Mayor Karen Bass speaks with Trump on Palisades Fire after calling rebuild plan a ‘political stunt’

Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass and President Donald Trump have finally broken their silence.

Months after a tense public clash over rebuilding the Pacific Palisades following the devastating 2025 wildfires, the progressive mayor and the Republican president spoke directly by phone, a conversation Bass revealed in an interview Friday with KNX Los Angeles City Hall reporter Craig Fiegener that was obtained by The Post.

Bass said she called the White House early in the week and Trump returned her call on Thursday.

The call marks the first known conversation between the two since the early days of the wildfire crisis, when the pair clashed publicly over how quickly Los Angeles should rebuild.

Back in January 2025, with Southern California still reeling from the massive Palisades Fire, Trump traveled to the region and pushed aggressively for a rapid rebuilding timeline. The exchange between Trump and Bass during a wildfire briefing quickly turned tense, underscoring the political fault lines surrounding the recovery.

The friction resurfaced about a year later when Trump issued an executive order aimed at accelerating wildfire rebuilding in Los Angeles.

Bass blasted the move at the time, dismissing it as a “political stunt” and insisting the city already had the rebuilding process under control.

But even as the politics heated up, Bass acknowledged in the interview that the federal government played a major role in jump-starting the recovery. She credited what she described as a historic deployment of U.S. Army Corps of Engineers crews with clearing debris in the Palisades at record speed.

“That historic deployment is why we were able to clear the debris in record time,” Bass said.

The rapid cleanup helped push Los Angeles into the rebuilding phase months earlier than many other disaster zones.

Bass said the city has now issued more than 2,000 rebuilding permits, with roughly 500 homes already under construction. Still, thousands of property owners remain stuck on the sidelines.

Bass said uncertainty around insurance payouts, mortgage forbearance and rebuilding costs has left many families hesitant to move forward.

“They don’t want to apply for permits or start rebuilding if they don’t know whether they are going to be insured in the future,” she said.

During her call with Trump, Bass said she pressed the president to step in where the federal government holds real leverage — with banks and insurance companies.

She asked Trump to convene lenders and insurers and push them to extend mortgage forbearance and speed up insurance payouts so homeowners can rebuild.

Bass also raised another looming issue: the staggering price tag of rebuilding.

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Los Angeles has already submitted requests to FEMA seeking reimbursement for major recovery expenses, including debris removal and infrastructure work. One of the most expensive projects still looming is the plan to underground utilities in the Palisades — a massive undertaking that could cost more than $1 billion.

“The city is not flush with funds,” Bass said. “We need to be reimbursed.”

Bass said Trump appeared receptive during the call and gave no indication that the federal government would walk away from previously announced disaster funding commitments.

Despite the political friction that has defined much of their relationship, Bass said she is willing to keep the lines open, even if that means a trip to Washington. “My job as mayor is to fight for Los Angeles,” she said. “I will talk to whoever it takes to get families back home.”