President Donald Trump will be met with protesters when he makes his first visit as president to the Los Angeles area Tuesday, and police said they are prepared to respond to any troubles.
“We are working with all of our local and federal partners to ensure that all security safeguards are in place for the president’s visit, both along his route of travel and at the locations where events will take place,” Los Angeles Police Department Detective Meghan Aguilar said. “We are not aware of any threats against the president’s safety.”
Aguilar said the president’s travel route, details of which are never fully disclosed for security reasons, will be set by the U.S. Secret Service. Local police generally issue an advisory to the public to alert motorists about areas to avoid during presidential visits, but those details have not yet been determined.
Trump is scheduled to fly into Marine Corps Air Station Miramar in San Diego County at 11:30 a.m. Tuesday, and he is expected to speak to troops at the base at 2 p.m. Trump is also expected to pay a visit to Otay Mesa to view the 30-foot-tall border wall prototypes that have been erected there.
He is then scheduled to fly to Los Angeles, arriving at Los Angeles International Airport at 3:30 p.m., according to the White House. He will likely be flown via military helicopter to the West Los Angeles area.
Trump is scheduled to attend a Republican National Committee fundraiser in the Beverly Hills or Bel Air area. The location has not been disclosed. According to an invitation obtained by the Los Angeles Times, tickets for the event range from $35,000 just for the dinner up to $250,000 for the chance to meet Trump, attend a roundtable discussion and have a photo taken with him.
The fundraiser is being hosted by RNC Chairwoman Ronna McDaniel, national finance chairman Todd Ricketts and deputy national finance chairman Elliott Broidy, The Times reported.
A “Trump Out of L.A.” protest is being organized by the advocacy group Union del Barrio’s Los Angeles chapter.
“We call on all organizations who stand against fascism, imperialism, capitalism, racism and all forms of hatred to join this action,” according to an event posting on Facebook. The posting notes that the location of the protest and Trump’s fundraiser has not yet been released.
The visit will be Trump’s first as president to California, a state with which his administration has clashed on issues of border security and immigration.
Senate President Pro Tem Kevin de Leon, D-Los Angeles, planned to hold a Monday afternoon rally in Beverly Hills in advance of Trump’s visit to “speak out against the president’s xenophobic immigration policies and attacks on California’s people and their values.”
Gov. Jerry Brown sent a letter to Trump Monday, saying, “California thrives because we welcome immigrants and innovators from across the globe.”
“You see, in California we are focusing on bridges, not walls,” Brown wrote. “And that’s more than just a figure of speech.”
Brown invited Trump to visit the Central Valley and see bridges and viaducts being built for a proposed north-south high-speed rail line.
Trump’s departure time from the Los Angeles area has not been announced. Trump is scheduled to fly to Missouri Wednesday morning, so he will likely spend Tuesday night in the Southland.
–City News Service