The White House Announces Taskforce For 2028 Los Angeles Olympics
The White House will be creating a task force led by president Donald Trump to oversee the 2028 Olympics taking place in Los Angeles, California. The president signed an executive order to establish the task force to include JD Vance, cabinet members, and other government officials.
According to the White House, Trump will be the chair of the task force with Vance as the vice-chair. An executive director will also oversee “daily operations.”
“The LA Olympics is shaping up to be a wonderful moment for America. It’s going to be incredible,” the president stated.
Los Angeles is heavily preparing for the Summer Games in three years, as the event is expected to bring in millions of people over the course of 16 days.
The United States has hosted the Olympics eight times throughout the entire Games’ history; four times for the Summer Games and four times for the Winter Games. The last time the nation hosted the Games, however, was in 2002 for the Winter Games in Salt Lake City, Utah, and the last time the US hosted the Summer Games was in 1996 in Atlanta, Georgia.
Los Angeles has been planning for the 2028 Games for years. The Los Angeles Times reported that the city has been involved in “high stakes” negotiations with the committee managing the event, LA28, over the use of city staff and police officers.
A proposed ballot measure is also setting out to require some Olympic venues to receive approval from voters to be used.
LA is also working hard to combat the devastating wildfires that massively impacted the area in the beginning of the year. Recovery efforts are still ongoing and using a lot of finances for the city, creating new challenges when it comes to planning the Games.
Additionally, LA has also been clashing with Trump and his administration over the intense immigration raids throughout the city, as well as the deployment of US troops in the city, despite multiple objections from city and state leaders.
LA mayor Karen Bass has said that despite these troubles, the city will be ready to host the Olympics by the time 2028 rolls around, and former International Olympic Committee president, Thomas Bach, said that LA is a “strong city” with support from the US.
“With regard to LA, we have the full support of the president of the United States and the governor of California and the mayor of Los Angeles for the success of these Olympic Games,” Bach told the Associated Press earlier this summer.
The White House task force will be responsible for streamlining “visa processing and credentialing” for participants and media, according to a statement. The order will also direct various government departments like the FBI and the Secret Service to “use every tool at their disposal” for a safe Olympics.
Eric Mastrota is a Contributing Editor at The National Digest based in New York. A graduate of SUNY New Paltz, he reports on world news, culture, and lifestyle. You can reach him at eric.mastrota@thenationaldigest.com.