Update Aug. 5: President Donald Trump officially signed an executive order establishing the White House Task Force on the 2028 Summer Olympics.
President Trump will chair the task force and Vice President JD Vance will serve as the vice chair. An unnamed executive director will manage daily operations. The task force will lead lead federal coordination for the Olympic events, comprised of members of Trump’s cabinet and key government agencies.
The task force will coordinate federal, state and local partners to manage security, transportation, and entry/exit processes, working tangentially with LA28. It will also manage the visa processing and credentialing for foreign athletes, coaches, officials and media.
Original story: Donald Trump on Tuesday will sign an executive order to establish a federal Olympics task force ahead of the Los Angeles 2028 Summer Games, made up of members of the Trump administration and led by the president himself, TheWrap has confirmed.
This new effort is said to be an intergovernmental task force that will include several departments, including law enforcement, coordinating federal, state and local government agencies.
LA28 Chairperson and President Casey Wasserman expressed his “deep appreciation” for the president in a statement to TheWrap ahead of what he called “the largest and most ambitious” American Olympics to date.
“On behalf of LA28, I want to express our deep appreciation to President Trump and his Administration for their leadership and unwavering support as we prepare to deliver the largest and most ambitious Olympic and Paralympic Games ever hosted in the United States,” Wasserman said. “Since we secured this historic opportunity in 2017, President Trump has consistently recognized the magnitude of our responsibility in welcoming the world to Los Angeles.”
“The creation of this task force marks an important step forward in our planning efforts and reflects our shared commitment to delivering not just the biggest, but the greatest Games the world has ever seen in the summer of 2028,” the statement continued.
The proposed Olympics task force will be announced Tuesday with a selection of athletes and members of the U.S. Olympic and Paralympic Committee to reveal the news. Casey Wasserman, president and chairman of LA 2028, met with Trump at Mar-a-Lago to discuss his commitment to bringing the games to L.A. following the president’s inauguration in January.
“We look forward to partnering with [Trump] and his administration to deliver a safe and successful Games our nation can be proud of,” Wasserman said of their meeting.
“These are America’s Olympics,” Trump told Wasserman, according to Axios. “These are more important than ever to L.A. and I’m going to be supportive in every way possible to make them the greatest Games.”
After quarreling with state and local leadership over ICE raids in June, Trump’s investment in the L.A. games could drive a greater wedge in his relationship with Gov. Gavin Newsom and L.A. Mayor Karen Bass. A task force of this manner is not completely unusual, but the federal government is typically involved in securing bids for the city not once the city has been chosen.
Trump’s crackdown on tariffs, immigration and travel bans may affect how the L.A. games fare on the world stage. The president ordered a travel ban on 12 countries this summer but made exemptions for Olympians, their coaches and relatives. Additionally, the president banned transgender athletes from women’s sports and successfully petitioned the International Olympic Committee (IOC) to change its rules for LA28 to comply with his demands.
LA28’s board of directors includes leaders from varying industries, including Olympian Allyson Felix, actress Jessica Alba, former Lakers owner Jeannie Buss and former CEO of DreamWorks Jeffrey Katzenberg.
