Los Angeles dismisses Trump warning over ‘unlawful’ lockdown

LOS ANGELES: The mayor of Los Angeles Friday dismissed a Trump administration warning that the city´s continued lockdown due to coronavirus could be illegal, saying he would not be “pushed by politics.”

Eric Garcetti, the Democratic leader of the United States´ second-largest city, was sent a letter earlier Friday by federal authorities that said long-term restrictions “may be both arbitrary and unlawful.”

“We are not guided by politics in this — we are guided by science, we are guided by collaboration,” said Garcetti when asked about the missive at a press conference.

“There´s no games, there´s nothing else going on. And that´s the way we´re going to continue to safely open,” he added.

Los Angeles has begun to reopen facilities from beaches and golf courses to restaurants and retail businesses offering curbside pick-up services, but lags behind other parts of California.

Densely-populated Los Angeles county has suffered more than 43,000 confirmed cases, with 2,049 deaths — well over half of the state´s fatalities.

Widely reported comments from a county health official last week that restrictions could last another three months drew the Trump administration´s ire.

“We remain concerned about what may be an arbitrary and heavy-handed approach to continuing stay-at-home requirements,” the Department of Justice letter said.

“The Constitution and federal statutory law prohibit arbitrary, unreasonable actions,” it added.

President Donald Trump, with an eye on his re-election prospects in November, has pressed for a further reopening of the United States as job losses mount from coronavirus shutdowns.