Trump is targeting the immigrants who will be called on to rebuild LA

On the outskirts of Altadena, where one of the most destructive firestorms in Los Angeles history had just receded, a group of volunteers worked last week to gather fallen tree branches and leaves — removing fuel for potential future fires, bagging them up and taking them away.

On the outskirts of Altadena, where one of the most destructive firestorms in Los Angeles history had just receded, a group of volunteers worked last week to gather fallen tree branches and leaves — removing fuel for potential future fires, bagging them up and taking them away. One of those people, Cesar, a Mexican immigrant in his early 60s, works as a day laborer in construction, picking up jobs helping to build and remodel homes around LA. Though Cesar, who asked only to be identified by his first name, told CNN he has worked in California for more than 30 years, he is undocumented. But now, the prospect of mass deportations under President Donald Trump’s second term could lead to the loss of construction workers like Cesar — and stands to seriously hinder efforts to rebuild the more than 12,000 structures estimated to be destroyed by the fires. Homebuilders across LA told CNN they anticipate that rebuilding the city after the destruction caused by the Palisades and Eaton fires will be a slow and challenging process. Key to that endeavor are the mostly undocumented day laborers who often do the physically taxing and dangerous work of clearing the rubble after a natural disaster recedes.