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Nithya Raman’s attack on LA police chief is idiotic — and dangerous

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Cite

Donald, H. M. (2026, October 7). Nithya Raman’s attack on LA police chief is idiotic — and dangerous. New York Post. https://nypost.com/2026/10/07/opinion/nithya-ramans-attack-on-la-police-chief-is-idiotic-and-dangerous/

Dated when The Aporia collected the article, usually within hours of publication. Check the original for its exact date and byline.

New York Post · collected 2026-10-07 · by Heather Mac Donald

Quick Summary

A columnist criticizes Los Angeles City Council candidate and DSA member Nithya Raman for her campaign strategy targeting LAPD Chief Jim McDonnell and Mayor Karen Bass as "fascist liars." The author argues that Raman's proposal to appoint a police chief who opposes cooperation with ICE, coupled with her previous advocacy of defunding the police and supporting homeless encampments, poses significant dangers to public safety and property rights. The article further asserts that Raman’s use of inflammatory language in her campaign video is unprofessional and reflects poorly on her candidacy.
Written by AI on 2026-10-07, from this article's own text only (the story summary below draws on all the coverage).

AI analysis

Story summary

Nithya Raman, a Democratic Socialist and Los Angeles city councilmember running for mayor, faced backlash after posting a now-deleted social media video where she called LAPD Chief Jim McDonnell "a fascist liar" with a red X through his face. The incident occurred during an interview at the Los Angeles Trade-Technical College on Sunday, April 30th.

The Los Angeles Police Protective League, representing rank-and-file LAPD officers, criticized Raman's actions as dangerous and potentially endangering police protection details assigned to city officials like Mayor Karen Bass and Chief McDonnell.

Mayor Karen Bass accused Raman of being "incredibly irresponsible" and not ready for prime time. Chief Jim McDonnell defended his department against allegations that the LAPD helps ICE enforce immigration laws, stating instead they protect federal agents from threats while not participating in immigration enforcement themselves. He also highlighted how 52 officers were injured during violent protests over ICE raids in June 2025.

Critics argue Raman's comments undermine public trust and safety by targeting police leadership as "fascist liars."

Written for “Nithya Raman Controversy LAPD” on 2026-10-31, grounded in this article and the 6 other(s) covering the same event.

Story

📰 Nithya Raman Controversy LAPD
Politics · 7 article(s) covering the same event. See how they differ ↓

Compared with similar articles

This article reads leans strongly right and hedges 14% of its claims. Each row says how that neighbour differs.
New York Post
Hedges 0 of 36 claims Outlet record 66/100
New York Post
⚖️ Leans strongly right Hedges 1 of 24 claims Outlet record 66/100
New York Post
Hedges 2 of 24 claims Outlet record 66/100
“The articles discuss different aspects of the election campaign between Mayor Karen Bass and Nithya Raman but do not describe the same specific incident or rally.”
New York Post
⚖️ Leans left further left than this Hedges 0 of 13 claims Outlet record 66/100
New York Post
Hedges 0 of 20 claims Outlet record 66/100
“The articles describe different incidents involving different council members and police actions.”
Daily Mail
⚖️ Leans left further left than this Hedges 2 of 37 claims Outlet record 68/100
“While both articles refer to Nithya Raman's statement about LAPD Chief Jim McDonnell being a 'fascist liar', Article A focuses on the rally and immediate declaration, while Article B is a commentary criticizing her stance.”
New York Post
Hedges 4 of 58 claims Outlet record 66/100
“The articles discuss different aspects of Nithya Raman's stance on LAPD Chief Jim McDonnell but do not describe the same specific incident.”
New York Post
⚖️ Leans strongly left further left than this Hedges 4 of 41 claims Outlet record 66/100
“Article A focuses on a specific incident where leaked photos show Nithya Raman drinking margaritas during ICE protests in LA, while Article B is a critique of Raman's campaign video and stance towards the LAPD chief.”
New York Post
⚖️ Leans strongly right Hedges 2 of 25 claims Outlet record 66/100
“The articles discuss Nithya Raman's stance on LAPD Chief Jim McDonnell but describe different aspects and opinions about her campaign rather than a single incident.”
New York Post
⚖️ Leans right further left than this Hedges 0 of 16 claims Outlet record 66/100
“Article A describes Raman's campaign video and its content, while Article B reports on Mayor Karen Bass's reaction to the comments made in that video.”
How this article was measured signals, leaning charts, publisher record, byline, topics and claims

Signals How these are calculated →

Claims extracted
22
sentences that state something as happening or true
Uncertain
14%
3 of 22 hedged ("reportedly", "may", "according to")
Leaning
Leans strongly right
of the writing, not the subject · beta estimate
Publisher signals
66/100
New York Post's corrections and hedging, across everything collected from it. Not a measure of accuracy.
Outlets on this story
7
Politics
Same framing elsewhere
1
articles that frame the event the way this one does
Analyzed 2026-10-07 · how these are computed

How this is being covered How these are calculated →

Article leaning vs. publisher reliability
Source leaning vs. consistency

Publisher

New York Post · 15525 article(s) · 35 correction(s) detected
Running correction rate · 35 correction(s)

Who wrote this

Heather Mac Donald
2 article(s) here · 1 carrying a prediction
🔮 If females take full responsibility for their own behavior, the lucrative, bureaucracy-bloated grift will come crashing down.
🔮 Angelenos are on notice: If they elect Democratic Socialists of America (DSA) City Councilwoman Nithya Raman as mayor, they will put a radical supporter of the homeless-industrial complex, an opponent of public order and an enemy of private property rights into City Hall.
Also by Heather Mac Donald
Nothing else under this byline is closely related to this article, so these are simply their most recent.

Topics

Angelenos City Hall DSA Democratic Socialists of America LAPD

Subjects

Raman PERSON · 10× McDonnell PERSON · 5× LAPD ORG · 4× Angelenos NORP · 3× Bass PERSON · 2× Jim McDonnell PERSON · 2× Karen Bass PERSON · 2× DSA ORG · 1× Democratic Socialists of America ORG · 1× Nithya Raman PERSON · 1×

Narrative

Bass appointed McDonnell to run the LAPD and McDonnell has declared that while the LAPD will not cooperate in enforcing immigration law, it will protect federal immigration agents when they seek to arrest a violent felon who is in the country illegally, and when there are threats to those agents’ safety.
framing: assertive · carried by 1 article(s) · first seen 2026-10-07
🔮 Angelenos are on notice: If they elect Democratic Socialists of America (DSA) City Councilwoman Nithya Raman as mayor, they will put a radical supporter of the homeless-industrial complex, an opponent of public order and an enemy of private property rights into City Hall.
2026-10-07 · New York Post
Nithya Raman’s attack on LA police chief is idiotic — and dangerous · assertive framing

Claims (22 extracted, 3 hedged)

Angelenos are on notice: If they elect Democratic Socialists of America (DSA) City Councilwoman Nithya Raman as mayor, they will put a radical supporter of the homeless-industrial complex, an opponent of public order and an enemy of private property rights into City Hall. asserted
they → elect → Hall
They will also have chosen a blithering idiot. asserted
They → choose → idiot
Raman recently posted a campaign video with the theme: “Only you can stop fascist liars.” asserted
you → post → liars
The “fascist liars” in question appear to be Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD) Chief Jim McDonnell and incumbent Mayor Karen Bass. asserted
liars → appear → question
The video shows photos of McDonnell several times, with a red X plastering his face. asserted
X → show → face
Bass appointed McDonnell to run the LAPD and McDonnell has declared that while the LAPD will not cooperate in enforcing immigration law, it will protect federal immigration agents when they seek to arrest a violent felon who is in the country illegally, and when there are threats to those agents’ safety. asserted
who → appoint → safety
Raman, by contrast, will select a police chief who “can really respond to the needs that immigrant Angelenos have and that every resident of Los Angeles has,” she says in the recent campaign ad. asserted
she → select → ad
In Raman’s mind, apparently, immigrant and native Angelenos need more sex traffickers, drug dealers and gun-toting gangbangers in their midst. asserted
Angelenos → need → midst
Thus, according to Raman, the LAPD should never provide any backup support when ICE seeks to arrest such illegal alien criminals. uncertain
ICE → accord → criminals
It is bad enough that Raman wants to turn LA into the purest of sanctuary cities, where illegal felons need fear nothing from the authorities and where law-abiding citizens are on their own to protect themselves against immigrant thugs. asserted
citizens → want → thugs
To add insult to injury, in a Raman administration, those law-abiding citizens would be on the hook to pay even more than they already do of the legal defense bills for those criminals if, somehow, despite Raman’s best efforts, a criminal alien actually faces a deportation hearing. asserted
alien → add → hearing
It is bad enough that the anti-cop animus behind her 2020 calls to “defund the police” continues to surface in her pronouncements and proposals. asserted
animus → defund → pronouncements
It is bad enough that she opposes citywide bans on vagrant encampments, even around schools and day-care centers, and wants to pour billions more hard-earned taxpayer dollars into the charade of “homeless outreach.” asserted
she → oppose → outreach
It is bad enough that the now-stricken campaign ad could be viewed as suggesting that McDonnell be not just crossed out, but snuffed out. uncertain
McDonnell → stricken → ?
Download The California Post App, follow us on social, and subscribe to our newsletters (When Sarah Palin released a graphic in 2010 of an electoral map with Democratic congressional districts under what appeared to be a rifle-scope crosshair, Democrats went nuts.) asserted
Democrats → download → districts
The promiscuous use of “fascist” is characteristic of ignorant, self-involved college students. asserted
use → involve → students
No sane adult with a minimal grip on reality would label Karen Bass or Jim McDonnell “fascists.” asserted
adult → label → Bass
The former is a left-leaning liberal, the latter an imminently moderate centrist with not the slightest indication of wanting to run a police state. asserted
latter → lean → state
Raman is a child who surrounds herself with other like-minded children, such as her campaign aide and interlocutor in the “stop fascist liars” ad. asserted
who → surround → ad
She and her advisors are caught up in their fantasies of revolution, all the while depending on the infrastructure of law-and-order and the prosperity of free-market capitalism to stage their wannabe revolts against bourgeois norms. asserted
while → catch → norms
If Raman was so out of touch with reality as to think that this campaign ad might have played well outside of the fringe left, she cannot possibly be relied on to do anything other than to run LA off a public safety and fiscal cliff. uncertain
she → think → cliff
Heather Mac Donald is the Thomas W. Smith fellow at the Manhattan Institute and the author of When Race Trumps Merit. asserted
Race → trump → Merit
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