Calls for an investigation into the funding behind the Los Angeles riots reached the U.S. Senate on Wednesday, as Josh Hawley (R-MO) became the first Republican to publicly demand such an inquiry.
For several days, reports from L.A. have depicted rioters equipped with costly face shields, earplugs, and various protective gear, anticipating confrontations with law enforcement and immigration officials, all triggered by a weekend immigration operation conducted by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
Even mainstream media personalities in the City of Angels have criticized the distribution of this equipment, which conceals the identities of protestors while shielding them from less-lethal crowd control measures employed by the National Guard and Marines.
This situation drew the attention of Hawley, who on Wednesday issued a letter declaring his intention to spearhead an investigation into the violence as the head of the Judiciary Subcommittee on Crime & Terrorism.
“Who is financing the LA riots? This violence is not spontaneous,” he stated on social media.
In the letter, Hawley addresses the executive director of the Coalition for Humane Immigrant Rights, a special interest organization that has received funding from the Biden administration and has been associated with some of the protests. Detractors have alleged that its members were involved in several demonstrations that escalated into violence.
“I am writing in my role as Chair of the Senate Subcommittee on Crime and Counterterrorism concerning your organization’s purported involvement in funding and materially supporting the organized protests and riots that have overtaken Los Angeles in recent weeks,” Hawley writes to Angélica Salas.
“While peaceful protest is a fundamental aspect of American democracy, these demonstrations have devolved into unlawful mob activities. They have hindered federal law enforcement, jeopardized public safety, and disrupted the rule of law. This lawlessness is intolerable. It must cease,” the letter asserts.
Hawley’s subcommittee, which possesses subpoena authority, is insisting that Salas furnish all documented communications regarding protest organization in the days preceding the riots, along with any financial records pertaining to the acquisition of equipment.
Records of grant applications, travel accommodations, donor lists, and strategic media documents are also being requested.
“Noncompliance will lead to further actions by this Subcommittee, including possible referral for criminal investigation,” Hawley concludes.
Biden-era grants from the U.S. Department of Homeland Security indicate that the organization received at least $34 million in taxpayer funding for pro-immigrant initiatives in L.A., some of which have been utilized to protest ICE’s apprehension of at least 150 undocumented immigrants over the weekend.
A “rapid response network” operated by CHIRLA is suspected to be involved in some of the activities that subsequently turned violent.
On Tuesday, FBI Deputy Director Dan Bongino disclosed the first name of one of the violent rioters accused of hurling cinderblocks at immigration officers during their operation. Bongino urged the Compton, CA resident to surrender before he is found and apprehended.
“Surrender yourself. It’s merely a matter of time,” he posted online. “I assure you.”
Over 1,000 rioters have taken to the streets since Saturday, engaging in violent confrontations with law enforcement and Immigration and Customs Enforcement officials, as captured on video. On Tuesday morning, one individual was discovered deceased at the riot site where a T-Mobile store was vandalized and looted.
