President Joe Biden caused chaos in Los Angeles on Saturday when his motorcade delayed the start of a college basketball game and protesters swarmed the streets where he was staying.
Upon his arrival in the city of Angeles, Biden headed straight to George Lucas’ home in Bel Air, where entertainment industry leaders in the city were courting the Grammys.
But his motorcade, which consists of about 20 vehicles and closes the streets to all traffic so the president can be moved quickly, caused huge delays and was greeted by students protesting the war in the Middle East.
Biden had no public events on his schedule for his trip to Los Angeles. The White House said he took part in a “campaign event” on Saturday evening.
But Biden’s son Hunter lives in Malibu and Sunday is his 54th birthday. On Saturday, the late Beau Biden’s birthday, Joe and Jill Biden visited his grave in Wilmington, Del., before heading to the West Coast.
President Biden leaves Marine One to join his motorcade in Santa Monica
The men’s basketball game between UCLA and the University of Oregon at Pauley Pavilion was delayed by about 25 minutes after motorcade traffic caused the visiting Oregon team to arrive late, according to ESPN.
The Oregon team stayed at the same West Beverly Hills hotel where President Biden was staying. The hotel is located just a few blocks from the UCLA campus and has heavy security due to the presidential visit.
The game finally started and UCLA won 71-63.
In addition, the hotel was driven by demonstrators on Saturday evening. Both President Joe Biden and first lady Jill Biden stayed there. While Biden was at George Lucas’s home, Jill Biden spoke at a gala at Paramount Studios in Hollywood in support of a nonprofit that is asking retailers to dedicate 15% of their shelf space to Black-owned brands.
Outside the Bidens’ hotel, cars honked and shouts were heard as people voiced their objections to Israel’s attack on Gaza.
And about 75 protesters stood outside the hotel.
The road leading to the hotel was blocked by police. LAPD officers and the Secret Service were on the scene, some with riot gear and rubber bullets.
Several student organizations took part in the protests.
The University of Oregon men’s basketball team was staying at the same hotel as President Joe Biden and motorcade traffic delayed the start time by 30 minutes
Biden was chased by protesters during his campaign stops, including some during his last visit to Los Angeles in December (above)
Biden has been plagued by protesters at his events in recent months, as calls for a ceasefire in the Middle East grow louder. When he was last in Los Angeles in December, he was also chased by protesters.
Demonstrators clashed with police at recent campaign events.
Students for Justice in Palestine at UCLA and UC Divest at UCLA shared a live video on Instagram Saturday afternoon titled “GENOCIDE JOE,” which shows cars driving through Westwood as the passengers inside wave Palestinian flags, according to the Daily Brown.
At Biden’s campaign event in Michigan on Thursday, a standoff between protesters and police lasted about 30 minutes. Dozens of protesters stood inches from local law enforcement officers. Riot police teams with helmets and sticks were deployed as reinforcements.
Protesters have called the president “Genocide Joe” and shouted slogans such as Biden, Biden, you are a liar, we demand a ceasefire, and “Biden, Biden, you can’t hide, we accuse you of genocide.” ‘
At a campaign rally in Virginia last month, more than a dozen protesters were led outside after repeatedly interrupting the president.
US forces have been targeted in the Middle East in recent weeks.
The US has retaliated against the attacks, especially after three American soldiers were killed in a drone strike in Jordan last weekend.
President Joe Biden and First Lady Jill Biden are greeted by (from left) Senator Alex Padilla, his son Diego Cruz Padilla and Representative Maxine Waters after arriving in Los Angeles
President Biden meets with entertainment leaders at the Bel Air home of George Lucas and Mellody Hobson (see above in 2016)
The United States and Britain unleashed attacks on 36 Houthi targets in Yemen, a day after the US military struck Tehran-backed groups in Iraq and Syria in retaliation for a deadly attack.
“We plan to launch additional strikes and take additional action to continue to send a clear message that the United States will respond if our military forces are attacked, if our people are killed,” National Representative Jake Sullivan told reporters. White House security adviser, on NBC’s Meet. the press on Sunday.
The attacks are the latest blow in a conflict that has spread to the Middle East since October 7, when the Iran-backed Palestinian militant group Hamas stormed Israel from the Gaza Strip, sparking war.
The US has carried out more than a dozen attacks on Houthi targets in recent weeks.
Major shipping companies have largely abandoned shipping lanes in the Red Sea for longer routes around Africa. This has increased costs, fueling concerns about global inflation, while depriving Egypt of crucial foreign revenue from use of the Suez Canal.
The US attacks in Iraq were the deadliest in years.
Meanwhile, Biden heads to Las Vegas for political events on Sunday afternoon. Biden’s stop comes as Nevada completes early voting for the presidential primaries. Election day for the primaries is Tuesday, February 6.
He will speak to voters in the city’s Historic Westside section about what’s at stake in the election, his campaign said.