Grenell Calls Out Bass-Appointed L.A. Fire Recovery Chief for $500K 3-Month Salary: ‘Gross, Offensive’
Ric Grenell, President Donald Trump’s Envoy for Special Missions, slammed Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass’s (D) fire “recovery czar” for his large three-month salary of $500,000 paid by charity groups.
Bass announced former L.A. police commissioner Steve Soboroff as the head of the rebuilding efforts following the devastating fires that destroyed homes and businesses and claimed at least 29 lives over a three-week period.
Soboroff will be “paid $500,000 over three months, with funding coming from charitable groups,” the Los Angeles Times reported.
Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass and Chief Recovery Officer Steve Soboroff discuss recovery efforts during a press conference in Pacific Palisades on Monday, January 27, 2025. (Drew A. Kelley/MediaNews Group/Long Beach Press-Telegram via Getty)
Real estate executive Randy Johnson, who worked with Soboroff in developing the ritzy Playa Vista neighborhood in the Westside area of L.A., will receive $250,000 from charity groups over the 90-day period as he helps with the recovery efforts.
Grenell, a longtime Trump ally, blasted the news on X:
“He’s getting paid $500,000 for 3 months of work? And they call this a charity,” the former ambassador said. “Gross. Offensive.”
Grenell himself toured the destruction with Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Administrator Lee Zeldin, Mayor Bass, and other officials earlier this week, Breitbart News reported.
“I’m getting paid $0 – as are many people,” he continued in his post. “It’s a good thing there will be strings on the Federal money for California.”
California Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) signed two bills Friday approving $50 million to fight Trump’s policies — after returning from the White House, where he asked the president for federal aid money.
Soboroff has already gotten himself in the headlines by claiming that half of the laborers necessary for construction work in the fire-damaged areas could be “deported” by immigration enforcement.
The recovery chief did tell Breitbart News that he wants to “work with Trump” on rebuilding.
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