California Senator Alex Padilla forcibly removed from Homeland Security event
California Senator Alex Padilla (Democrat) was forcibly removed today NZT from a news conference held in Los Angeles by Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem focused on recent protests in the area against immigration enforcement efforts.
Padilla appeared to disrupt the news conference, which took place at the Los Angeles FBI
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1News
a day ago
- 1News
Pentagon has contingency plans to invade Greenland if necessary
Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth appeared to acknowledge that the Pentagon has developed plans to take over Greenland and Panama by force if necessary, but refused to answer repeated questions at a hotly combative congressional hearing Friday about his use of Signal chats to discuss military operations. Democratic members of the House Armed Services Committee repeatedly got into heated exchanges with Hegseth, with some of the toughest lines of questioning coming from military veterans, as many demanded yes or no answers, and he tried to avoid direct responses about his actions as Pentagon chief. In one back-and-forth, Hegseth did provide an eyebrow-raising answer. Representative Adam Smith asked whether the Pentagon has developed plans to take Greenland or Panama by force if necessary. 'Our job at the Defense Department is to have plans for any contingency,' Hegseth said several times. It is not unusual for the Pentagon to draw up contingency plans for conflicts that have not arisen, but his handling of the questions prompted a Republican lawmaker to step in a few minutes later. ADVERTISEMENT 'It is not your testimony today that there are plans at the Pentagon for taking by force or invading Greenland, correct?' said Representative Mike Turner. As Hegseth started to repeat his answer about contingency plans, Turner added emphatically, 'I sure as hell hope that is not your testimony'. 'We look forward to working with Greenland to ensure that it is secured from any potential threats,' Hegseth responded. Time and again, lawmakers pressed Hegseth to answer questions he has avoided for months, including during the two previous days of hearings on Capitol Hill. And frustration boiled over. "You're an embarrassment to this country. You're unfit to lead," Representative Salud Carbajal snapped, the California Democrat's voice rising. 'You should just get the hell out.' GOP lawmakers on several occasions apologised to Hegseth for the Democrats' sharp remarks, saying he should not be subject to such 'flagrant disrespect'. Hegseth said he was 'happy to take the arrows' to make tough calls and do what's best. Questions emerge on Signal chats and if details Hegseth shared were classified ADVERTISEMENT Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth fields questions on the Pentagon budget from the House Armed Services Committee, at the Capitol in Washington (Source: Associated Press) Hegseth's use of two Signal chats to discuss details of the US plans to strike Houthi rebels in Yemen with other US leaders as well as members of his family, prompted dizzying exchanges with lawmakers. Hegseth was pressed multiple times over whether or not he shared classified information and if he should face accountability if he did. Hegseth argued that the classification markings of any information about those military operations could not be discussed with lawmakers. That became a quick trap, as Hegseth has asserted that nothing he posted — on strike times and munitions dropped in March — was classified. His questioner, Representative Seth Moulton, a Massachusetts Democrat and Marine veteran, jumped on the disparity. 'You can very well disclose whether or not it was classified,' Moulton said. 'What's not classified is that it was an incredible, successful mission,' Hegseth responded. ADVERTISEMENT A Pentagon watchdog report on his Signal use is expected soon. The morning's headlines in 90 seconds including Air India crash, ferry still out of action, and ignoring TikTok KiwiSaver hacks. (Source: 1News) Moulton asked Hegseth whether he would hold himself accountable if the inspector general finds that he placed classified information on Signal, a commercially available app. Hegseth would not directly say, only noting that he serves'at the pleasure of the president'. He was asked if he would apologise to the mother of a pilot flying the strike mission for jeopardising the operation and putting her son's life at risk. Hegseth said, 'I don't apologise for success'. Trump's speech at Fort Bragg raises Democratic concerns about politics in the military Gen Dan Caine, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, who appeared along Hegseth, was questioned about Trump's speech at Fort Bragg this week and whether the military was becoming politicised. ADVERTISEMENT The Defense Department has a doctrine that prohibits troops from participating in political activity while in uniform. Members of the 82nd Airborne Division were directed to stand behind Trump at Fort Bragg, and they booed and cheered during his incendiary remarks, including condemnation of his predecessor, Joe Biden. There was also a pop-up MAGA merchandise stand selling souvenirs to troops in uniform. Caine repeatedly said US service members must be apolitical, but that he was unaware of anything that happened at Fort Bragg. Hegseth is pressed about policies on women in uniform and transgender troops Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth fields questions on the Pentagon budget from the House Armed Services Committee, at the Capitol in Washington (Source: Associated Press) Hegseth got into a sharp debate about whether women and transgender service members should serve in the military or in combat jobs. He said he has worked to remove diversity programs and political correctness from the military. He said he has not politicised the military but simply wants the most capable troops. ADVERTISEMENT Representative Chrissy Houlahan demanded to know if Hegseth believes that both men and women can pull a trigger, cause death, operate a drone or launch a missile. 'It depends on the context,' Hegseth said, adding that 'women carry equipment differently, a 155 round differently, a rucksack differently'. Hegseth, who has previously said women 'straight up' should not serve in combat, asserted that women have joined the military in record numbers under the Trump administration. He said the military 'standards should be high and equal'. He was also asked about three female service members, now being forced out as part of the Pentagon's move to ban transgender troops. Hegseth agreed that their accomplishments, which Houlahan read out, were to be celebrated, until he learned they were transgender. Republican lawmakers jumped to his defence, criticising any Pentagon spending on gender transition surgery. Democrats ask about plans for action against Greenland and Panama ADVERTISEMENT President Donald Trump has said multiple times that he wants to take control of the strategic, mineral-rich island nation of Greenland, long a US ally. Those remarks have been met with flat rejections from Greenland's leaders. 'Greenland is not for sale,' Jacob Isbosethsen, Greenland's representative to the US said at a forum in Washington sponsored by the Arctic Institute. In an effort not to show the Pentagon's hand on its routine effort to have plans for everything, Hegseth danced around the direct question from Smith, leading to the confusion. 'Speaking on behalf of the American people, I don't think the American people voted for President Trump because they were hoping we would invade Greenland,' Smith said.
NZ Herald
a day ago
- NZ Herald
California Senator Alex Padilla forcibly removed from Homeland Security event
California Senator Alex Padilla (Democrat) was forcibly removed today NZT from a news conference held in Los Angeles by Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem focused on recent protests in the area against immigration enforcement efforts. Padilla appeared to disrupt the news conference, which took place at the Los Angeles FBI
1News
a day ago
- 1News
Dems senator forcefully removed from LA news conference, handcuffed
Democratic US Senator Alex Padilla on Friday was forcefully removed from Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem's news conference in Los Angeles and handcuffed by officers as he tried to speak up about immigration raids that have led to protests in California and around the country. Video shows a Secret Service agent on Noem's security detail grabbing Padilla, who represents California, by his jacket and shoving him from the room as he tried to interrupt Noem's news conference in Los Angeles. 'I'm Senator Alex Padilla. I have questions for the secretary,' he shouted in a halting voice. The stunning scene of a US senator being aggressively removed from a Cabinet secretary's news conference prompted immediate outrage from his Democratic colleagues in the chamber. It comes as the Trump administration has aggressively targeted protesters in California who are demonstrating against immigration raids, including by sending in National Guard troops and Marines. US Senator Alex Padilla is pushed out of the room as Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem holds a news conference regarding the recent protests in Los Angeles. (Source: Associated Press) ADVERTISEMENT In a statement, the Department of Homeland Security said Padilla 'chose disrespectful political theatre and interrupted a live news conference'. They claimed erroneously that Padilla did not identify himself and said Secret Service believed him to be an attacker. 'Padilla was told repeatedly to back away and did not comply with officers' repeated commands,' the statement said, adding that 'officers acted appropriately'. Emerging afterwards, Padilla said he and his colleagues have asked the department for more information on their 'increasingly extreme immigration enforcement actions' and received little to no information. US Senator Alex Padilla is pushed out of the room as Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem holds a news conference regarding the recent protests in Los Angeles. (Source: Associated Press) 'If this is how this administration responds to a senator with a question … I can only imagine what they are doing to farmworkers, to cooks, to day labourers throughout the Los Angeles community, and throughout California and throughout the country,' he said. Noem told Fox LA afterwards that she had a 'great' conversation with Padilla after the scuffle, but called his approach 'something that I don't think was appropriate at all'. The fracas in Los Angeles came just days after Democratic US Representative LaMonica McIver was indicted on federal charges alleging she assaulted and interfered with immigration officers outside a detention centre in New Jersey while Newark's mayor was being arrested after he tried to join a congressional oversight visit at the facility. Democrats have framed the charges as intimidation efforts by the Trump administration. ADVERTISEMENT Protesters gather to denounce ICE, US Immigration and Customs Enforcement, operations Tuesday, June 10, 2025, in Los Angeles. (Source: Associated Press) Padilla, the son of immigrants from Mexico, has been a harsh critic of President Donald Trump and his mass deportations agenda. In a post on the social platform X, he said of recent federal immigration raids in Los Angeles, 'Trump isn't targeting criminals in his mass deportation agenda, he is terrorising communities, breaking apart families and putting American citizens in harm's way.' At the Capitol, senators were sharing the video among one another as they gathered on the Senate floor for a series of votes. Senator Lisa Blunt Rochester, said she texted Padilla immediately 'to let him know we support him'. The morning's headlines in 90 seconds including Air India crash, ferry still out of action, and ignoring TikTok KiwiSaver hacks. (Source: 1News) She said she also showed it to Senate Majority Leader John Thune. 'I think he was as shocked as we all were,' Blunt Rochester said. 'So, hopefully we will come together as one voice.' Connecticut Senator Richard Blumenthal, a Democrat, called the video 'utterly revolting' and said there should be consequences.
