Democratic US Senator Alex Padilla forced to ground, handcuffed by federal agents
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Democratic U.S. Senator Alex Padilla was shoved, forced to the ground and handcuffed by security after attempting to ask a question at a press conference on Thursday held by Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem about immigration raids "I am Senator Alex Padilla. I have questions for the secretary," Padilla said during the press conference in Los Angeles, where Noem was discussing protests in the city over President Donald Trump 's immigration crackdown."Hands off," Padilla, 52, said to security agents before he was ushered out of the room.A video shared by Padilla showed what happened next: Three agents pushed him to the ground and handcuffed his hands behind his back. Reuters was not immediately able to confirm the authenticity of the video.Padilla represents California, where Los Angeles has seen days of protests against Trump's crackdown on migrants. The White House responded by sending National Guard troops and U.S. Marines into the city, saying they would help secure federal buildings and defend Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents.The Department of Homeland Security in a statement on X accused Padilla of engaging in "disrespectful political theater"."@SecretService thought he was an attacker and officers acted appropriately," the department said, adding that Noem later met with Padilla.Padilla said in a statement he was released shortly after."If this is how the Department of Homeland Security responds to a senator with a question, you can only imagine what they're doing to farmers, to cooks, to day-laborers throughout the Los Angeles community and throughout California and throughout the country," Padilla said.FBI Deputy Director Dan Bongino defended agents' actions on social media."The senator in question was not wearing a security pin and physically resisted law enforcement when confronted," Bongino said, referring to the lapel pins senators typically wear in the Capitol. "Our FBI personnel acted completely appropriately while assisting Secret Service."During Trump's first week in office, his administration warned it would investigate officials who sought to resist his hardline immigration agenda. It has acted on those threats.Newark Mayor Ras Baraka was arrested and charged with trespassing on May 9 while visiting a privately run immigration center. Prosecutors later dropped those charges but charged Democratic U.S. Representative LaMonica McIver with assaulting and resisting officers who were trying to arrest Baraka.Both have denied wrongdoing.Federal prosecutors also criminally charged a Wisconsin judge for attempting to help a man in her court evade immigration authorities.Trump earlier this week said he would support the arrest of California's Democratic governor, Gavin Newsom, who has accused the administration of violating the law by sending troops into the city."This is a sad and frightening state of affairs," McIver said on Thursday. "This administration will stop at nothing to keep elected officials from doing our jobs and demanding accountability for our constituents. We're seeing it in real time: They don't want oversight, they want total control."The Padilla dust-up triggered immediate, angry responses from Senate Democrats.Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer said the video of the press conference "reeks of totalitarianism."Democratic Senator Cory Booker of New Jersey called Padilla's treatment "a pattern and a practice. This is not an isolated incident," referencing the Newark incident."I have been here for more than 32 years," said Democratic Senator Patty Murray of Washington state. "I cannot believe that we don't have senators on both sides of the aisle calling this out as outrageous."Many Republicans found fault with Padilla's actions."He should have been here in Washington voting. He has a responsibility to his constituents to show up at work, not to go try to make a spectacle of himself," Senator John Barrasso of Wyoming, the chamber's No. 2 Republican, told reporters.Republican Senator Lisa Murkowski of Alaska, a maverick in her party who in the past has said that Trump's threats of political retaliation make people "afraid," criticized Padilla's treatment."Senator Padilla is a big, tall guy, and to see how he was handled out of that room is wrong and sick," she told reporters at the Capitol.
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Yahoo
3 days ago
- Yahoo
Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene: Sen. Alex Padilla should be charged
(NewsNation) — Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene said Thursday that Sen. Alex Padilla should be charged and prosecuted after the California Democrat was forcibly removed and handcuffed during a Homeland Security news conference in Los Angeles. 'He should be charged. He should be prosecuted,' Greene, a Georgia Republican, told 'The Hill on NewsNation,' adding that Padilla 'came in very aggressively' and 'actually fought police.' Video footage shows multiple agents restraining Padilla and forcing him from the room during Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem's press conference. Additional video shows agents pushing Padilla to the floor to handcuff him. Geraldo Rivera: Sen. Padilla's removal a 'bad look' 'I'm Senator Alex Padilla. I have questions for the secretary,' Padilla is heard saying as he's pushed out of the room. As he's forced through double doors, he can be heard saying, 'Hands off!' A Department of Homeland Security spokeswoman said Secret Service agents thought Padilla was an attacker and 'acted appropriately.' Noem later said she spoke with Padilla for 15 minutes after the incident and told him no one realized who he was when he 'created a scene.' However, the video clearly shows Padilla identifying himself as a senator. Greene criticized Padilla for not wearing his congressional identification pin and said he 'resisted arrest' and 'aggressively refused to leave.' Padilla forcibly removed from Noem press conference, handcuffed 'You never saw any Republican member of Congress or senator going out aggressively towards the Biden administration secretaries and Cabinet officials,' Greene said. 'You never saw us fighting police officers and resisting an arrest.' In his own press conference following the incident, Padilla said he was there peacefully to ask a question. 'I was not arrested and I was not detained,' Padilla said. 'If this is how this administration responds to a senator with a question, you can only imagine what they are doing to farmers, to cooks, to day laborers out in the Los Angeles community and throughout the country.' Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Time of India
3 days ago
- Time of India
Democratic US Senator Alex Padilla forced to ground, handcuffed by federal agents
— SenAlexPadilla (@SenAlexPadilla) Live Events LATEST INCIDENT PARTISAN RESPONSE (You can now subscribe to our (You can now subscribe to our Economic Times WhatsApp channel Democratic U.S. Senator Alex Padilla was shoved, forced to the ground and handcuffed by security after attempting to ask a question at a press conference on Thursday held by Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem about immigration raids "I am Senator Alex Padilla. I have questions for the secretary," Padilla said during the press conference in Los Angeles, where Noem was discussing protests in the city over President Donald Trump 's immigration crackdown."Hands off," Padilla, 52, said to security agents before he was ushered out of the room.A video shared by Padilla showed what happened next: Three agents pushed him to the ground and handcuffed his hands behind his back. Reuters was not immediately able to confirm the authenticity of the represents California, where Los Angeles has seen days of protests against Trump's crackdown on migrants. The White House responded by sending National Guard troops and U.S. Marines into the city, saying they would help secure federal buildings and defend Immigration and Customs Enforcement Department of Homeland Security in a statement on X accused Padilla of engaging in "disrespectful political theater"."@SecretService thought he was an attacker and officers acted appropriately," the department said, adding that Noem later met with said in a statement he was released shortly after."If this is how the Department of Homeland Security responds to a senator with a question, you can only imagine what they're doing to farmers, to cooks, to day-laborers throughout the Los Angeles community and throughout California and throughout the country," Padilla Deputy Director Dan Bongino defended agents' actions on social media."The senator in question was not wearing a security pin and physically resisted law enforcement when confronted," Bongino said, referring to the lapel pins senators typically wear in the Capitol. "Our FBI personnel acted completely appropriately while assisting Secret Service."During Trump's first week in office, his administration warned it would investigate officials who sought to resist his hardline immigration agenda. It has acted on those Mayor Ras Baraka was arrested and charged with trespassing on May 9 while visiting a privately run immigration center. Prosecutors later dropped those charges but charged Democratic U.S. Representative LaMonica McIver with assaulting and resisting officers who were trying to arrest have denied prosecutors also criminally charged a Wisconsin judge for attempting to help a man in her court evade immigration earlier this week said he would support the arrest of California's Democratic governor, Gavin Newsom, who has accused the administration of violating the law by sending troops into the city."This is a sad and frightening state of affairs," McIver said on Thursday. "This administration will stop at nothing to keep elected officials from doing our jobs and demanding accountability for our constituents. We're seeing it in real time: They don't want oversight, they want total control."The Padilla dust-up triggered immediate, angry responses from Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer said the video of the press conference "reeks of totalitarianism."Democratic Senator Cory Booker of New Jersey called Padilla's treatment "a pattern and a practice. This is not an isolated incident," referencing the Newark incident."I have been here for more than 32 years," said Democratic Senator Patty Murray of Washington state. "I cannot believe that we don't have senators on both sides of the aisle calling this out as outrageous."Many Republicans found fault with Padilla's actions."He should have been here in Washington voting. He has a responsibility to his constituents to show up at work, not to go try to make a spectacle of himself," Senator John Barrasso of Wyoming, the chamber's No. 2 Republican, told Senator Lisa Murkowski of Alaska, a maverick in her party who in the past has said that Trump's threats of political retaliation make people "afraid," criticized Padilla's treatment."Senator Padilla is a big, tall guy, and to see how he was handled out of that room is wrong and sick," she told reporters at the Capitol.
Yahoo
3 days ago
- Yahoo
Democrats seethe after Padilla forcibly removed from Noem press conference in LA
Democrats on Capitol Hill were furious Thursday after Sen. Alex Padilla (D-Calif.) was forcibly removed and handcuffed after trying to question Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem at a press conference in Los Angeles. After Padilla identified himself by his name and title, he pushed toward the front of a conference room trying to ask a question. He was then grabbed by agents who pushed him backward, shoved him through a set of double doors, and forced him onto the ground and handcuffed him. Video of the confrontation emerged as the Senate was concluding work for the day, shocking members. More than a dozen immediately went to the floor to defend Padilla and speak out against what they argued was unjust and unnecessary. On the other side of the building, California Democrats alongside other members of the party descended the Capitol steps as a group to condemn what many called the 'manhandling' of their colleague. Members of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus and other House Democrats also marched to Speaker Mike Johnson's (R-La.) office in a show of outrage. 'He had every right as a member of the United States Senate to talk and be at an event that was open to the public and the press. Instead, he was manhandled by law enforcement, forced to the ground and handcuffed. This is an outrage,' Rep. Zoe Lofgren (D-Calif.) said with dozens of Democrats gathered behind her. 'And I'll tell you what, you know, it had me thinking, is this what it felt like to be in Germany in 1933.' Many of the 17 Senate Democrats who spoke likened Padilla's removal to actions seen in dictatorial states and called for a bipartisan investigation. 'Make no mistake, the effort to manhandle our colleague, to push him out of the room for asking an inconvenient question, to handcuff him — it's an attempt to shut him up. It's an attempt to shut everyone up who has a dissenting view from this administration,' Sen. Tim Kaine (D-Va.) said, pointing to the decision to deploy the military to quell the Los Angeles protests. 'They want to intimidate you,' he added. Sen. Adam Schiff (D-Calif.), Padilla's seatmate, also characterized the response as an attempt to silence a lawmaker confronting questionable actions in their state. 'There he is, going to this press conference to advocate for those who are most vulnerable, to ask the questions that need to be answered, like 'What is the basis under the law or Constitution to over the objection of the governor to federalize the Guard to be used against our own people in California?'' he said. 'I understand why Secretary Noem doesn't want to answer these questions because she can't, but it is Alex Padilla's job to ask those questions and to demand those answers, and we are proud of him. We are proud of him. We are proud of his courage and his steadfastness.' Noem had organized the press conference to boast about U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) operations in Los Angeles, where officers have arrested hundreds of migrants, with some already swiftly deported. The large-scale raids sparked protests that were met with force by the administration. President Trump took the unusual step of bypassing Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) in calling in the National Guard and deploying 700 Marines — an even more unusual scenario for a subset of the military trained for war. ICE's relationship with Congress was already under scrutiny after a scrum took place outside a New Jersey detention facility that lawmakers were attempting to visit. Newark Mayor Ras Baraka (D) was arrested, though charges were subsequently dropped. And interim U.S. Attorney Alina Habba has brought charges against Rep. LaMonica McIver (D-N.J.), alleging she assaulted an officer with her forearms during a chaotic scuffle. Rep. Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) noted Thursday there are laws on the books protecting lawmakers. 'These thugs who manhandled the senator probably don't know it's a federal offense to attack a member of Congress, but that's not what it's about. It shouldn't be anybody in our country [who is] treated this way. So we speak out for Sen. Padilla. We're speaking out for everyone who has a right to speak,' she said. Rep. Adriano Espaillat (D-N.Y.), the chair of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus, referred to what happened as an assault. 'Sen. Padilla was not only stopped from expressing his opinion, he was assaulted. He was assaulted. Anybody that sees the video will see that he was aggressively assaulted and thrown on the ground for simply just wanting to express his opinion,' he said. Rep. Pete Aguilar (D-Calif.), a fellow Southern Californian, said he wanted more than an investigation. 'We need answers. We don't need reports. We need answers from Sen. [John] Thune, from Speaker Johnson. We need answers to these questions because Donald Trump's administration is unhinged,' he told reporters. Sen. Brian Schatz (D-Hawaii), who was visibly angry during his brief remarks, urged those protesting in California and elsewhere this weekend to 'be very peaceful' given what happened to Padilla and issued a vociferous defense of the senator's actions. 'I have never ever, other than Jan. 6, been so outraged at the conduct of an administration,' Schatz said. Others pointed the finger at Noem, calling for her ouster. 'Kristi Noem should resign in disgrace,' Sen. Tina Smith (D-Minn.) wrote on social platform X. While reactions from Senate Republicans were more muted, some made clear they were not fans of Padilla's actions and accused him of grandstanding. 'I think he should have been here in Washington voting,' Senate Majority Whip John Barrasso (R-Wyo.) told reporters. 'He has a responsibility to his constituents to show up at work,' he continued. 'Not to go try to make a spectacle of himself.' Speaker Johnson said he thought Padilla should be censured. 'I think that that behavior at a minimum rises to the level of a censure,' Johnson told reporters. 'I think there needs to be a message sent by the body as a whole that that is not what we're going to do, that's not what we're going to act.' The lack of support from Republicans infuriated Democrats. 'I cannot believe that we don't have senators on both sides of the aisle calling this out as outrageous,' Sen. Patty Murray (D-Wash.) said. 'I've come to this floor often to speak out, to be angry, to be a voice for my people. I have never come this close to having tears in my eyes as I speak to both sides of this aisle about this horrendous incident that occurred.' Rep. Brad Sherman (D-Calif.) said the lack of Republican criticism was troubling. 'I have studied trouble democracy, and this is how democracies unravel. What should scare you most is who wasn't at this press conference,' he said. 'To my knowledge, not a single Republican has criticized the manhandling of Sen. Padilla.' And as Johnson endorsed the censure, a group of Democrats heckled him. 'Mike, that's absurd,' Rep. Sam Liccardo (D-Calif), who represents the San Francisco Bay area, shouted. Rep. Dan Goldman (D-N.Y.) added, 'Why don't you stand up for Congress?' Outside of Congress, Padilla and the administration traded different accounts of what had happened. 'I was there peacefully. At one point I had a question, and so I began to ask a question,' Padilla said. 'I was almost immediately forcibly removed from the room. I was forced to the ground, and I was handcuffed.' But he also pointed to the broader treatment of migrants being swept up in LA immigration raids that have sparked widespread protests. 'I will say this: If this is how this administration responds to a senator with a question, I can only imagine what they're doing to farmworkers, to cooks, to day laborers out in the Los Angeles community and throughout California and throughout the country,' he said. The Department of Homeland Security later accused Padilla of failing to identify himself and 'lunging' toward Noem. While Padilla did push his way toward the front of the room, he clearly identifies himself. 'Senator Padilla chose disrespectful political theatre and interrupted a live press conference without identifying himself or having his Senate security pin on as he lunged toward Secretary Noem,' DHS spokesperson Tricia McLaughlin wrote on X. 'Mr. Padilla was told repeatedly to back away and did not comply with officers' repeated commands. @SecretService thought he was an attacker and officers acted appropriately. Secretary Noem met with Senator Padilla after and held a 15 minute meeting.' Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
