You have all the mail-in ballots, everything else. Very hard to win, because the elections are very dishonest.”
<iframe loading="lazy" title="President Trump shares his thoughts on Spencer Pratt 2" width="500" height="281" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/bQklPAw66Fw?feature=oembed" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" referrerpolicy="strict-origin-when-cross-origin" allowfullscreen></iframe>
Trump then claimed he would have won California in 2024 if the election had been fair.
“If we had Jesus Christ come down and count the votes, I would have won California because I do great with Hispanics. But it&#8217;s a rigged vote,” he said, adding that “California&#8217;s one of the most dishonest states for voting.”
Pratt, who is running on cracking down on crime and getting homeless people off the streets, is challenging incumbent Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass and far-Left councilwoman Nithya Raman. 
Raman claimed on Saturday that Trump was poised to endorse Pratt. 
“Donald Trump is about to endorse Spencer,” she said. “Tonight is the fundraising deadline, and we need to raise more to prove that LA doesn&#8217;t want a MAGA Republican mayor who lives in the Bel Air hotel.”
Pratt responded to that post with a GIF of him rolling his eyes during the mayoral debate earlier this month. 
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<a href="https://t.co/c7uJGXz16X">https://t.co/c7uJGXz16X</a> <a href="https://t.co/Z1DtL8lvya">pic.twitter.com/Z1DtL8lvya</a>
— Spencer Pratt (@spencerpratt) <a href="https://twitter.com/spencerpratt/status/2055846226546057638?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 17, 2026</a></blockquote>
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Pratt’s campaign has been characterized by viral campaign videos that excoriate the city’s leadership for mismanagement and failures on combatting wildfires, drugs, and homelessness.

Spencer Pratt/Donald Trump

Daily Wire Asks Trump His Thoughts On Spencer Pratt’s Mayoral Run

A male athlete named AB Hernandez won three events at a girls sectional final tournament in California over the weekend, forcing female athletes to share the podium with him.
Still, the athlete&#8217;s mother believes her son is the real victim.
Hernandez, from Jurupa Valley High School, took first place in the girls long jump, high jump, and triple jump at the California Interscholastic Federation (CIF) Southern Section finals in Division 3.
Due to new rules, female athletes who would have won first place if it were not for Hernandez, a male, participating in the girls contest, had to share the first place spot on the podium.
Hernandez was not present at one ceremony, but later shared a spot with female winner Gwynneth Mureika, <a href="https://www.foxnews.com/outkick-sports/trans-track-athlete-ab-hernandezs-mom-shares-critical-post-school-officials-podium-placements">according</a> to OutKick. At another ceremony, the female athlete did not show up and Hernandez had the top spot on the podium to himself.
The trans-identifying athlete&#8217;s mother shared a post from &#8220;Rainbow Families Action&#8221; on Instagram, which excoriated the new rules and claimed Hernandez was the one being bullied.
&#8220;All these big tough ex-athletes at CIF, and the most courage they could muster was to hand this to coaches at AB’s meet today,&#8221; the post said, captioning a letter about the new rules that allow female athletes to advance and share the podium.
&#8220;Not one of them was brave enough to look her or her mother in the eye and say &#8216;This whole project of violating Ed Code is aimed at you. A child,'&#8221; the post continued. &#8220;Government sanctioned bullying of a kid?&#8221;
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Hernandez, who also dominates in girls&#8217; volleyball, is moving on to compete against top female track athletes in the state and will likely advance to the state finals, which are set to start on May 29. Last year, Hernandez won gold in the female triple jump and high jump at the state finals. He also took home the silver in the long jump.
In response to California allowing boys to compete in girls&#8217; sports, the Trump Department of Justice in 2025 sued the California Department of Education and the California Interscholastic Federation (CIF) over violations of Title IX.
Related: <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/male-dominates-girls-track-at-california-state-finals-despite-trump-threat">Male Dominates Girls’ Track At California State Finals Despite Trump Threat</a>

58th Arcadia Invitational

Mom Believes Her Son Is The Real Victim After He Dominates Girls At Track Tournament

Mom Says Son Real Victim After He Cleans Up At Girls Track Tournament

Girls

Transgender

Women's sports

Former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) may have ended the political aspirations of San Francisco&#8217;s favorite gay liberal when she weighed in Monday on the race to fill her soon-to-be-vacated seat in Congress.
Pelosi chose to back City Supervisor Connie Chan over state Senator Scott Wiener and tech entrepreneur Saikat Chakrabarti ahead of the June 2 primary, the latter of whom previously worked for Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez but failed to snag her endorsement in the race.
WATCH:
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
BREAKING: Nancy Pelosi endorses SF Supervisor Connie Chan to succeed her in Congress, saying Chan &#8220;stands above&#8221; all the other candidates.
The Speaker Emerita’s backing is one of the most coveted in San Francisco politics. Pelosi has held the seat for nearly 40 years. <a href="https://t.co/9osp5FpboM">pic.twitter.com/9osp5FpboM</a>
— Monica Madden (@themonicamadden) <a href="https://twitter.com/themonicamadden/status/2056495042613895512?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 18, 2026</a></blockquote>
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&#8220;I know and love this district, I know the Congress, and I know Connie. I’m proud to endorse Democrat Connie Chan and ask you to join me in electing her to Congress,&#8221; Pelosi said, appearing alongside Chan in a video endorsement.
Pelosi followed that with an additional statement, adding, &#8220;Connie understands San Francisco — our values, our diversity, our communities, and our responsibility to lead with both compassion and strength. She’s a mom who knows her power and knows her why. I am confident Connie is ready to bring clarity and purpose to the work ahead — For The Children.&#8221;
But Pelosi&#8217;s choice appears to have left some scratching their heads.
Wiener, who has consistently <a href="https://x.com/IAPolls2022/status/2038981239407854060">polled</a> as the top contender, represents a State Senate district that overlaps substantially with Pelosi&#8217;s Congressional District — but several reports suggest that Pelosi&#8217;s issues with Wiener are more personal than political.
It&#8217;s been no secret, for example, that the openly gay senator has been waiting for the 20-term congresswoman to retire so that he could make the move to the U.S. House. He also may have angered the former House Speaker more recently when, knowing that her daughter Christine Pelosi was eyeing a run at his state senate seat, Wiener opted not to resign his seat while running for Congress.
&#8220;Nancy Pelosi hates Scott Wiener on a personal level, and Saikat tried to unseat her; she’s trying to settle scores. The idea that this means Connie Chan is some kind of insider trading mega Zionist is silly. Pelosi also endorsed a DSA candidate. San Francisco is weird!&#8221; comedian Kate Willett <a href="https://x.com/katewillett/status/2056560038047608948">observed</a>, adding, &#8220;Pelosi hates the creepy SF tech bro sh*t Wiener embodies more than she hates having the odd progressive in power. She loved what San Francisco was. She resents her beautiful, gay city being turned into an incel fiefdom.&#8221;
While some more moderate Democrats have voiced concern over Chan&#8217;s far-left positions on many issues, Wiener&#8217;s legacy in California may be more troubling. He has consistently supported laws like California&#8217;s transgender shield laws, creating a sanctuary state for those seeking cross-sex hormones and sex-change surgeries, and mandating that foster families recognize and accommodate trans-identifying children in their care. He was also behind a push to reduce the mandatory sentence guidelines for people who knowingly exposed others to HIV.
Wiener also <a href="https://x.com/ICANAction/status/2010648955500077532">sparked backlash</a> when he, as co-chair of the California Jewish Caucus, accused Israel of &#8220;committing genocide&#8221; in Gaza.
A recent campaign event featured a drag queen pig in frilly pink attire singing, &#8220;Scott Wiener is a girl&#8217;s best friend.&#8221;
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Creepy Scott Wiener campaign event featured drag queens including one mocking women while dressed as a pig singing “Wiener is a girl’s best friend” in front of kids
This is one the most disgusting things I’ve ever seen <a href="https://t.co/Ceaz5oSWfT">pic.twitter.com/Ceaz5oSWfT</a>
— Libs of TikTok (@libsoftiktok) <a href="https://twitter.com/libsoftiktok/status/2056407589206847885?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 18, 2026</a></blockquote>
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Pelosi&#8217;s endorsement is likely to open the donor floodgates for Chan, who has been trailing Wiener in terms of cash on hand, and should give her a much-needed boost in the polls as well.

53rd Annual San Francisco Pride Parade And Celebration

Pelosi Shatters Dreams Of San Francisco’s Favorite Gay Liberal

Pelosi Shatters Dreams Of San Francisco's Favorite Gay Liberal

Media

Nancy Pelosi

Politics

San Francisco

Scott Wiener

The full force of the British government rushed to condemn the San Diego mosque shooting and comfort the country&#8217;s Muslim community despite repeated silence on antisemitic and anti-Christian attacks in the United States and on their own streets.
On Monday, <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/police-respond-to-reports-of-active-shooter-near-islamic-center?author=Jacob+Wheeler&amp;category=News&amp;elementPosition=0&amp;row=0&amp;rowHeadline=Up+Next&amp;rowType=Up+Next+Carousel&amp;title=Two+Teenagers+Identified+As+Gunmen+Who+Killed+Three+At+San+Diego+Mosque">two teenagers, ages 17 and 18, killed three adults</a> — including a security guard — at the Islamic Center of San Diego in the Clairemont neighborhood. No motive has been provided, but investigators are reportedly reviewing “possible anti-Islamic writings” found in the car with the dead suspects, according to NBC News. 
The shooting sparked condemnation in the United States and across the pond in the U.K. 
&#8220;I condemn the deadly attack on a mosque in San Diego. My thoughts are with those affected. I know many Muslims in the U.K. will be shaken by this, worried about their safety when going about their lives and attending mosque, and what it says about the times we’re living in,&#8221; embattled British Prime Minister Keir Starmer posted on social media.
&#8220;I understand those fears. Violence like this does not happen in a vacuum. It grows in an environment where division and anti-Muslim hostility are normalized. That is intolerable. We must all come together against it,&#8221; he added. 
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
I condemn the deadly attack on a mosque in San Diego. My thoughts are with those affected.
I know many Muslims in the UK will be shaken by this, worried about their safety when going about their lives and attending mosque, and what it says about the times we’re living in. I…
— Keir Starmer (@Keir_Starmer) <a href="https://twitter.com/Keir_Starmer/status/2056642583955140639?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 19, 2026</a></blockquote>
Britain’s Metropolitan Police joined the chorus, releasing a statement aimed at reassuring the nation’s Muslim community.
&#8220;While the details of the incident continue to emerge, it is clear that this attack will cause deep concern and distress within Muslim communities across the United Kingdom and over the world,&#8221; the police department said. &#8220;It is an awful reality that Muslim communities continue to face heightened levels of threat. We know this attack will not only bring profound sadness but also significant concern about safety among Muslim Londoners.&#8221; 
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
San Diego Islamic Center Attack
Assistant Commissioner Matt Twist: &#8220;Our thoughts are with the loved ones of those who have been killed or injured in the terrible attack at the Islamic Center in San Diego, and with the emergency services who responded.&#8221;
📰⬇️ <a href="https://t.co/DJfksF32Fv">pic.twitter.com/DJfksF32Fv</a>
— Metropolitan Police (@metpoliceuk) <a href="https://twitter.com/metpoliceuk/status/2056711924633498030?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 19, 2026</a></blockquote>
The Daily Wire could not find U.K. Metropolitan Police statements on antisemitic or anti-Christian attacks in the United States, including the <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/what-we-know-about-the-trans-identifying-gunman-who-slaughtered-catholic-school-children">transgender-identifying 23-year-old who shot and killed</a> two children and injured 28 other people at a Minneapolis Catholic school last summer.
Nor did the U.K. government weigh in on the June 2025 <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/illegal-immigrant-sentenced-after-deadly-antisemitic-firebombing?author=Jacob+Wheeler&amp;category=News&amp;elementPosition=26&amp;row=0&amp;rowType=Vertical+List&amp;title=Illegal+Immigrant+Sentenced+After+Deadly+Antisemitic+Firebombing">antisemitic firebomb attack in Boulder</a>, when an Egyptian national hurled Molotov cocktails at Jewish demonstrators supporting the release of Israeli hostages held in Gaza, killing one person and injuring more than a dozen others, including a Holocaust survivor.
In January 2025, British Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s far-Left Labour Party blocked a push by the Conservative Party to open an investigation into Pakistani child rape gangs that garnered significant international attention, <a href="http://The Daily Wire previously reported.">The Daily Wire previously reported.</a>
The selective outrage drew the attention of some social media critics.
&#8220;They didn’t do this when 30 Christians were butchered in Plateau, Nigeria, last week, or when Omar Mateen gunned down 49 people in a gay nightclub in Orlando, or when women were sexually assaulted en masse on New Year’s Eve in Cologne,&#8221; one X user wrote. &#8220;So why are they doing this?&#8221; 
The Daily Wire reached out to the Metropolitan Police but did not receive a response in time for publication.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
They didn’t do this when 30 Christians were butchered in Plateau, Nigeria, last week, or when Omar Mateen gunned down 49 people in a gay nightclub in Orlando, or when women were sexually assaulted en masse on New Year’s Eve in Cologne.
So why are they doing this? <a href="https://t.co/DVyDT6TZSR">https://t.co/DVyDT6TZSR</a>
— Shahana Ashur (@AshurShahana) <a href="https://twitter.com/AshurShahana/status/2056739626870612406?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 19, 2026</a></blockquote>
Authorities said the mother of one of the suspects in the mosque shooting contacted the San Diego Police Department at 9:42 a.m. to report that her son had gone missing, along with multiple firearms, and her car. She said he was suicidal and was probably with a friend.

PM Starmer Visits Community Centre In Hertfordshire

Brits Rush To The Comfort Of Muslims After Mosque Shooting In U.S.

Islam

Keir Starmer

San Diego

Shooting

When the Palisades Fire destroyed Spencer Pratt’s Los Angeles home last year, the former reality TV star began asking questions. How had the city allowed such a disaster to happen? Why had its basic systems failed so badly?
The answers helped turn Pratt from a fire victim into an unlikely <a href="https://www.cbsnews.com/news/spencer-pratt-los-angeles-mayoral-race/">contender</a> to become mayor of America’s second-largest city. In the months after the fire, Pratt became a <a href="https://www.politico.com/news/2026/01/07/spencer-pratt-running-for-mayor-of-los-angeles-00714859">harsh critic</a> of City Hall, denouncing not only its incompetent response to the fires but also its seeming inability to deliver public safety or basic city services. What began as personal outrage has become a broader political message: Los Angeles is broken, its leaders have failed, and only an outsider can force accountability.
On the fires, Pratt played a <a href="https://www.latimes.com/politics/story/2025-09-10/spencer-pratt-visits-capitol-hill-to-spotlight-investigation-into-palisades-fire">leading role</a> in uncovering what went wrong. City officials had left nearby reservoirs <a href="https://www.cbsnews.com/news/la-fires-santa-ynez-reservoir-pacific-palisades-california/">empty</a> for nearly a year. Hydrants <a href="https://apnews.com/article/wildfire-california-climate-603512236222f82c77901db1039e959f">ran dry</a>. The firefighting response was <a href="https://ens.lacity.org/lafd/lafdreport/lafdlafdreport1864192431_10212025.pdf">haphazard and unprepared</a>, despite warnings of extreme fire danger. Mayor Karen Bass was <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2025/01/12/us/karen-bass-ghana-wildfire-travel-los-angeles.html">out of the country</a>. And the Palisades Fire was not, it turned out, a new fire at all: firefighters had abandoned a smoldering brush fire a week earlier that <a href="https://www.city-journal.org/article/la-wildfires-pacific-palisades-california-rules">later rekindled</a> into an inferno.
More absurdities came to light in the fire’s aftermath. Bass allegedly directed the watering down of <a href="https://www.latimes.com/california/story/2026-02-04/bass-directed-watering-down-of-palisades-fire-after-action-report-sources-say">an after-action report</a> on the disaster — an accusation she denies. And despite repeated promises to cut red tape and fast-track rebuilding, Pratt and many other fire victims have been stuck in bureaucratic limbo. More than a year later, only a small <a href="https://cityjournal.substack.com/p/los-angeles-wants-to-rebuild-red">fraction</a> of the destroyed homes have been rebuilt.
For Pratt, the fire was both a personal tragedy and his political origin story. In January, at an event marking the one-year anniversary of the fire, Pratt <a href="https://www.latimes.com/california/story/2026-01-07/spencer-pratt-announces-run-for-la-mayor-on-anniversary-of-palisades-fire">announced</a> he would run for mayor to unseat Bass. It was a long shot. Pratt is best known as the villain in MTV’s 2000s-era show The Hills, but he is hardly a household name. He is a registered Republican in an overwhelmingly Democratic city. He has no political experience.
He does, however, have a knack for tapping into Angelenos’ growing frustrations with city leadership. Pratt, who grew up in Los Angeles, has leaned hard into his status as a political outsider, using viral videos, <a href="https://www.cbsnews.com/sacramento/news/ai-video-spencer-pratt-debate-politics-influence/">unofficial AI campaign ads</a>, and blunt attacks on City Hall to present himself as the avatar of a fed-up Los Angeles. It seems to be working. In recent weeks, Pratt has <a href="https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/california/2026/05/13/los-angeles-mayor-race-poll-shows-spencer-pratt-bass-rise/90060196007/">risen sharply</a> in the polls — and, after a strong debate performance earlier this month, he is no longer a long-shot candidate.
A new Emerson College/Inside California Politics <a href="https://www.latimes.com/california/story/2026-05-13/bass-holds-lead-in-new-la-mayoral-poll-with-pratt-raman-neck-neck-for-runoff-position?utm_source=chatgpt.com">poll</a> shows Bass leading the June 2 primary with 30% support, followed by Pratt at 22% and City Councilmember Nithya Raman at 20%. Unless one candidate clears 50%, the top two advance to a November 3 runoff.
More than Pratt himself, though, it is Los Angeles’s political class that has made his candidacy possible. By almost any measure, the city’s governance has become a slow-motion failure. L.A. is struggling with homelessness, public disorder, unaffordable housing, sluggish permitting, and post-fire recovery. The city cannot build enough housing, recruit enough police officers, or even manage to <a href="https://www.city-journal.org/article/los-angeles-streets-repaving-disability-rules">repave</a> its streets.
Neither of Pratt’s opponents can credibly separate themselves from L.A.’s obvious decline. Bass’s signature homelessness program, Inside Safe, was supposed to move people out of encampments and into permanent housing. Instead, the program has spent <a href="https://www.latimes.com/california/story/2026-04-05/under-la-mayors-300-million-homeless-program-40-have-returned-to-street">more than $300 million</a> to place about 5,800 people into interim housing — mostly hotels and motels. Roughly 40% have returned to the streets. Only one in four participants has reached permanent housing, at a cost of over $200,000 per permanently housed person.
Raman <a href="https://www.politico.com/news/2026/02/09/new-mayoral-challenger-in-los-angeles-draws-mamdani-comparisons-00771033">pitches</a> herself as a Zohran Mamdani-like reform candidate: a member of the Democratic Socialists of America (DSA) who <a href="https://www.politico.com/news/2026/03/07/mamdani-nithya-raman-housing-socialism-abundance-00817314">pledges to fix</a> the city’s chronic housing shortage. But Raman is not running from outside the system. As a city councilmember, she is part of the governing coalition that helped produce some of the city’s failed policies.
Take homelessness, for example. Raman is chair of the City Council’s Housing and Homelessness Committee, which means she is “leading efforts towards improving the city’s response to homelessness citywide,” <a href="https://cd4.lacity.gov/initiative/homelessness/?utm_source=chatgpt.com">according</a> to her own council office. That may give her experience, but it makes it somewhat difficult to run as the candidate best positioned to address the very crisis her committee oversees.
Or take housing. As councilmember, Raman supported <a href="https://finance.lacity.gov/faq/measure-ula">Measure ULA</a>, the so-called “mansion tax” — a steep transfer tax on real estate sales above $5 million. The measure was sold to voters as a way to fund affordable housing. But the tax applies not only to mansions but also to apartment buildings, mixed-use projects, and redevelopment sites — the very projects that are needed to produce new housing.
By almost all accounts, the policy <a href="https://www.city-journal.org/article/la-mansion-tax-measure-ula-real-estate-housing">has backfired</a>. UCLA researchers have <a href="https://escholarship.org/content/qt7jg7m22v/qt7jg7m22v.pdf?v=lg">found</a> that Measure ULA reduced multifamily housing production by at least 1,910 units per year, an 18% decline. More broadly, Los Angeles <a href="https://therealdeal.com/la/2026/04/03/los-angeles-at-17-8-of-housing-goal-clock-is-ticking/">remains far behind</a> its state housing targets, with builders pointing to high fees, slow approvals, and Measure ULA as reasons projects are not getting built.
To Raman’s credit, she has <a href="https://calmatters.org/housing/2026/01/measure-ula-raman-howard-jarvis-ballot/">tried to fix</a> the problem. In January, she introduced a motion calling for changes to ULA, <a href="https://calmatters.org/housing/2026/01/measure-ula-raman-dead/">acknowledging</a> that it produced “unintended consequences” that were undermining its goals. But that reform effort stalled.
Pratt, for his part, has <a href="https://x.com/spencerpratt/status/2036232250308669536">called for</a> a “complete overhaul” of City Hall. He wants to eliminate encampments, crack down on open-air drug use, investigate homelessness nonprofits, rebuild the city’s emergency preparedness, and purge what he calls the corrupt political establishment. He has called for repealing Measure ULA and favors a treatment-first approach to homelessness, including mandatory drug rehabilitation. In the debate earlier this month, Pratt <a href="https://www.latimes.com/california/live/los-angeles-mayor-debate-nbc-2026-updates">cast himself</a> as the only candidate on stage who could credibly offer change.
In a sense, Pratt’s rise is a strange inversion of the recent urban-socialist surge. Only a few months ago, the big-city story seemed to be the rise of democratic-socialist mayors: Zohran Mamdani in New York, Katie Wilson in Seattle, and perhaps Raman in Los Angeles.
Instead, Los Angeles may be producing the opposite backlash. Pratt is unapologetically anti-socialist. “We’ve already been doing the socialist experiment pretty much for six plus years,” Pratt <a href="https://www.cbsnews.com/news/spencer-pratt-full-interview-los-angeles-mayoral-race/">told</a> CBS News this month, “and it’s failed here in Los Angeles.”
If elected, Pratt would face significant structural obstacles. Los Angeles is not New York, where the mayor has broader control over city agencies. Power is fragmented among the mayor, a powerful city council, county government, independent agencies, public-sector unions, and regional authorities.
Pratt has <a href="https://youtu.be/pDfm9RaIIv4?si=auZvcIizDxi7c6Rt&amp;t=2071">acknowledged</a> this, noting that he would need allies on the council and promising to help defeat DSA-aligned city-council officials. But governing Los Angeles would also require staffing agencies, bargaining with unions, confronting council prerogatives, navigating state law, and navigating tough trade-offs.
Is Spencer Pratt for real as a candidate for L.A.’s next mayor? The political conditions that have elevated him certainly are. A city that cannot rebuild after a fire, house its residents affordably, restore order in public spaces, or provide basic services should not be surprised when an outsider with a chip on his shoulder — and a message of change — becomes a viable option.
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Shawn Regan is a senior fellow at the Manhattan Institute for Policy Research. His affiliation is presented for identification only; all views expressed are his own and not those of his employer.

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