'Outraged and disgusted,' by treatment of Senator Alex Padilla, leaders say

California Senator Alex Padilla was forcibly removed from a press conference being held by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Kristi Noem in Los Angeles on Thursday morning. 

California State Speaker Robert Rivas said he is "outraged and disgusted by the violent treatment of Senator Alex Padilla — a dignified, compassionate public servant who was physically shoved and removed from a Homeland Security discussion while simply doing his job. As California’s first Latino U.S. Senator, he represents millions of us, including families like mine. This assault is not just disrespectful — it’s dangerous. The Trump administration must be held accountable, and the President must issue an immediate public apology."

Several videos shared in social media show the senator identifying himself and immediately being removed by several men while he’s trying to speak. Videos show him saying, “I have questions for the secretary” while he’s violently forced out of the press conference room. 

On the hallway he's put on his knees, then on his stomach while they handcuffed him. Then, someone tells the person recording the video that "there is no recording allowed here," while FBI agents have Padilla on the ground. 

Some comments in the video state that Padilla is an elected official–chosen by the people–while Noem is not. 

Congresswoman Norma Torres (CA-35) shared in a social media video that the senator was handcuffed for daring to ask a question to the secretary.

“This wasn't a threat, it's dissent, and they crushed it with force,” she said. “They're not keeping us safe. They're trying to silence us.”

Congressman Jimmy Gomez also shared a video asking everyone to spread the word about the lawlessness of the Trump administration. 

“This is a dangerous situation, if they can treat members of Congress that way, a US senator–there's only 100 of them–and if they can do that to him, they can do that to anybody,” said Gomez. 

He asked people to be mentally ready because this situation doesn’t seem to stop.

“They're going to go after all of us. And if they can go after them, they can go after us, they can go after anybody in this country,” he said. “I'm calling for an investigation immediately into who threw them out, and that they should be held accountable.”

Assemblymember Mark Gonzalez said what was done to Padilla, an official elected by the people of California, for trying to ask a question is not just an insult to him but an attack on the dignity of our democratic institutions and the people he represents.

“Secretary Noem’s team didn’t just shut down dissent. They silenced and assaulted a Latino leader with a lifetime of public service simply because they couldn’t handle accountability,” he said. “That’s cowardice, not leadership.”

Response to the violent removal

About an hour after the incident, Senator Padilla said at a press conference that he was in the same building in a meeting when he learned Noem was next door. Therefore, he decided to stop by to listen and see if he could ask a question. That’s when he was immediately removed and forced to the ground. He was not arrested.

“If this is how this administration responds to a senator with a question, 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,” he said. “We will hold this administration accountable.”

As a response DHS said “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.

The statement continues saying Padilla was told repeatedly to back away and did not comply with officers’ repeated commands. Therefore, authorities thought he was an attacker and officers acted appropriately. 

“Secretary Noem met with Senator Padilla after and held a 15 minute meeting,” said DHS. 

There were no details on the meeting.