VIDEO: Sen. Alex Padilla forcibly removed from DHS Kristi Noem's news conference
Alex Padilla dragged out of DHS briefing
Sen. Alex Padilla, D-California, was pulled out of a press conference given by Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem, after Padilla said he was trying to ask the secretary about ICE raids in Los Angeles.
LOS ANGELES - Cameras were rolling as Senator Alex Padilla was forcibly removed from a Department of Homeland Security press conference while asking Secretary Kristi Noem a question late Thursday morning.
What we know:
The confrontation was caught on video as dozens of journalists attended the Los Angeles press conference to hear Noem discuss the recent raids and protests across Southern California.
Padilla appeared to interrupt Noem as she was speaking. She had not opened the press conference to questions at that time.
Padilla identified himself and started asking a question when two to three men started pushing him towards the door.
"I'm Senator Alex Padilla. I have questions for the secretary because the fact of the matter is half a dozen violent criminals that you're rotating on your…. hands off," the senator could be heard saying.
Padilla resisted as he kept asking his question. After exiting the room, an FBI agent grabbed him, and he was escorted away. Padilla was forced to the ground and handcuffed by federal officers in a hallway of the federal building. He was then released.
While addressing the media later in the afternoon, Padilla clarified that he was not arrested or detained.
Kristi Noem addresses the incident: ‘His approach was something I don’t think was appropriate'
What they're saying:
Following the press conference outside the federal building, Noem addressed the incident by saying it would've been handled differently if "he would have reached out and identified himself and let us know who he was and wanted to talk."
She continued to say, "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," Noem said. "People need to identify themselves before lunging during press conferences."
Sen. Padilla speaks out: ‘We will hold this administration accountable’
The other side:
Padilla's office released the following statement:
"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."
Shortly after Padilla was released, he spoke to reporters about the incident.
"If this is how the 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 are doing to farmers, day laborers out in the Los Angeles community, out throughout California, and throughout the country, We will hold this administration accountable," Padilla said.
Democratic leaders ask for accountability
After getting word of what happened to Sen. Padilla, Democratic leaders in Washington D.C. addressed the issue and the overall handling of the administration's immigration policy, calling it "an authoritarian dictatorship."
Many lawmakers said Padilla was assaulted, manhandled, and censored. They want accountability and justice.
"To see him abused that way, to see him brought down to the ground, to see him go to a press conference to ask questions, which is not only his right but an obligation, and to be mishandled that way. This is an assault not only on the person of Alex Padilla, but it’s an assault on our democracy," said US Senator Adam Schiff.
"He was at that press conference doing his job, asking questions about what is taking place in California, the state that he represents on behalf of the American people and he was recklessly and aggressively manhandled. That was unacceptable.It's unpatriotic, it's un-American," said House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries.
Dig deeper:
Noem was in Los Angeles to discuss the recent ICE raids and protests that have been occurring since Friday, June 6.
During the press conference, she said ICE was going after "criminals, rapists, murderers" but multiple images and video on social media paint a different picture.
"We're going to protect American cities from lawlessness, and we'll do what it takes to put the American citizens first and make sure they have the opportunity to sleep safely in their beds at night," she stated.
The FBI and border patrol said they aren't leaving LA anytime soon and will continue their job of removing "bad people."
The FBI, ICE, ATF, and Border Patrol were also in attendance at the conference.
The Source: Information for this story came from a press conference held by the Department of Homeland Security. Statements were given by Alex Padilla, Kristi Noem, Adam Schiff, and several other lawmakers in Washington DC.