A lot has happened. We’re still dealing with the border crisis, the Democratic debates are about to begin, and Iran is rattling the war sabers. The city of Los Angeles should be thankful there are so many distractions. The Democrat-run urban center has become a total disgrace. And that’s very common among the Left coast.

Tucker Carlson had historian Victor Davis Hanson on last week, where the latter said that California is on the verge of becoming the nation’s first Third World state. From trash being illegally dumped to city hall becoming a rat-infested den in the city of LA, it all points to the decay suffered when Democrats run things. Even police stations in the city are loaded with rats; one was fined $5,000 over its conditions that left one officer stricken with typhoid fever. It’s to the point where there is a possibility that bubonic plague—yes, the black death—may be present in the city. This isn’t new. Typhus outbreaks were being reported in February (via NBC Los Angeles):

The full scope of the flea and rodent problem inside City Hall is still unclear amid a downtown outbreak of flea-borne typhus… Staff from the General Services Department, the Personnel Department and others gave updates to the council on actions taken … when the council approved a motion seeking options on combating the problem of rodents and fleas in the building, which may include removing all of the carpets. Department representatives told the council a vendor is still in the process of inspecting every floor of City Hall and City Hall East as it prepares a full report to identify where the flea and rodent problems are. Staff also said cleanup efforts around the exterior of the building have increased and work is being done to identify rodent entry points and have them sealed. […] Typhus is not transmitted person-to-person, and flea-borne typhus can spread to people from infected fleas and their feces. Typhus infection can be prevented through flea control measures on pets, using insect repellent to avoid flea bites, and clearing areas that can attract wild or stray animals like cats, rats and opossums, according to the Department of Public Health. Symptoms of typhus include high fever, chills, headache, muscle aches and rash and can be treated with antibiotics. Health officials in October announced there was a typhus outbreak in Los Angeles County, including in the downtown area of Skid Row, where an estimated 2,000 homeless people sleep.

And it goes without saying; these burgeoning homeless camps are not oases of hygiene. Dr. Drew Pinsky said this month that there has been a total and complete breakdown of services in the city that has placed the population at risk of infection and other health-related issues. The mayor’s office has sought to shift blame away from the homeless, citing the illegal dumping of trash, which only adds to the narrative that deep blue California and LA are just Democratic cesspools. I mean, how does this sound any better?

‘It’s not the homeless, it’s just all the trash that’s everywhere.’ You cannot make this up (via CBS News):

The city of Los Angeles is grappling with deteriorating sanitation problems, as an increase in homeless camps and illegally dumped trash have created conditions for rats and other vermin to infest L.A. City Hall. … the Los Angeles Times reported an assessment from a private pest control company placed the blame for the rodents in City Hall squarely on the city's homeless population living in the nearby Civic Center. […] The Los Angeles Times obtained the assessment last month through a public records request. Los Angeles' City Hall building has been plagued by a rodent problem for most of the year. The Los Angeles Times reports there were pest complaints — rats, mice or fleas — made in 20 different locations within City Hall for a five-month period through February. According to the newspaper, Elena Stern, spokeswoman for the city's Bureau of Sanitation, said cleanups of homeless camps currently take place every weekend in the Civic Center and include the disposal of hazardous materials, the removal and storage of items owned by homeless people, and the power washing of sidewalks. The rodent and homeless problems affecting City Hall and the Civic Center are part of a larger problem of trash and sanitation in the streets of the city, which has been profiled by an LA Times photographer. Last month, multiple LAPD police officers contracted typhoid fever, and others contracted hepatitis A and staph infections, while working at a police station in an area filled with hundreds of homeless encampments.

Oh, yeah, and bubonic plague could be roaming the streets (via Daily Wire):

“We have a complete breakdown of the basic needs of civilization in Los Angeles right now,” Pinsky told Fox New host Laura Ingraham. “We have the three prongs of airborne disease, tuberculosis is exploding, rodent-borne. We are one of the only cities in the country that doesn’t have a rodent control program, and sanitation has broken down.” Pinsky said bubonic plague — also known as the “Black Death,” a pandemic that killed off millions in the 14th century — is “likely” already present in Los Angeles. The plague is spread by infected fleas and exposure to bodily fluids from a dead plague-infected animal, with the bacteria entering through the skin and traveling to lymph nodes. […] “This is unbelievable. I can’t believe I live in a city where this is not Third World. This is medieval,” Pinsky said, according to Fox News. “Third World countries are insulted if they are accused of being like this. No city on Earth tolerates this. The entire population is at risk.”

Fox News’ Tucker Carlson noted how California was once a gem, an example of the American dream in action and how it has now become hollowed out with decay thanks to liberal policies. It’s a state that’s loaded with illegal aliens, has a population where 40 percent live in poverty, and apparently has its cities falling into a terrible state of disrepair. California is blue state trash. Period. So, could, or rather should, we classify the Golden State as a third-world state?

BONUS: Don't forget to check out the latest episode of Triggered.