His announcement came in the wake of a bombshell story published Wednesday by the Los Angeles Times saying Bass directed the watering-down of an after-action report critical of the L.A. fire department’s handling of the deadly Palisades Fire. “I have made the difficult decision not to run for Mayor of Los Angeles,” Beutner said in a statement Thursday morning. It is dangerous and irresponsible for Los Angeles Times reporters to rely on third-hand unsourced information to make unsubstantiated character attacks to advance a narrative that is false,” the statement continued. Bass later spoke on KNX to again vehemently deny she directed edits to the after-action report. I’m the one who ordered the after-action report when the fire chief would not do it.

Source: Los Angeles Times February 05, 2026 18:50 UTC