Michael Monks opens the show with updates on LA sports and shares his personal take on grocery store reorganizations. He then delves into a proposed California bill aiming to create "hospitality zones," allowing bars to serve alcohol until 4 a.m.. Through City Hall audio, Michael discusses the LA City Council's vote to continue plans for the Convention Center expansion, despite challenges posed by recent wildfires. Finally, he revisits highlights from Bill Essayli’s appearance on The John Kobylt Show, focusing on the announcement of a criminal task force to investigate fraud and corruption involving homelessness funds.
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:00):
You're listening to KFI AM six forty on demand, KFI.
Speaker 2 (00:05):
AM six forty live everywhere on the iHeartRadio app. This
is Michael Monks Reports. I'm Michael Monks from KFI News.
We're with you till nine o'clock tonight and every Saturday night.
So glad to be with you on another beautiful Saturday
evening here in southern California.
Speaker 3 (00:21):
Just a gorgeous day out there.
Speaker 2 (00:24):
The Dodgers have the Cubs in town right now on
the bottom of the fourth the Cubs are up one nothing.
But how about those Angels winners today four to one
at Houston. You know, ever since I jumped on the
Angels bandwagon, we're nine and five.
Speaker 3 (00:38):
That's a hot start to the season.
Speaker 2 (00:39):
So I'm not saying I'm a lucky charm here, Fairweather fan,
new fan, but go Halos, how about that. Gotta say
I'm a little out of sorts today. I don't know
if this is something you ever experienced, but you have
a regular grocery store, right You go once twice a week,
You go at your usual time, You know where things
(00:59):
are are. But every now and then the grocery store
decides it's going to change. Things around on you. Well,
it came to my routs in downtown LA and it
was quite a shock.
Speaker 3 (01:12):
They've moved everything.
Speaker 2 (01:14):
The self checkout lanes have moved the way you access
the regular checkout lanes, have moved the you know, the
beauty supplies, the dental care, that's all moved. And I've
been dizzy ever since because you have a routine and
then it's completely disrupted, and I don't know if I'm
(01:35):
going to recover from that anytime soon. Is that something
you've experienced, You know what I'm talking about? You know
where things it's like when you have to go to
a different grocery store, even if it's the same brand,
it's just different and you feel a little weird about
being there. My understanding is that, unsurprisingly, they've been having
(01:55):
some problems in the downtown grocery stores with unwanted show
maybe not wanting to pay for things, and so I
guess this new setup is supposed to make things a
little bit more secure.
Speaker 3 (02:09):
We're gonna be talking a.
Speaker 2 (02:10):
Little bit about that today, but first I want to
set this into a more personal context. You ever have
people pop by unannounced, or maybe you're with somebody, but
you've got to stop by your home, and you have
to make a consideration.
Speaker 3 (02:26):
How does my place look right now?
Speaker 2 (02:28):
Got to leave too many dishes in the sink, maybe
some laundries on the couch. It's a bit unkempt. Do
I let this person come in and see the current
condition of my home? How will I feel about that?
We've all been in this position, right I mean, even
if you're a clean person. I'm a clean person. My
home is usually clean, my car is usually clean. But
(02:48):
sometimes maybe there's a few extra dishes in the sink.
Haven't gotten to them yet. Maybe I folded some laundry,
but I haven't put it away yet, And if somebody
were to come in, I would feel a little bit
self conscious about it. And honestly, sometimes the place is
just a rack, you know, Sometimes you're just a little
lazy for a couple of days. Breakfast is still on
the table, you've been playing video games or watching TV,
(03:09):
and laundry's not done, the bed's not made, and if
somebody popped in, you feel a little weird. You, as
a normal person would think, I don't know, I don't
know if I should let this person in right now,
or maybe maybe you're confident in your dirtiness. Maybe you're
(03:30):
somebody who drives around in a dirty car. There's crap
all over the pass, in your seat, and somebody needs
to take a ride with you, and you just dump
it all on the floor and say, have a seat,
Excuse the doritos that will be stuck to your butt,
just part of your life. I'm not like that, and
I bet most of you aren't either. I bet most
of us have this sense of self awareness, this self
(03:52):
consciousness that we don't want to show off our home
if it is in a condition of disarray, if it's untidy.
Some of us may even be more so, one little
thing is out of place, and we're apologizing for the
condition of our residents.
Speaker 3 (04:11):
I bring this up.
Speaker 2 (04:11):
Because I don't think local officials have that self awareness,
and we're going to explore a couple of issues that
emerged this week that I think might support this thesis.
I want you to think about where I went to
the grocery today Ralphs in downtown Los Angeles, or where
(04:34):
Senator Bernie Sanders and Congresswoman Alexandria Casio Cortez held a
huge rally at Gloria Molina Grand Park today or if
you go to the King's Game at Crypto, what do
you see.
Speaker 3 (04:54):
It's a bit of a mess. Right.
Speaker 2 (04:57):
If you listen to me regularly on Saturday ninety, know
that I live in downtown Los Angeles. I talk about
it a lot because it is such an important economic
driver to the rest of the region. And yet it
looks so terrible. It's filthy. Obviously, we know the epicenter
of the homeless epidemic is all condensed right there in
(05:19):
downtown LA.
Speaker 3 (05:21):
It doesn't look good.
Speaker 2 (05:23):
But this week, state officials made an announcement and city
officials made a decision related to downtown. Both sets of
public officials discussed their decisions as a way to improve downtown,
(05:44):
but to me, as they were explaining these positions, it
seemed like they were glossing over the drug addicted, trash riddled,
tent dwelling elephant in the room. It felt like they
were talking talking about somewhere else, like they are completely
out of touch with what is really holding downtown Los
(06:08):
Angeles back. We're gonna talk about those two things that
was done by state lawmakers this week and done by
city officials this week. I'm gonna play for you what
they said, and I want to hear from you.
Speaker 3 (06:22):
Do you buy it? Can you believe it?
Speaker 2 (06:26):
What are your thoughts on what needs to happen in
downtown Los Angeles for you to feel like it's a
destination for you, for it's a place, for it to
be a place where you feel safe, where you would
support the businesses that are working so hard to sustain
themselves there. You can join our conversation as always by
opening up that iHeartRadio app, click on the talkback button.
(06:49):
We're gonna play some of your comments throughout the hour.
If you want to hang tight and listen to some
of these public officials before you send your feedback, that's
all good too. We got two hours together tonight. We're
also going to talk a bit about this new focus
on homelessness by the federal government. We've got a new
US Attorney here in southern California, Bill A. Sale, a
(07:10):
well known Republican state lawmaker from Riverside County, didn't have
much power in Sacramento being in a big minority, but
now he's got a big stick and he plans on
wielding it with a focus on homelessness to kick things
off downtown.
Speaker 3 (07:25):
We'll hear what he has in store.
Speaker 2 (07:28):
As he investigates the way local officials have spent money
related to homelessness. In our next hour, we will visit
that Bernie Sanders aoc rally in downtown Los Angeles and
we'll check in on how that raise for fast food
workers has impacted the industry. Again, join our conversation iHeartRadio app,
click on the talkback button or hit me up on
(07:48):
social media. You can find me on all the platforms
at Mike monks La, m I C mnks LA, m
I C mnks La, Mike monks La on social media.
I'll look for your comments there as well. Big two
Hours Ahead, Stick around here on Michael Monks Reports.
Speaker 1 (08:05):
You're listening to KFI AM six forty on demand.
Speaker 2 (08:09):
KFI AM six forty live everywhere on the iHeartRadio app.
This is Michael Monks Reports on Michael Monks from KFI News.
We're with you till nine o'clock tonight. Want to take
you to downtown Los Angeles because a couple of news
stories this week took place there and it painted a
picture of Los Angeles that I don't think was complete,
and we definitely want to hear your thoughts on it
(08:30):
as well, so you can open up the iHeartRadio app,
click on that talkback button. We'll place some of your
feedback as we continue. Over the next couple of hours.
Some state lawmakers came downtown to announce a piece of
legislation that they say will improve downtown Los Angeles. This
is Democratic Assembly Member Matt Haney of San Francisco.
Speaker 4 (08:50):
We are seeing over the next few years some of
the biggest events in the world coming to California. There
are two Super Bowls, the Olympics, the World up all
coming to California. And the opportunities that this can provide
for our small businesses, for our hotels, for our restaurants
are tremendous. But we have to sometimes get out of
(09:11):
our own way and allow our cities and our businesses
to lead and be able to attract the people and
the business that we know is there.
Speaker 2 (09:21):
Again, that's Democratic Assemblyman Matt Haney. He's from San Francisco.
He was joined by some local lawmakers you'll also hear from.
So that's what he says, We need to do something
to improve the business condition, the tourist condition of downtown's
across the state of California. But they specifically came to
LA to announce this. So what do you think it
(09:41):
could be? More cleanliness if you were homeless people on
the streets. No, his bill would extend alcohol service until
four o'clock in the morning on Fridays, Saturdays, and state holidays.
He says that would boost tourism and support local businesses.
(10:03):
He says downtown's in California are still struggling to return
to pre pandemic levels almost half a decade later. So
that's the big idea there, more booze, more drinking, because
you know, as a downtown resident, I can tell you
the one thing we don't have enough of in Downtown
Los Angeles is drinking a noise into the wee hours
(10:24):
of the night.
Speaker 3 (10:26):
But we have two new.
Speaker 2 (10:27):
Assembly members from downtown. They're fresh faces in Sacramento and
both of them represent districts that include parts of Downtown
Los Angeles.
Speaker 3 (10:37):
Let's hear from Democrat shade El Wahari.
Speaker 5 (10:40):
From skid Row, where we are working every day to
uplift our most vulnerable neighbors to the cultural gems and
businesses that give downtown its spark. This is a place
that holds it all. That's what makes it so powerful.
Downtown isn't just about where people work. It's where they create,
where they gather, where they dream. It's home to small businesses,
(11:02):
immigrant entrepreneurs, artists, essential workers, and some of the most
resilient people I've ever met.
Speaker 2 (11:10):
That's what makes it so powerful, she says, of a
proposal to extend drinking hours two additional hours into the
middle of the night. Now, the reference to skid Row
wasn't the problem that it causes for local businesses, or
residents or tourists from all over the world who will
(11:30):
be coming in for those events, Assemblyman Matt Haney reference
moments ago. It was just the fact that skid Row
is part of Downtown, this powerful neighborhood in Los Angeles,
and if we extend drinking two more hours into the
middle of the night, what.
Speaker 3 (11:44):
A beautiful world this would be. But she's not alone.
Speaker 2 (11:48):
There's also another new Democratic Assemblyman who represents part of
downtown Los Angeles, and his name is Mark Gonzalez.
Speaker 3 (11:55):
Let's hear from him.
Speaker 6 (11:56):
Downtown Los Angeles stands at a crossroads, and at every
cross roads, we're given what choice to stay where we
are or to move boldly toward the future that we
actually can believe in. I'm proud to stand in strong
support of AD three four to two, a bill that's
more than just policy. It's a pathway, it's a bridge.
It's a chance to breathe new life into economy, to
(12:17):
uplift our workers and to empower small businesses that are
the heartbeat of our city. Downtown lay has always been
our economic engine, our cultural pulse. But in recent years
it's a hit. It's been hit hard by the pandemic, inflation,
rising costs, and even the economic aftershocks of the Janue
wild wildfires and this morning's downturn in the stock market.
Speaker 2 (12:40):
I just want you to hear how these lawmakers are
talking about a bill to extend drinking hours two more
hours into the middle of the night.
Speaker 3 (12:48):
Powerful, bold, game changing.
Speaker 2 (12:52):
Now I don't understand the economics of it. I don't
personally even have a feeling an opinion on this. I
covered this press conference, but it just struck me that
there was no consideration for what really appears to be
the problem in downtown Los Angeles, which is just the griminess.
(13:15):
The street lights are out, There are drug addicted lunatics
walking around, all of the dirty sidewalks that are covered
in trash. There are homeless tents up and down the
major thoroughfares, and these were not mentioned as issues. There
was no bold legislation mentioned to address those concerns.
Speaker 3 (13:38):
Just let the beer.
Speaker 2 (13:39):
Flow for two more hours into the middle of the night,
and downtown Los Angeles will be back.
Speaker 3 (13:46):
Baby.
Speaker 2 (13:48):
There was an attempt seven years ago. Excuse me, a
few years ago, twenty twenty two. State Senator Scott Wiener,
also from the Bay Area, he had a this it
did pass. No, that's not correct. State Senator Scott Wiener
and Assembly. When Matt Hainey tried to push for this
a few years back, it did not pass the Assembly.
(14:10):
Wiener had introduced on his own a similar piece of
legislation seven years ago in twenty eighteen. It did pass
the legislature, but then Governor Jerry Brown vetoed it.
Speaker 3 (14:19):
So they've tried this for years.
Speaker 2 (14:22):
And now it is the bold vision to save not
just downtown Los Angeles, but other big cities like Long Beach,
San Francisco, San Diego, downtown areas that may be struggling
in some way. It's a couple more hours of revelry
on the weekends. But if you're somebody who comes here
(14:45):
just to visit. I don't know that I would encourage you,
not because I think your safety is threatened, but your
perception of safety certainly will be. You know, the crime
statistics rarely reflect, maybe never reflect, the way people just feel.
And I don't mean irrational fears about downtown's in general.
(15:07):
Are people that are different than you. If you're in
downtown Los Angeles, you're looking around thinking, what the hell
is going on here? This is the second largest city
in the country. Why does it look like this? So
those were state lawmakers talking about a bill that they
strongly support to extend drinking hours two additional hours into
four am Fridays and Saturdays and state holidays. City council
(15:31):
members also expressed similar sentiments about the condition of downtown
while also ignoring these more pressing issues when they made
a critical decision that is going to cost you money
this week, and that's what we're going to hear about next.
We're also open to your conversation. You're part of the conversation.
Open up the iHeartRadio app, click on that talkback button
(15:53):
and we will play those during the show. Up next,
we'll hear from those city council members This is Michael
Monks Reports.
Speaker 1 (16:00):
Listening to KFI AM six forty on demand.
Speaker 2 (16:03):
KFI AM six forty live everywhere on the iHeartRadio app.
This is Michael Monk's Reports on Michael Monks from KFI News.
We'll be together till nine o'clock tonight. Before we went
to break, we talked about a proposal from some state
lawmakers who say the way to save downtown LA and
other downtowns across California is to extend drinking hours from
(16:25):
two o'clock to four o'clock in the morning last call
on Fridays, Saturdays and state holidays.
Speaker 3 (16:30):
Two additional hours of drinking. That's the key.
Speaker 2 (16:33):
No mention of the drug addicts downtown, the lunatics screaming
and hollering and causing a ruckus downtown every night, the tents,
the trash, the dirt, the general sense of unease and unpleasantness.
Speaker 3 (16:47):
I'm just curious if law enforcement was ever consulted about
this idea, this proposal. I'm sure they might have something
to say about it.
Speaker 2 (16:56):
But we'll have to see because this is now a
bill that is in Sacramento and there will be testimony
on it. We'll see if it passes. If this is
something that people want. It is something that some business
groups did come to this press conference. They say it
would really help if they were allowed to stay open
a couple more hours, and that would help revive the downtowns.
But there's something else that may help revive downtown if
(17:16):
you're talking to city council members, and this is something
we've talked about.
Speaker 3 (17:20):
On this very program many times.
Speaker 2 (17:22):
Most recently we talked about it as if we were
writing its obituary.
Speaker 3 (17:26):
It was dead. It's back.
Speaker 2 (17:28):
The downtown Los Angeles Convention Center is back on the
agenda in a big way. In a fourteen to one vote,
this week's city council authorized city staff to consider continue
negotiations with various planning groups and engineers to oversee construction
of this multi billion dollar project. It was over two
(17:48):
billion dollars last time we talked. It was going to
be financed over thirty years, and they promise all the
revenue from it will take care of the debt. Also,
a city that we learned just a few weeks ago
is facing a one billion dollar or budget shortfall. So
I was struck that this moved forward again as quickly
as it did, especially as it was approved fourteen to one.
(18:09):
But I wanted to talk about this in the context
of the previous segment because the sentiment shared by local
elected officials was very similar. Isabelle Herado is the newest
member of the LA City Council, representing Northeast LA neighborhoods
but also downtown Los Angeles and skid Row and where
the Convention Center is. She says, this is a project
(18:32):
that is important. Let's hear from her.
Speaker 7 (18:36):
This isn't just about the convention Center itself. It's about
showing Angelinos that we are committed into investing in our
own residents, our workers, and our businesses in the future
of this city. The truth is downtown hasn't fully bounced
back from the pandemic. The heart of Los Angeles isn't
what it used to be. But it's not for lack
(18:56):
of potential.
Speaker 2 (18:57):
No agreed, It's not for lack of potent In downtown
Los Angeles. I often tell people it's one of the
best places to be as long as you're looking up.
You see the palm trees, you see the tall buildings,
you see the beautiful old architecture. There's not a lot
of old architecture across Los Angeles, but there is a
dense population of it in downtown LA. You see the
(19:20):
bright lights of the restaurants where people are doing their
best to keep their heads above water. I mean, Downtown
LA is great as long as your head is up.
But unfortunately we need to watch where we're walking. And
it's on the sidewalk where you notice what a I
just step in? Why are there so many people sleeping
(19:45):
on the sidewalk here? Why is that crazy person screaming?
Who is he yelling at? And it's a mess. But
you don't hear that perspective shared this week from the
Assembly members or this city Councilman Isabel Herado.
Speaker 3 (19:59):
Let's hear more.
Speaker 7 (20:00):
Moving forward with this project, albeit cautiously and responsibly, will
help us regain our competitive edge. It will strengthen our
service and hospitality sectors, support local businesses, and benefit the
many Angelinos who are tied to large scale event production.
And when these events come here, the impact is felt
far beyond the convention floor because these events don't exist
(20:22):
in the vacuum. They drive hotel bookings, restaurant reservations, retail spending,
and foot traffic that makes our public spaces feel welcoming
and vibrant.
Speaker 2 (20:33):
You know what would make a public space feel welcoming
and vibrant if there wasn't somebody screaming at me as
I'm walking towards it, if there wasn't a tent in
front of the restaurant. But she opposes any attempt by
other council members, even in their own districts, to remove
(20:53):
homeless camps from certain parts. It comes up nearly every week,
various council members in an ordinance that'd say there'll be
no more camping on this or that block, and she
is always a reliable vote against and not always passes.
Speaker 3 (21:06):
There's a few of them that vote against it. She's
one of them.
Speaker 2 (21:10):
Skid Row is in her district. Skid Row is in
my neighborhood. There are more tents outside my apartment than
ever before.
Speaker 3 (21:20):
But what's going to change that is.
Speaker 2 (21:23):
Two billion dollars worth of investment in the convention center,
which you know, I don't know. We can't dispute that
it's a little old. We're ranked twenty third for conventions,
apparently losing out to cities much smaller. But is it
because of the condition of the convention center? Or the
condition of the place where the convention center is located.
(21:44):
Let's hear more from Isabelle Herado.
Speaker 7 (21:46):
Visitors don't just stay in downtown. They explore the La
Waterfront at the port and the Venice Boardwalk in ced eleven.
They take selfies on the Hollywood Boulevard and all these
other places that they see on tick talking movies. All
of this economic activity yields general fun revenue that we
urgently need to continue to provide vital city services.
Speaker 2 (22:09):
That's true, the city is facing a one billion dollar
budget shortfall. But here the areas that she just referenced.
Downtown is a mess. But people come and they go
to conventions downtown and then they go off to Venice.
There are some shocking scenes in Venice, and then they
take selfies, she says, on Hollywood Boulevard, selfies with whom
(22:35):
not celebrities, drug addicts.
Speaker 3 (22:39):
It's a mess.
Speaker 2 (22:41):
But it's like, as they talk about whether it's extending
the alcohol hours or expanding the convention center, they're speaking
of a downtown that does not exist, completely glossing over
the number one issue plaguing our local society, not just
(23:02):
by its presence but also by the amount of money
that has been ineffectively spent to address it.
Speaker 3 (23:09):
I have some more from Isabelle Herado.
Speaker 7 (23:11):
They drive hotel bookings, restaurant reservations, retel spending, and foot
traffic that makes our public spaces feel welcoming and vibrants.
Speaker 2 (23:22):
I think we have one additional clip from city Councilman
Isabel Herrado, who represents downtown La.
Speaker 7 (23:29):
Rive, hotel bookings, restaurant reservations, retel spending, and foot traffic
that makes our public space, okay, feel welcoming and virus.
Speaker 2 (23:37):
That's okay, you can stop. But I may have made
a mistake in sending that one over to you. She
basically says, in other words, that this is a good investment,
and maybe it is. We've heard some arguments for it,
but they decided that they weren't going to move forward
with it because they didn't think they could finish it
in time for the Olympics. And the Olympics are going
to have some events at the convention Center. Gymnastics, I mean,
(23:58):
major events are going to be at the convention Center.
And so now the plan is to do it in
two phases. They're going to do a lot of work
and then they're going to stop during the Olympics in
twenty twenty eight, and then after the Olympics are finished,
they hope to finish the whole project in twenty twenty nine.
Total costs not exactly clear. It was over two billion
dollars originally. Council has asked that they scale that back
(24:20):
a little bit. What happened this week is council members
authorized twenty seven million dollars for further pre construction work
and consultation services as part of an early works agreement
with this engineering firm. That is on top of fifty
four million dollars the city spent for the same purpose
last year.
Speaker 3 (24:37):
We're in good hands.
Speaker 2 (24:39):
Now there will be an evaluation of how Los Angeles,
Los Angeles County and various firms have spent money on homelessness.
Speaker 3 (24:46):
And that is because there is a new US attorney.
His name is Bill A.
Speaker 2 (24:50):
Saley, and we will hear what he has to say
about this new task force he has launched to investigate
potential fraud in that system.
Speaker 1 (24:58):
Next, you're listening to KFI AM six forty on demand.
Speaker 2 (25:03):
KFI AM six forty live everywhere on the iHeartRadio app.
This is Michael Monks Reports. I'm Michael Monks from KFI News.
We're with you till nine o'clock tonight. We always love
a little audience participation around here. I mentioned at the
top of the show, you know, my new participation in
the Angels fandom and La Angels one four to one
(25:25):
at Houston and we're nine and five to start the season.
Not bad, but one of our regulars has called in
to say, slow your role, Monks.
Speaker 1 (25:34):
Hey Monks, Stephen Bakersfield.
Speaker 2 (25:37):
So to deal with the Angels is they'll be good
until about July and then now you just start stinking
it up for the rest of the season. I don't
like that pessimism. I'm a Bengals fan as well, being
from northern Kentucky Cincinnati area, so it's usually the opposite.
The Bengals start really bad and then they go on
a run and get your hopes up before your dreams
(25:57):
are dashed just as the season is concluding. So this
will be in adjustment for me, a reversal of that.
We've also been talking about downtown LA. One of the
proposals is to extend drinking hours two more hours from
two am to four am on Fridays and Saturdays and
on state holidays. That's a bill in Sacramento, let's hear
from this collar.
Speaker 8 (26:17):
Yeah, the graffiti tagging crews are going to be very
thirsty after a night of tagging up the city.
Speaker 3 (26:22):
So that's why the bars needs to stay open.
Speaker 2 (26:24):
And that's exactly the point. There was no mention of
the rampant graffiti, the homelessness, the lunatics, the crazy people
who are running around having mental health psychopathic episodes in
front of your very eyes. None of that was mentioned
as a concern for why downtown is failing. It's just
two more additional hours of drinking on weekend nights and poof, voila,
(26:46):
Downtown La is back. There was some movement to address
homeless spending in recent days, and that's because the Central
District of California, which includes La County, Orange County, San
Bernardino County, and Riverside County, as a new US district.
Excuse me, a US attorney. His name is Bill A.
Speaker 3 (27:05):
Saley.
Speaker 2 (27:06):
He was an assemblyman from Riverside County in Sacramento. He
stepped down from that role to take over this new
one appointed by President Trump himself, and he has created
a homelessness Fraud and Corruption Task Force to investigate waste
and corruption involving funds allocated to fight homelessness in these counties.
(27:26):
He appeared on both the Tim Conway Show and The
John Cobelt Show.
Speaker 3 (27:30):
Here's part of what he told John Covelt on Sunday.
Speaker 8 (27:33):
I went and towards skid Row with Judge Carter. He
walked me through it. It is like a different world
down there. There are no government services being offered there, John.
Most of the services being offered, whether it was you know,
medical attention or food, were from private donors. The only
evidence I saw of tax money being spent in down
(27:56):
there was a black cheap and I'm not kidding. I
saw this first hand. There's a black cheep that doesn't
have doors on it driving around handing out drug kits
so the homeless can safely shoot up down there on
skid Row. They're handing crack pipes, turn of kits, little
things to burn the drugs on needles. That's the only
that's the only tax dollars I saw being spent there.
Speaker 2 (28:19):
And just think maybe soon they'll be able to hand
out crackpipes until four o'clock in the morning. Stay tuned
for that. But that is an honest assessment, regardless of politics.
I'm just a guy who lives down there. That is
an honest assessment of the condition of skid row, and
it's been a while since we've heard someone talk about that. Now,
(28:41):
we have not accused anybody of fraud and misappropriating funds,
but there is clear documentation that in the huge conglomerate
that is homeless funding in La County, official audits have
shown we don't know a lot of it's been spent,
(29:02):
and we don't even know if they knew what results
they wanted from the money that was being spent.
Speaker 3 (29:07):
And it's billions of dollars. Let's hear more for Bill A. Saley.
Speaker 8 (29:10):
The auditors are beside themselves. They audited the programs and
they are missing two billion dollars. Cannot account for two
billion dollars. That's with a B. And as I've said,
that's not a rounding error, and that's not a little
bit of money. That's a lot of money. So I
was asked, how does two billion dollars go missing? Well,
it doesn't. It's somewhere and we're going to find it.
(29:32):
And so over the weekend I put together this task Force.
I think taxpayers deserve to know where their money is,
what happened to their money, who benefit, and whether there's
any wrongdoing. I'm not going to prejudge the investigation. I
don't know who and what will be involved, but we
are going to do a thorough investigation and if laws
were violated, we will arrest and prosecute.
Speaker 2 (29:52):
So when you're a Republican lawmaker in Sacramento, which is
dominated by Democrats, you don't have a lot of influence.
I mean you can make some no, you can get
some attention from us in the press because you're recommending
a piece of legislation that seems interesting but is going
nowhere because you just don't have the influence there. But now,
Bill of Salee is the guy in this federal district,
(30:17):
and this is his top concern as of now, is
to investigate how this money has been spent. He walked
down there with Judge David Carter, federal judge who ordered
one of those audits, because he's so ticked off at
the lack of cooperation from local governments and the quasi
government organizations that distribute these funds. Let's hear another comment
(30:40):
from Bill sale.
Speaker 8 (30:41):
I put my top prosecutors from the Public Corruption Section
and the Major Fraud Section on this. I'm also putting
the Civil Division on this. And then we have agents
from the FBI, the IRS, and the Office of Inspector
General for Housing and Urban Development because there were some
federal funds that were given out to these agencies as well.
So this is a bus task force. We had a
(31:02):
meeting today in my office and everyone's everyone's ready to
get to work, and so to the extent the public
has information, again, one eight hundred.
Speaker 2 (31:10):
Call FBI, one eight hundred, call FBI if you have information.
So they're on the case and we'll see what they
have to find. And we are definitely looking forward to
seeing if they find anything at all, he said he
would arrest and prosecute. Your comments are welcome. Open up
the iHeartRadio app, click on that talkback button if you
want to weigh in on the condition of downtown LA,
(31:32):
whether you think expanding the Convention Center or just expanding
drinking hours overnight is going to be helpful, or if
you feel more optimistic about homeless funds in La County.
Because new US Attorney Bill A. Saley says he's on
the case. Open up that iHeartRadio app. Click on the
talkback button. We'll place some of your comments in our
next hour. Yes, we have one more hour to go together.
(31:55):
And Senator Bernie Sanders and Democratic Congresswoman Alexandria okaz Zio
Cortes came to downtown Los Angeles today and tens of
thousands of people showed up. We'll play some highlights from
that rally. We'll also talk a bit more about the Olympics.
One city in La County decided they didn't want to
host an event, but there's a city in Orange County
that may indeed want to take their place.
Speaker 3 (32:17):
We'll address that.
Speaker 2 (32:17):
Also, a new study show since raising the minimum wage
for fast food workers in California has been problematic for
jobs and prices. That's all ahead in our next hour
here on Michael Monk's Reports on KFI AM six
Speaker 1 (32:31):
Forty KFI AM six forty on demand
You're listening to KFI AM six forty on demand, KFI.
Speaker 2 (00:05):
AM six forty live everywhere on the iHeartRadio app. This
is Michael Monks Reports. I'm Michael Monks from KFI News.
We're with you till nine o'clock tonight and every Saturday night.
So glad to be with you on another beautiful Saturday
evening here in southern California.
Speaker 3 (00:21):
Just a gorgeous day out there.
Speaker 2 (00:24):
The Dodgers have the Cubs in town right now on
the bottom of the fourth the Cubs are up one nothing.
But how about those Angels winners today four to one
at Houston. You know, ever since I jumped on the
Angels bandwagon, we're nine and five.
Speaker 3 (00:38):
That's a hot start to the season.
Speaker 2 (00:39):
So I'm not saying I'm a lucky charm here, Fairweather fan,
new fan, but go Halos, how about that. Gotta say
I'm a little out of sorts today. I don't know
if this is something you ever experienced, but you have
a regular grocery store, right You go once twice a week,
You go at your usual time, You know where things
(00:59):
are are. But every now and then the grocery store
decides it's going to change. Things around on you. Well,
it came to my routs in downtown LA and it
was quite a shock.
Speaker 3 (01:12):
They've moved everything.
Speaker 2 (01:14):
The self checkout lanes have moved the way you access
the regular checkout lanes, have moved the you know, the
beauty supplies, the dental care, that's all moved. And I've
been dizzy ever since because you have a routine and
then it's completely disrupted, and I don't know if I'm
(01:35):
going to recover from that anytime soon. Is that something
you've experienced, You know what I'm talking about? You know
where things it's like when you have to go to
a different grocery store, even if it's the same brand,
it's just different and you feel a little weird about
being there. My understanding is that, unsurprisingly, they've been having
(01:55):
some problems in the downtown grocery stores with unwanted show
maybe not wanting to pay for things, and so I
guess this new setup is supposed to make things a
little bit more secure.
Speaker 3 (02:09):
We're gonna be talking a.
Speaker 2 (02:10):
Little bit about that today, but first I want to
set this into a more personal context. You ever have
people pop by unannounced, or maybe you're with somebody, but
you've got to stop by your home, and you have
to make a consideration.
Speaker 3 (02:26):
How does my place look right now?
Speaker 2 (02:28):
Got to leave too many dishes in the sink, maybe
some laundries on the couch. It's a bit unkempt. Do
I let this person come in and see the current
condition of my home? How will I feel about that?
We've all been in this position, right I mean, even
if you're a clean person. I'm a clean person. My
home is usually clean, my car is usually clean. But
(02:48):
sometimes maybe there's a few extra dishes in the sink.
Haven't gotten to them yet. Maybe I folded some laundry,
but I haven't put it away yet, And if somebody
were to come in, I would feel a little bit
self conscious about it. And honestly, sometimes the place is
just a rack, you know, Sometimes you're just a little
lazy for a couple of days. Breakfast is still on
the table, you've been playing video games or watching TV,
(03:09):
and laundry's not done, the bed's not made, and if
somebody popped in, you feel a little weird. You, as
a normal person would think, I don't know, I don't
know if I should let this person in right now,
or maybe maybe you're confident in your dirtiness. Maybe you're
(03:30):
somebody who drives around in a dirty car. There's crap
all over the pass, in your seat, and somebody needs
to take a ride with you, and you just dump
it all on the floor and say, have a seat,
Excuse the doritos that will be stuck to your butt,
just part of your life. I'm not like that, and
I bet most of you aren't either. I bet most
of us have this sense of self awareness, this self
(03:52):
consciousness that we don't want to show off our home
if it is in a condition of disarray, if it's untidy.
Some of us may even be more so, one little
thing is out of place, and we're apologizing for the
condition of our residents.
Speaker 3 (04:11):
I bring this up.
Speaker 2 (04:11):
Because I don't think local officials have that self awareness,
and we're going to explore a couple of issues that
emerged this week that I think might support this thesis.
I want you to think about where I went to
the grocery today Ralphs in downtown Los Angeles, or where
(04:34):
Senator Bernie Sanders and Congresswoman Alexandria Casio Cortez held a
huge rally at Gloria Molina Grand Park today or if
you go to the King's Game at Crypto, what do
you see.
Speaker 3 (04:54):
It's a bit of a mess. Right.
Speaker 2 (04:57):
If you listen to me regularly on Saturday ninety, know
that I live in downtown Los Angeles. I talk about
it a lot because it is such an important economic
driver to the rest of the region. And yet it
looks so terrible. It's filthy. Obviously, we know the epicenter
of the homeless epidemic is all condensed right there in
(05:19):
downtown LA.
Speaker 3 (05:21):
It doesn't look good.
Speaker 2 (05:23):
But this week, state officials made an announcement and city
officials made a decision related to downtown. Both sets of
public officials discussed their decisions as a way to improve downtown,
(05:44):
but to me, as they were explaining these positions, it
seemed like they were glossing over the drug addicted, trash riddled,
tent dwelling elephant in the room. It felt like they
were talking talking about somewhere else, like they are completely
out of touch with what is really holding downtown Los
(06:08):
Angeles back. We're gonna talk about those two things that
was done by state lawmakers this week and done by
city officials this week. I'm gonna play for you what
they said, and I want to hear from you.
Speaker 3 (06:22):
Do you buy it? Can you believe it?
Speaker 2 (06:26):
What are your thoughts on what needs to happen in
downtown Los Angeles for you to feel like it's a
destination for you, for it's a place, for it to
be a place where you feel safe, where you would
support the businesses that are working so hard to sustain
themselves there. You can join our conversation as always by
opening up that iHeartRadio app, click on the talkback button.
(06:49):
We're gonna play some of your comments throughout the hour.
If you want to hang tight and listen to some
of these public officials before you send your feedback, that's
all good too. We got two hours together tonight. We're
also going to talk a bit about this new focus
on homelessness by the federal government. We've got a new
US Attorney here in southern California, Bill A. Sale, a
(07:10):
well known Republican state lawmaker from Riverside County, didn't have
much power in Sacramento being in a big minority, but
now he's got a big stick and he plans on
wielding it with a focus on homelessness to kick things
off downtown.
Speaker 3 (07:25):
We'll hear what he has in store.
Speaker 2 (07:28):
As he investigates the way local officials have spent money
related to homelessness. In our next hour, we will visit
that Bernie Sanders aoc rally in downtown Los Angeles and
we'll check in on how that raise for fast food
workers has impacted the industry. Again, join our conversation iHeartRadio app,
click on the talkback button or hit me up on
(07:48):
social media. You can find me on all the platforms
at Mike monks La, m I C mnks LA, m
I C mnks La, Mike monks La on social media.
I'll look for your comments there as well. Big two
Hours Ahead, Stick around here on Michael Monks Reports.
Speaker 1 (08:05):
You're listening to KFI AM six forty on demand.
Speaker 2 (08:09):
KFI AM six forty live everywhere on the iHeartRadio app.
This is Michael Monks Reports on Michael Monks from KFI News.
We're with you till nine o'clock tonight. Want to take
you to downtown Los Angeles because a couple of news
stories this week took place there and it painted a
picture of Los Angeles that I don't think was complete,
and we definitely want to hear your thoughts on it
(08:30):
as well, so you can open up the iHeartRadio app,
click on that talkback button. We'll place some of your
feedback as we continue. Over the next couple of hours.
Some state lawmakers came downtown to announce a piece of
legislation that they say will improve downtown Los Angeles. This
is Democratic Assembly Member Matt Haney of San Francisco.
Speaker 4 (08:50):
We are seeing over the next few years some of
the biggest events in the world coming to California. There
are two Super Bowls, the Olympics, the World up all
coming to California. And the opportunities that this can provide
for our small businesses, for our hotels, for our restaurants
are tremendous. But we have to sometimes get out of
(09:11):
our own way and allow our cities and our businesses
to lead and be able to attract the people and
the business that we know is there.
Speaker 2 (09:21):
Again, that's Democratic Assemblyman Matt Haney. He's from San Francisco.
He was joined by some local lawmakers you'll also hear from.
So that's what he says, We need to do something
to improve the business condition, the tourist condition of downtown's
across the state of California. But they specifically came to
LA to announce this. So what do you think it
(09:41):
could be? More cleanliness if you were homeless people on
the streets. No, his bill would extend alcohol service until
four o'clock in the morning on Fridays, Saturdays, and state holidays.
He says that would boost tourism and support local businesses.
(10:03):
He says downtown's in California are still struggling to return
to pre pandemic levels almost half a decade later. So
that's the big idea there, more booze, more drinking, because
you know, as a downtown resident, I can tell you
the one thing we don't have enough of in Downtown
Los Angeles is drinking a noise into the wee hours
(10:24):
of the night.
Speaker 3 (10:26):
But we have two new.
Speaker 2 (10:27):
Assembly members from downtown. They're fresh faces in Sacramento and
both of them represent districts that include parts of Downtown
Los Angeles.
Speaker 3 (10:37):
Let's hear from Democrat shade El Wahari.
Speaker 5 (10:40):
From skid Row, where we are working every day to
uplift our most vulnerable neighbors to the cultural gems and
businesses that give downtown its spark. This is a place
that holds it all. That's what makes it so powerful.
Downtown isn't just about where people work. It's where they create,
where they gather, where they dream. It's home to small businesses,
(11:02):
immigrant entrepreneurs, artists, essential workers, and some of the most
resilient people I've ever met.
Speaker 2 (11:10):
That's what makes it so powerful, she says, of a
proposal to extend drinking hours two additional hours into the
middle of the night. Now, the reference to skid Row
wasn't the problem that it causes for local businesses, or
residents or tourists from all over the world who will
(11:30):
be coming in for those events, Assemblyman Matt Haney reference
moments ago. It was just the fact that skid Row
is part of Downtown, this powerful neighborhood in Los Angeles,
and if we extend drinking two more hours into the
middle of the night, what.
Speaker 3 (11:44):
A beautiful world this would be. But she's not alone.
Speaker 2 (11:48):
There's also another new Democratic Assemblyman who represents part of
downtown Los Angeles, and his name is Mark Gonzalez.
Speaker 3 (11:55):
Let's hear from him.
Speaker 6 (11:56):
Downtown Los Angeles stands at a crossroads, and at every
cross roads, we're given what choice to stay where we
are or to move boldly toward the future that we
actually can believe in. I'm proud to stand in strong
support of AD three four to two, a bill that's
more than just policy. It's a pathway, it's a bridge.
It's a chance to breathe new life into economy, to
(12:17):
uplift our workers and to empower small businesses that are
the heartbeat of our city. Downtown lay has always been
our economic engine, our cultural pulse. But in recent years
it's a hit. It's been hit hard by the pandemic, inflation,
rising costs, and even the economic aftershocks of the Janue
wild wildfires and this morning's downturn in the stock market.
Speaker 2 (12:40):
I just want you to hear how these lawmakers are
talking about a bill to extend drinking hours two more
hours into the middle of the night.
Speaker 3 (12:48):
Powerful, bold, game changing.
Speaker 2 (12:52):
Now I don't understand the economics of it. I don't
personally even have a feeling an opinion on this. I
covered this press conference, but it just struck me that
there was no consideration for what really appears to be
the problem in downtown Los Angeles, which is just the griminess.
(13:15):
The street lights are out, There are drug addicted lunatics
walking around, all of the dirty sidewalks that are covered
in trash. There are homeless tents up and down the
major thoroughfares, and these were not mentioned as issues. There
was no bold legislation mentioned to address those concerns.
Speaker 3 (13:38):
Just let the beer.
Speaker 2 (13:39):
Flow for two more hours into the middle of the night,
and downtown Los Angeles will be back.
Speaker 3 (13:46):
Baby.
Speaker 2 (13:48):
There was an attempt seven years ago. Excuse me, a
few years ago, twenty twenty two. State Senator Scott Wiener,
also from the Bay Area, he had a this it
did pass. No, that's not correct. State Senator Scott Wiener
and Assembly. When Matt Hainey tried to push for this
a few years back, it did not pass the Assembly.
(14:10):
Wiener had introduced on his own a similar piece of
legislation seven years ago in twenty eighteen. It did pass
the legislature, but then Governor Jerry Brown vetoed it.
Speaker 3 (14:19):
So they've tried this for years.
Speaker 2 (14:22):
And now it is the bold vision to save not
just downtown Los Angeles, but other big cities like Long Beach,
San Francisco, San Diego, downtown areas that may be struggling
in some way. It's a couple more hours of revelry
on the weekends. But if you're somebody who comes here
(14:45):
just to visit. I don't know that I would encourage you,
not because I think your safety is threatened, but your
perception of safety certainly will be. You know, the crime
statistics rarely reflect, maybe never reflect, the way people just feel.
And I don't mean irrational fears about downtown's in general.
(15:07):
Are people that are different than you. If you're in
downtown Los Angeles, you're looking around thinking, what the hell
is going on here? This is the second largest city
in the country. Why does it look like this? So
those were state lawmakers talking about a bill that they
strongly support to extend drinking hours two additional hours into
four am Fridays and Saturdays and state holidays. City council
(15:31):
members also expressed similar sentiments about the condition of downtown
while also ignoring these more pressing issues when they made
a critical decision that is going to cost you money
this week, and that's what we're going to hear about next.
We're also open to your conversation. You're part of the conversation.
Open up the iHeartRadio app, click on that talkback button
(15:53):
and we will play those during the show. Up next,
we'll hear from those city council members This is Michael
Monks Reports.
Speaker 1 (16:00):
Listening to KFI AM six forty on demand.
Speaker 2 (16:03):
KFI AM six forty live everywhere on the iHeartRadio app.
This is Michael Monk's Reports on Michael Monks from KFI News.
We'll be together till nine o'clock tonight. Before we went
to break, we talked about a proposal from some state
lawmakers who say the way to save downtown LA and
other downtowns across California is to extend drinking hours from
(16:25):
two o'clock to four o'clock in the morning last call
on Fridays, Saturdays and state holidays.
Speaker 3 (16:30):
Two additional hours of drinking. That's the key.
Speaker 2 (16:33):
No mention of the drug addicts downtown, the lunatics screaming
and hollering and causing a ruckus downtown every night, the tents,
the trash, the dirt, the general sense of unease and unpleasantness.
Speaker 3 (16:47):
I'm just curious if law enforcement was ever consulted about
this idea, this proposal. I'm sure they might have something
to say about it.
Speaker 2 (16:56):
But we'll have to see because this is now a
bill that is in Sacramento and there will be testimony
on it. We'll see if it passes. If this is
something that people want. It is something that some business
groups did come to this press conference. They say it
would really help if they were allowed to stay open
a couple more hours, and that would help revive the downtowns.
But there's something else that may help revive downtown if
(17:16):
you're talking to city council members, and this is something
we've talked about.
Speaker 3 (17:20):
On this very program many times.
Speaker 2 (17:22):
Most recently we talked about it as if we were
writing its obituary.
Speaker 3 (17:26):
It was dead. It's back.
Speaker 2 (17:28):
The downtown Los Angeles Convention Center is back on the
agenda in a big way. In a fourteen to one vote,
this week's city council authorized city staff to consider continue
negotiations with various planning groups and engineers to oversee construction
of this multi billion dollar project. It was over two
(17:48):
billion dollars last time we talked. It was going to
be financed over thirty years, and they promise all the
revenue from it will take care of the debt. Also,
a city that we learned just a few weeks ago
is facing a one billion dollar or budget shortfall. So
I was struck that this moved forward again as quickly
as it did, especially as it was approved fourteen to one.
(18:09):
But I wanted to talk about this in the context
of the previous segment because the sentiment shared by local
elected officials was very similar. Isabelle Herado is the newest
member of the LA City Council, representing Northeast LA neighborhoods
but also downtown Los Angeles and skid Row and where
the Convention Center is. She says, this is a project
(18:32):
that is important. Let's hear from her.
Speaker 7 (18:36):
This isn't just about the convention Center itself. It's about
showing Angelinos that we are committed into investing in our
own residents, our workers, and our businesses in the future
of this city. The truth is downtown hasn't fully bounced
back from the pandemic. The heart of Los Angeles isn't
what it used to be. But it's not for lack
(18:56):
of potential.
Speaker 2 (18:57):
No agreed, It's not for lack of potent In downtown
Los Angeles. I often tell people it's one of the
best places to be as long as you're looking up.
You see the palm trees, you see the tall buildings,
you see the beautiful old architecture. There's not a lot
of old architecture across Los Angeles, but there is a
dense population of it in downtown LA. You see the
(19:20):
bright lights of the restaurants where people are doing their
best to keep their heads above water. I mean, Downtown
LA is great as long as your head is up.
But unfortunately we need to watch where we're walking. And
it's on the sidewalk where you notice what a I
just step in? Why are there so many people sleeping
(19:45):
on the sidewalk here? Why is that crazy person screaming?
Who is he yelling at? And it's a mess. But
you don't hear that perspective shared this week from the
Assembly members or this city Councilman Isabel Herado.
Speaker 3 (19:59):
Let's hear more.
Speaker 7 (20:00):
Moving forward with this project, albeit cautiously and responsibly, will
help us regain our competitive edge. It will strengthen our
service and hospitality sectors, support local businesses, and benefit the
many Angelinos who are tied to large scale event production.
And when these events come here, the impact is felt
far beyond the convention floor because these events don't exist
(20:22):
in the vacuum. They drive hotel bookings, restaurant reservations, retail spending,
and foot traffic that makes our public spaces feel welcoming
and vibrant.
Speaker 2 (20:33):
You know what would make a public space feel welcoming
and vibrant if there wasn't somebody screaming at me as
I'm walking towards it, if there wasn't a tent in
front of the restaurant. But she opposes any attempt by
other council members, even in their own districts, to remove
(20:53):
homeless camps from certain parts. It comes up nearly every week,
various council members in an ordinance that'd say there'll be
no more camping on this or that block, and she
is always a reliable vote against and not always passes.
Speaker 3 (21:06):
There's a few of them that vote against it. She's
one of them.
Speaker 2 (21:10):
Skid Row is in her district. Skid Row is in
my neighborhood. There are more tents outside my apartment than
ever before.
Speaker 3 (21:20):
But what's going to change that is.
Speaker 2 (21:23):
Two billion dollars worth of investment in the convention center,
which you know, I don't know. We can't dispute that
it's a little old. We're ranked twenty third for conventions,
apparently losing out to cities much smaller. But is it
because of the condition of the convention center? Or the
condition of the place where the convention center is located.
(21:44):
Let's hear more from Isabelle Herado.
Speaker 7 (21:46):
Visitors don't just stay in downtown. They explore the La
Waterfront at the port and the Venice Boardwalk in ced eleven.
They take selfies on the Hollywood Boulevard and all these
other places that they see on tick talking movies. All
of this economic activity yields general fun revenue that we
urgently need to continue to provide vital city services.
Speaker 2 (22:09):
That's true, the city is facing a one billion dollar
budget shortfall. But here the areas that she just referenced.
Downtown is a mess. But people come and they go
to conventions downtown and then they go off to Venice.
There are some shocking scenes in Venice, and then they
take selfies, she says, on Hollywood Boulevard, selfies with whom
(22:35):
not celebrities, drug addicts.
Speaker 3 (22:39):
It's a mess.
Speaker 2 (22:41):
But it's like, as they talk about whether it's extending
the alcohol hours or expanding the convention center, they're speaking
of a downtown that does not exist, completely glossing over
the number one issue plaguing our local society, not just
(23:02):
by its presence but also by the amount of money
that has been ineffectively spent to address it.
Speaker 3 (23:09):
I have some more from Isabelle Herado.
Speaker 7 (23:11):
They drive hotel bookings, restaurant reservations, retel spending, and foot
traffic that makes our public spaces feel welcoming and vibrants.
Speaker 2 (23:22):
I think we have one additional clip from city Councilman
Isabel Herrado, who represents downtown La.
Speaker 7 (23:29):
Rive, hotel bookings, restaurant reservations, retel spending, and foot traffic
that makes our public space, okay, feel welcoming and virus.
Speaker 2 (23:37):
That's okay, you can stop. But I may have made
a mistake in sending that one over to you. She
basically says, in other words, that this is a good investment,
and maybe it is. We've heard some arguments for it,
but they decided that they weren't going to move forward
with it because they didn't think they could finish it
in time for the Olympics. And the Olympics are going
to have some events at the convention Center. Gymnastics, I mean,
(23:58):
major events are going to be at the convention Center.
And so now the plan is to do it in
two phases. They're going to do a lot of work
and then they're going to stop during the Olympics in
twenty twenty eight, and then after the Olympics are finished,
they hope to finish the whole project in twenty twenty nine.
Total costs not exactly clear. It was over two billion
dollars originally. Council has asked that they scale that back
(24:20):
a little bit. What happened this week is council members
authorized twenty seven million dollars for further pre construction work
and consultation services as part of an early works agreement
with this engineering firm. That is on top of fifty
four million dollars the city spent for the same purpose
last year.
Speaker 3 (24:37):
We're in good hands.
Speaker 2 (24:39):
Now there will be an evaluation of how Los Angeles,
Los Angeles County and various firms have spent money on homelessness.
Speaker 3 (24:46):
And that is because there is a new US attorney.
His name is Bill A.
Speaker 2 (24:50):
Saley, and we will hear what he has to say
about this new task force he has launched to investigate
potential fraud in that system.
Speaker 1 (24:58):
Next, you're listening to KFI AM six forty on demand.
Speaker 2 (25:03):
KFI AM six forty live everywhere on the iHeartRadio app.
This is Michael Monks Reports. I'm Michael Monks from KFI News.
We're with you till nine o'clock tonight. We always love
a little audience participation around here. I mentioned at the
top of the show, you know, my new participation in
the Angels fandom and La Angels one four to one
(25:25):
at Houston and we're nine and five to start the season.
Not bad, but one of our regulars has called in
to say, slow your role, Monks.
Speaker 1 (25:34):
Hey Monks, Stephen Bakersfield.
Speaker 2 (25:37):
So to deal with the Angels is they'll be good
until about July and then now you just start stinking
it up for the rest of the season. I don't
like that pessimism. I'm a Bengals fan as well, being
from northern Kentucky Cincinnati area, so it's usually the opposite.
The Bengals start really bad and then they go on
a run and get your hopes up before your dreams
(25:57):
are dashed just as the season is concluding. So this
will be in adjustment for me, a reversal of that.
We've also been talking about downtown LA. One of the
proposals is to extend drinking hours two more hours from
two am to four am on Fridays and Saturdays and
on state holidays. That's a bill in Sacramento, let's hear
from this collar.
Speaker 8 (26:17):
Yeah, the graffiti tagging crews are going to be very
thirsty after a night of tagging up the city.
Speaker 3 (26:22):
So that's why the bars needs to stay open.
Speaker 2 (26:24):
And that's exactly the point. There was no mention of
the rampant graffiti, the homelessness, the lunatics, the crazy people
who are running around having mental health psychopathic episodes in
front of your very eyes. None of that was mentioned
as a concern for why downtown is failing. It's just
two more additional hours of drinking on weekend nights and poof, voila,
(26:46):
Downtown La is back. There was some movement to address
homeless spending in recent days, and that's because the Central
District of California, which includes La County, Orange County, San
Bernardino County, and Riverside County, as a new US district.
Excuse me, a US attorney. His name is Bill A.
Speaker 3 (27:05):
Saley.
Speaker 2 (27:06):
He was an assemblyman from Riverside County in Sacramento. He
stepped down from that role to take over this new
one appointed by President Trump himself, and he has created
a homelessness Fraud and Corruption Task Force to investigate waste
and corruption involving funds allocated to fight homelessness in these counties.
(27:26):
He appeared on both the Tim Conway Show and The
John Cobelt Show.
Speaker 3 (27:30):
Here's part of what he told John Covelt on Sunday.
Speaker 8 (27:33):
I went and towards skid Row with Judge Carter. He
walked me through it. It is like a different world
down there. There are no government services being offered there, John.
Most of the services being offered, whether it was you know,
medical attention or food, were from private donors. The only
evidence I saw of tax money being spent in down
(27:56):
there was a black cheap and I'm not kidding. I
saw this first hand. There's a black cheep that doesn't
have doors on it driving around handing out drug kits
so the homeless can safely shoot up down there on
skid Row. They're handing crack pipes, turn of kits, little
things to burn the drugs on needles. That's the only
that's the only tax dollars I saw being spent there.
Speaker 2 (28:19):
And just think maybe soon they'll be able to hand
out crackpipes until four o'clock in the morning. Stay tuned
for that. But that is an honest assessment, regardless of politics.
I'm just a guy who lives down there. That is
an honest assessment of the condition of skid row, and
it's been a while since we've heard someone talk about that. Now,
(28:41):
we have not accused anybody of fraud and misappropriating funds,
but there is clear documentation that in the huge conglomerate
that is homeless funding in La County, official audits have
shown we don't know a lot of it's been spent,
(29:02):
and we don't even know if they knew what results
they wanted from the money that was being spent.
Speaker 3 (29:07):
And it's billions of dollars. Let's hear more for Bill A. Saley.
Speaker 8 (29:10):
The auditors are beside themselves. They audited the programs and
they are missing two billion dollars. Cannot account for two
billion dollars. That's with a B. And as I've said,
that's not a rounding error, and that's not a little
bit of money. That's a lot of money. So I
was asked, how does two billion dollars go missing? Well,
it doesn't. It's somewhere and we're going to find it.
(29:32):
And so over the weekend I put together this task Force.
I think taxpayers deserve to know where their money is,
what happened to their money, who benefit, and whether there's
any wrongdoing. I'm not going to prejudge the investigation. I
don't know who and what will be involved, but we
are going to do a thorough investigation and if laws
were violated, we will arrest and prosecute.
Speaker 2 (29:52):
So when you're a Republican lawmaker in Sacramento, which is
dominated by Democrats, you don't have a lot of influence.
I mean you can make some no, you can get
some attention from us in the press because you're recommending
a piece of legislation that seems interesting but is going
nowhere because you just don't have the influence there. But now,
Bill of Salee is the guy in this federal district,
(30:17):
and this is his top concern as of now, is
to investigate how this money has been spent. He walked
down there with Judge David Carter, federal judge who ordered
one of those audits, because he's so ticked off at
the lack of cooperation from local governments and the quasi
government organizations that distribute these funds. Let's hear another comment
(30:40):
from Bill sale.
Speaker 8 (30:41):
I put my top prosecutors from the Public Corruption Section
and the Major Fraud Section on this. I'm also putting
the Civil Division on this. And then we have agents
from the FBI, the IRS, and the Office of Inspector
General for Housing and Urban Development because there were some
federal funds that were given out to these agencies as well.
So this is a bus task force. We had a
(31:02):
meeting today in my office and everyone's everyone's ready to
get to work, and so to the extent the public
has information, again, one eight hundred.
Speaker 2 (31:10):
Call FBI, one eight hundred, call FBI if you have information.
So they're on the case and we'll see what they
have to find. And we are definitely looking forward to
seeing if they find anything at all, he said he
would arrest and prosecute. Your comments are welcome. Open up
the iHeartRadio app, click on that talkback button if you
want to weigh in on the condition of downtown LA,
(31:32):
whether you think expanding the Convention Center or just expanding
drinking hours overnight is going to be helpful, or if
you feel more optimistic about homeless funds in La County.
Because new US Attorney Bill A. Saley says he's on
the case. Open up that iHeartRadio app. Click on the
talkback button. We'll place some of your comments in our
next hour. Yes, we have one more hour to go together.
(31:55):
And Senator Bernie Sanders and Democratic Congresswoman Alexandria okaz Zio
Cortes came to downtown Los Angeles today and tens of
thousands of people showed up. We'll play some highlights from
that rally. We'll also talk a bit more about the Olympics.
One city in La County decided they didn't want to
host an event, but there's a city in Orange County
that may indeed want to take their place.
Speaker 3 (32:17):
We'll address that.
Speaker 2 (32:17):
Also, a new study show since raising the minimum wage
for fast food workers in California has been problematic for
jobs and prices. That's all ahead in our next hour
here on Michael Monk's Reports on KFI AM six
Speaker 1 (32:31):
Forty KFI AM six forty on demand
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