It’s not common to see a United States senator getting manhandled at a press conference led by a Cabinet secretary.
Imagine a hypothetical parallel. It’s Biden instead of Trump, Mayorkas instead of Noem, troops deployed to Dallas instead of LA, and Ted Cruz getting manhandled instead of Alex Padilla.
What do you suppose the reaction would be? www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddo...
— Steve Benen (@stevebenen.com) 2025-06-12T19:15:05.388Z
https://www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddow-show/maddowblog/alex-padilla-kristi-noem-press-conference-rcna212692
Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem was speaking at a press conference in Los Angeles when someone tried to interrupt with a question. It wasn’t a reporter, however, it was a local Democratic senator. NBC News reported:
U.S. Sen. Alex Padilla (D-CA) was forcibly removed from a press conference in Los Angeles by Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem. Noem said the Justice Department would find and prosecute protesters who committed violence in recent days, thanked law enforcement and lambasted California officials when Padilla began shouting in Noem’s direction, according to video of the press conference. It’s unclear what Padilla said before footage shows him being pulled out of the room by several men.
It goes without saying that it’s not common to see a U.S. senator getting manhandled at a press conference led by a Cabinet secretary.
https://bsky.app/profile/did:plc:kjjhbsc3pp3vkqjsivk6z2yd/post/3lrgjicymj226
A written statement issued by the California Democrat’s office noted soon after the incident, “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.”
While the extraordinary way in which the senator was treated is obviously the key development, it’s also worth pausing to note the comments that Padilla interrupted. As the local NBC affiliate noted, the homeland security secretary, before the interruption, said, “We are not going away. We are staying here to liberate the city from the socialists and the burdensome leadership that this governor and that this mayor have placed on this country and what they have tried to insert into the city.”
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