City Council seeks briefing on Trump-appointed taskforce tied to LA Olympics

Citing concerns about increased federal immigration enforcement activity and its potential impact on local communities, the Los Angeles City Council voted unanimously Tuesday to request a detailed briefing from LA28 on a White House-led task force overseeing preparations for the 2028 Olympic and Paralympic Games.

The request, introduced by Councilmember Monica Rodriguez, asks LA28 to return with a presentation detailing the taskforce’s purpose, jurisdiction and anticipated activities, as well as what safeguards the city can enact to ensure local law enforcement remains in charge and vulnerable communities are protected as Los Angeles prepares to host the Games.

Speaking ahead of the vote, Rodriguez said the motion was prompted by concerns about the expanding role of federal agencies — particularly amid increased immigration enforcement — and how that could shape policing and security planning tied to the Olympics.

“I know we all have increasing concerns about their involvement and their influence around what policing will look like, but frankly, even far in advance of the Games coming, what their influence is in our preparation for the LA 28 Games,” Rodriguez said. “It’s for that reason that I introduced this motion.”

Rodriguez said those concerns come as federal immigration enforcement actions in Los Angeles and other cities raised broader questions about due process and the role of federal authorities, particularly as the city prepares to host millions of visitors from around the globe.

She added that city officials had previously been assured that local law enforcement would lead security planning for the Games, and she stressed the need for “every assurance and contractual protection” to ensure that remains the case.

“Make no mistake, we should be prepared to pull every single lever that we have available to us to prevent their overreach when it comes to how they police here in the City of Los Angeles,” Rodriguez said.

In a statement to SCNG on Tuesday, a LA 28 spokesperson said the White House taskforce “plays an important role in facilitating coordination across federal departments and agencies, providing the federal support needed for the Games.”

“For LA28, this Task Force represents an important planning milestone and reinforces the federal government’s commitment to working with the City and LA28 to deliver a safe and successful Games,” the spokesperson added.

On Tuesday, LA28 Chairman Casey Wasserman said he was unaware of the vote and didn’t have time to take further questions. LA28 CEO Reynold Hoover didn’t respond to a reporter’s question as he walked out of the Los Angeles Coliseum at a photo opportunity promoting Olympic ticket sales. LA28 spokesperson Gabby Maarse said Hoover was not talking to media on Tuesday.

The federal taskforce was established in August by executive order and is chaired by President Donald Trump, with Vice President JD Vance serving as vice chair. According to the order, the task force is responsible for coordinating federal planning related to security, transportation, visa processing and emergency response for the Games, and is housed within the Department of Homeland Security. Several Cabinet secretaries and senior administration officials also sit on the task force.

Trump will serve as chairman of both the Olympic and World Cup task forces.

“We’ll do anything necessary to keep the Olympics safe, including using our National Guard or military,” Trump said during the Aug. 5 ceremony.

During the August ceremony, which was attended by LA 28 chairman Casey Wasserman and Gene Sykes, the USOPC chairman and an IOC member, Trump also referred to Mayor Karen Bass as “not very competent.”

Trump went further in speaking with reporters in October.

“If I thought LA was not going to be prepared properly, I would move it to another location,” Trump said. “(California governor) Gavin Newsom, he’s got to get his act together.”

The task force has drawn renewed scrutiny amid broader tensions between the Los Angeles officials and the federal government, including immigration enforcement actions last summer.

While similar federal task forces have previously been created for major international sporting events in the United States, including the 1996 Summer Olympics in Atlanta and the 2002 Winter Games in Salt Lake City, as well as for this summer’s World Cup, Trump’s rhetoric has heightened concerns among some state and local officials. The president has repeatedly suggested relocating the Games and World Cup away from Los Angeles and other Democratic-led cities and has raised the possibility of deploying military or National Guard troops to the city during the Games.

Trump cannot legally remove the Olympic Games from the city, but the administration’s control over federal funding and visas could be used as leverage against Olympic and World Cup organizers to extract concessions that could threaten the integrity and success of the global events, according to current and former IOC members, Olympic historians and experts and current and former Los Angeles city and county officials told the Southern California News Group, and according to contracts and other documents related to the Olympics and World Cup.

The council’s request also comes against a backdrop of heightened concern over federal influence on the Games following changes to LA28’s leadership. In November, several individuals with close ties to Trump — including former White House chief of staff Reince Priebus, former House Speaker Kevin McCarthy, billionaire donor Diane Hendricks and financier Ken Moelis — were added to the LA28 board, drawing criticism from some local officials and advocates.

 

“The White House Task Force on the 2028 Games plays an important role in facilitating coordination across federal departments and agencies, providing the federal support needed for the Games,” LA28 said in a statement to the SCNG in December. “For LA28, this Task Force represents an important planning milestone and reinforces the federal government’s commitment to working with the City and LA28 to deliver a safe and successful Games.”

Staff writer Scott M. Reid contributed to this report