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USA Today
2 days ago
- Politics
- USA Today
'Unhinged': Democrats are furious Sen. Alex Padilla was hauled out of Noem briefing
'Unhinged': Democrats are furious Sen. Alex Padilla was hauled out of Noem briefing WASHINGTON – The fury radiating off of Congressional Democrats is palpable. Hours after Alex Padilla, the senior U.S. senator in California, was forcibly removed from a press briefing with Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem, House Democrats roamed the Capitol seeking an audience with GOP leadership. Meanwhile, their Senate counterparts gave floor speech after floor speech, condemning the action as an "abuse of power" and "assault." House Speaker Mike Johnson called Padilla's actions "wildly inappropriate" and alleged he rushed at the secretary. House Democrats shouted over him, saying "that's a lie!" Padilla interrupted a press briefing Noem held in Los Angeles on June 12, amid days of protests against President Donald Trump's immigration raids in the city. Some of those protests have turned violent, with demonstrators burning cars and hurling objects at law enforcement. Trump sent in National Guard troops without Gov. Gavin Newsom's consent, spurring additional outrage from Democrats. '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,' Noem said as Padilla started asking: 'Madam Secretary I want to know why you insist on –' before he was grabbed and hauled out of the room by security guards. Padilla was pushed to the ground and handcuffed outside the room. "Anybody that looks at that video will understand that this amounts to an assault, a felony," said Rep. Adriano Espaillat, D-New York, chair of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus. "The White House is unhinged and out of control." Espaillat and more than a dozen other Democratic lawmakers attempted to enter Thune's office, who was meeting with the White House, and were turned away from Johnson's office. "They said he was busy, that he couldn't come out to meet with dozens of members of the U.S. House of Representatives, hiding behind the doors there," said Rep. Nanette Barragán, D-California. "It's a disgrace." On the other side of the Capitol, a string of Democratic senators delivered floor speeches hammering the indignity of the episode. 'I saw this happen to my colleague, and I am shocked by how far we have descended in the first 140 days of this administration . . . What is the becoming of our democracy? Are there no limits to what this administration will do?' said New Jersey Democrat Sen. Andy Kim on the Senate floor. Washington Sen. Patty Murray said on the Senate floor she 'cannot believe' lawmakers on both sides of the aisle are not calling the situation 'outrageous.' Republicans largely defended the actions taken by federal law enforcement agents. 'What were they supposed to do? They have to restrain someone who is engaged in that kind of behavior . . . A sitting member of Congress should not act like that,' House Speaker Mike Johnson told reporters at the Capitol. 'It is beneath a member of Congress. It is beneath a senator. They're supposed to lead by example, and that is not a good example." White House spokeswoman Abigail Jackson said Padilla 'embarrassed himself and his constituents with this immature, theater-kid stunt.' 'It's telling that Democrats are more riled up about Padilla than they are about the violent riots and assaults on law enforcement in LA,' she added. Trump dispatched 4,000 members of the National Guard and 700 Marines to Los Angeles to quell the protests. Padilla said in a press conference after the incident that he wanted more information from Noem on the Trump administration's "increasingly extreme immigration enforcement actions." Noem met with Padilla for 15 minutes afterward, according to the Department of Homeland Security. He added he was not arrested or detained. But, 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 farm workers, to cooks, to day laborers out in the Los Angeles community and throughout California and throughout the country. We will hold this administration accountable.' Tricia McLaughlin, spokeswoman for the Department of Homeland Security, wrote on X that Padilla was 'told repeatedly to back away and did not comply with officers' repeated commands.' Contributing: Joey Garrison and Deborah Berry, USA TODAY
Washington Post
28-01-2025
- Politics
- Washington Post
Live updates: Democrats cry foul as Trump freezes all federal grants
Democrats are crying foul as the White House budget office pauses all grants and loans disbursed by the federal government to ensure its programs are consistent with President Donald Trump's executive orders. 'Donald Trump must direct his Administration to reverse course immediately and the taxpayers' money should be distributed to the people,' Senate Minority Leader Charles E. Schumer (D-New York) said in a statement. 'Congress approved these investments and they are not optional; they are the law.' Meanwhile, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt is scheduled to hold her first official press briefing on Tuesday as Trump continues to take sweeping actions on multiple fronts. Tuesday marks the first congressional special elections of President Donald Trump's second term. ABOARD AIR FORCE ONE — President Donald Trump said Monday night that Microsoft was in contention to buy TikTok, having previously said that he is eager to forge a deal that would 'save' the popular video app from a ban. The White House budget office is ordering a pause to all grants and loans disbursed by the federal government, according to an internal memo sent to agencies Monday, creating significant confusion across Washington. In a two-page document, Matthew J. Vaeth, the acting director of the White House Office of Management and Budget, instructs federal agencies to 'temporarily pause all activities related to obligations or disbursement of all Federal financial assistance.' President Donald Trump on Monday night issued an executive order targeting transgender service members and an array of other people, saying that the U.S. military has been 'afflicted with radical gender ideology to appease activists' and that 'many mental and physical health conditions are incompatible with active duty.'
