ICE Barbie Kristi Noem's LA riots press conference interrupted as Democrat Senator is thrown out
California Senator Alex Padilla shouted over Noem before he was forcibly removed from the room by multiple guards and placed in handcuffs.
Noem was speaking and the Q&A portion of the meeting had not yet started when Padilla begun heckling and interrupting. He said: 'I'm Senator Alex Padilla, and I have questions for the secretary.'
SCROLL DOWN FOR VIDEO
As Padilla was escorted out of the room during the tense interaction, he said: 'The fact of the matter is half a dozen violent criminals that you're rotating on your... hands off!'
Startling footage shared by Padilla's team show him being forced to his knees, then onto the ground and outside of the room before being put in handcuffs by the FBI.
Padilla, who is the son of Mexican immigrants, slammed the Trump administration and their treatment of migrants after the ordeal at his own blistering press conference.
In a statement he said: '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 farmworkers, to cooks, to day laborers out in the Los Angeles community.'
Trump's immigration chief Noem was in Los Angeles to discuss the Trump Administration's response to the anti-ICE protests and immigration raids that have been occurring in the area.
As Padilla interrupted, Noem said: 'We are not going away. We are staying here to liberate this city from the socialist and the burdensome leadership that this governor and mayor have placed on this country and what they've tried to insert in this city.'
Noem condemned the senator for the disruption and noted that he had not even asked for a meeting with her.
She added: 'I think everybody in America would agree that that was inappropriate.'
Padilla's team released a statement shortly after insisting that he was at the press conference to perform his congressional duties.
The statement read: 'Senator Padilla is currently in Los Angeles exercising his duty to perform Congressional oversight of the federal government's operations in Los Angeles and across California.
'He was in the federal building to receive a briefing with General Guillot and was listening to Secretary Noem's press conference.
'He tried to ask the Secretary a question, and was forcibly removed by federal agents, forced to the ground and handcuffed. He is not currently detained, and we are working to get additional information.'
After the press conference, Noem addressed the incident while standing outside the federal building.
She said: 'If he would have reached out and identified himself and let us know who he was and wanted to talk. His approach was something I don't think was appropriate at all. But the conversation was great and we are going to communicate.
'We exchanged phone numbers and we are going to continue to talk. People need to identify themselves before lunging during press conferences.'
DHS said on X that Secret Service agents believed Padilla was an attacker and so acted accordingly.
The agency said: '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.
'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.'
Noem called Padilla's statement about the incident 'ridiculous' and told Fox News she believed he wanted to cause a scene.
She said: 'The way that he acted was completely inappropriate. It wasn't becoming of a U.S. Senator or official and perhaps he wanted the scene.
'This man burst into a room and started advancing towards the podium, interrupting an opening statement and, elevating his voice and shouting questions.
'People tried to stop him from interrupting the press conference, but he refused and continued to lunge towards the podium.'
Noem told the outlet that she met with the senator for about 10 to 15 minutes afterwards and the two even exchanged phone numbers.
California Governor Gavin Newsom condemned Padilla's detention on social media.
He said: 'Sen Alex Padilla is one of the most decent people I know. This is outrageous, dictatorial, and shameful. Trump and his shock troops are out of control. This must end now.
'If they can handcuff a U.S. Senator for asking a question, imagine what they will do to you.'
Former Vice President Kamala Harris, who Padilla replaced in the senate when she was elected VP, said: 'United States Senator Alex Padilla was representing the millions of Californians who are demanding answers to this Administration's actions in Southern California. This is a shameful and stunning abuse of power.'
Republican Senator Lisa Murkowski told reporters: 'It's horrible. It is shocking at every level. It's not the America I know.'
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Independent
30 minutes ago
- The Independent
MAGA lawmaker Anna Paulina Luna claims Congress has seen proof of ‘interdimensional beings'
Florida Republican Rep. Anna Paulina Luna has told podcaster Joe Rogan that Congress has seen proof of 'interdimensional beings.' 'I think that they can actually operate through the time spaces that we currently have,' Luna said on Wednesday's episode of the Joe Rogan Experience. 'And that's not something that I came up with on my own. That's based on stuff that we've seen. That's based on information that we've been told,' she claimed. Luna, and Kentucky Republican Rep. James Comer, sent letters in February to Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth, and CIA Director John Ratcliffe, asking for a briefing on all records connected to UAP -- unidentified anomalous phenomena. The congresswoman, a rising star of the MAGA movement who has been endorsed by President Donald Trump, claimed that via her investigations, she's uncovered new information. 'Based on testimony that would be based on witnesses that have come forward. But what I can tell you is just we're told that ... they've seen things,' Luna told Rogan. 'And what I can tell you without getting into classified conversations is that there have been incidences that I believe were very credible people have reported that there have been movements outside of time and space,' she added. 'Based on the photos that I've seen, I'm very confident that there's things out there that have not been created by mankind.' She went on to explain that while she has not seen a spaceship or a portal, she's searching for information that could lead her to more evidence. Luna leads a task force working on the declassification of federal secrets, organized by the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform. She told Rogan that during her time working as an airfield manager with the Portland International Guard, she met F-15 pilots who had likely encounters with UAPs. She added that she has seen photographic and historical evidence, and that she has spoken to pilots in the Air Force who alleged that UAP sightings are being covered up. 'There's definitely something that I can tell you with confidence, that we don't know how to explain currently,' said Luna. The Florida lawmaker added that she thinks the U.S. has reverse-engineered technology to build crafts originally created by non-humans. Luna criticized the intelligence community for allegedly withholding information on UAPs, and similar matters. 'When you have thousands upon thousands of people throughout time that have reported something, to say that those people are crazy, to say that the whole concept of just asking the question [may mean] that you are not psychologically sound, that in itself is a disinformation campaign to get people to shut up about it,' she said. 'We know the U.S. government has not exactly been clean in a lot of what they've done with the American people, specifically to the topic of UFOs,' she added. The congresswoman argued that there is a 'protective complex' from authorities who think that Americans might not be able to handle the realities of what has been found. In the last few years, Congress has addressed the issue of UAPs. Lawmakers have been pushing for more transparency and a safe reporting system for those encountering such phenomena, with a number of congressional hearings and investigations held. In November last year, subcommittees of the House Oversight Committee held a joint hearing entitled "Unidentified Anomalous Phenomena: Exposing the Truth." That came after the Pentagon issued a report in March 2024 stating that they had found no evidence of extraterrestrial spacecraft. In July 2023, a House Oversight subcommittee also held a hearing with three former military officials who said they think the government knows much more about UAPs than it's letting on. Hearings have also included testimony from former intelligence officials and experts.
The Independent
30 minutes ago
- The Independent
Inside the search to find missing Hernán Cortés document
A priceless manuscript page bearing the signature of Spanish conquistador Hernán Cortés from 1527 has been returned to Mexico by the FBI. The document was stolen from Mexico's national archives between 1985 and 1993, with its absence discovered in 1993 during microfilming. Mexico formally requested the FBI's Art Crime Team's assistance last year, leading to an investigation that traced the document to the United States. No charges will be filed in connection with the theft due to the document having changed hands multiple times since it went missing. This is the second Cortés document the FBI has returned to Mexico, following a 16th-century letter in 2023, as Mexico continues its efforts to repatriate cultural artefacts.
.jpg%3Ftrim%3D0%2C640%2C360%2C0%26width%3D1200%26height%3D800%26crop%3D1200%3A800&w=3840&q=100)
The Independent
30 minutes ago
- The Independent
CNN's resident MAGA defender keeps getting his past Jan. 6 condemnation thrown back in his face
In January 2021, CNN senior political commentator Scott Jennings was unwavering in his criticism of Donald Trump following the Capitol riots, saying that the president 'caused this insurrection with his lies and conspiracy theories' and 'every Republican must condemn it.' Now that Jennings is the network's resident MAGA defender and Trump has federally taken over Washington while deploying the National Guard into the city because of a so-called 'crime emergency,' the longtime GOP strategist is now getting his past anti-Trump criticism of January 6 thrown back in his face. And, quite frankly, he is not thrilled about it. Hours after the president held his Monday press conference announcing that he was seizing control of the D.C. police department and mobilizing the military to patrol the city's streets to 'rescue' the nation's capital from 'crime, bloodshed, bedlam and squalor and worse,' Jennings appeared on CNN NewsNight to discuss Trump's widely criticized move. Spurred into action by images of former DOGE staffer Edward 'Big Balls' Coristine bloodied following an attempted carjacking and Fox News reports about crime in D.C., Trump has called his move 'Liberation Day in D.C.' while giving the green light to law enforcement to 'do whatever the hell they want.' Critics, meanwhile, have noted that despite the president's rhetoric about 'out-of-control' crime, violent crime has rapidly declined in the city over the past two years and is at a 30-year low. During the Monday night CNN panel discussion, Jennings was unsurprisingly applauding the president's decision as being tough on crime while showing support for law enforcement, prompting fellow panelist Tara Setmayer to take issue with the idea that Trump 'backs the blue' by referencing Jennings' prior condemnation of January 6. 'You look at what Donald Trump did and what MAGA has done to the police officers who defended our Capitol on January 6th,' Setmayer, a former GOP strategist and Never-Trump conservative, declared. 'You want to talk about spitting in the face? Donald Trump spit in the face of every single one of those officers who took that oath to protect and serve on January 6th when he pardoned those insurrectionist bastards and who wanted to take down our Capitol and stop the free and fair, peaceful transfer of power.' One of the president's first acts after his second inauguration was to issue a blanket pardon to roughly 1,600 rioters who were charged with crimes during the attack on the Capitol, including many who were jailed for violently attacking police officers. 'And so how dare people sit here and say that he backs the blue? He abdicated that, because you know what? He did not protect or defend the Constitution and he violated his oath of office,' she continued. 'You know, who said that? You did after January 6th. And that's exactly what he continues to do right now with the way he is throwing around our military, our police, talking about moving us to other states. This is something people should be very concerned about.' Indeed, shortly after a MAGA mob stormed the Capitol on January 6 in an effort to stop the certification of Joe Biden's electoral victory, Jennings wrote a scathing opinion piece for CNN chastising the president and any Republican who didn't rebuke Trump's actions. 'I'm ashamed and embarrassed for our country, and for any Republican who fails to condemn this shameful behavior,' Jennings stated at the time. In an on-air appearance the night of the riot, Jennings also suggested that Trump had become such a threat to the country that he may need to abdicate his office immediately. On Monday night, however, Jennings was seemingly stunned into silence and merely held his hand to his chin after Setmayer aired her receipts, prompting anchor Anny Phillip to move on to another guest. Several minutes later, though, Phillip circled back to the right-wing pundit to see if he wanted to finally jump back in. 'I want to give Scott a moment because he has not said a single thing,' the CNN host said. Saying that 'what happened to the cops that day was a disgrace,' Jennings then pivoted to defending Trump's federal takeover of Washington and deployment of the National Guard, adding that 'the only city' that Trump really has control of is Washington. 'If he controls D.C., why didn't he do it on January 6th?' Setmayer shot back. 'Why didn't he do it on January 6th when he sat there and let them take over the Capitol? He had the opportunity, but he didn't.' Two days later, another longtime political strategist would once again confront Jennings on his harsh criticism of the president's behavior on January 6 as it related to Trump now invoking the D.C. Home Rule Act. This time around, however, Jennings didn't sit in silence and instead lashed out with personal attacks. 'I think in Washington, D.C., you're gonna have to have substantial reductions in violence, substantial reductions in murder, substantial reductions in carjackings, and people are generally gonna feel like they can walk around and not be under threat all the time,' he said, boasting about the number of arrests that have occurred since the takeover. Julie Roginsky, a Democratic operative and former Fox News pundit, snarked that she was 'old enough' to remember when Jennings was 'appalled as the rest of us were on January 6th,' leading the former Mitch McConnell adviser to cut her off. 'Because January 6th happened, should we not enforce the law today?' Jennings sneered, resulting in a heated back-and-forth in which the GOP commentator accused Roginsky of engaging in a 'silly argument.' At one point, Phillip jumped in to ask Jennings to allow Roginsky to finish her point, only for the conservative pundit to grouse that he's 'not gonna allow it' if Roginsky kept taking 'potshots' at him. 'Scott, I know you're thirsty for that seat, but let me finish,' Roginsky snapped back, referencing reports that Jennings is considering a Senate run in Kentucky to replace the retiring McConnell. 'What are you thirsty for? Some kind of relevance out here? I mean, I don't even know what you do for a living,' he fumed in response. An undeterred Roginsky, though, continued on with her point following the broadside from Jennings. 'Can I just finish what I was about to say, which is that on January 6th, [Trump] could have deployed the National Guard. He chose not to. Now today, because somebody named Big Balls got beat up, allegedly, he wants to deploy the National Guard to a place that has had a 30-year low in violence. And we all know that he's doing this because it's a power grab.' Noting that Trump 'could have done this when this district was actually in danger on January 6th' but didn't, Roginsky said the president 'didn't give a d*mn' about 'backing the blue' then before invoking Jennings' past comments. 'And you agreed, back on January 6, he didn't give a d*mn about those police officers and about the safety of people in Washington, D.C.,' she concluded. 'Today, because he wants a power grab, he's doing this despite the fact that every statistic shows that Washington, D. C. has not been safer in the last 30 years.' Meanwhile, other progressives have called for CNN panelists to continue to challenge Jennings with his own words during discussions about the president's current actions in Washington. 'Not sure why every liberal pundit on CNN, confronted by Jennings, doesn't just read out every night his own words from Jan 6th back to him,' Zeteo founder Mehdi Hasan, who recently got into a heated exchange with a NewsNation anchor after invoking January 6, tweeted. 'Jennings called it an insurrection by domestic terrorists caused by Donald Trump. Remind him. Every. Single. Night.'
