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Lawmakers and political commentators are weighing in after Sen. Alex Padilla was forced to remove from his hometown Homeland Security press conference on Thursday morning.
Padilla was removed from the Wilshire Federal Building meeting rooms due to secret security as DHS secretary Christie Noem dealt with recent immigration and customs enforcement raids and several days of civil unrest in downtown Los Angeles.
“I’m Senator Alex Padilla, I have a question for my secretary,” you can see Padilla being kicked out of the room and taken to an adjacent corridor, placed on the ground and screaming before being handcuffed.
Senator Alex Padilla will be pushed out of the room as Norm holds a press conference on the recent protest in Los Angeles on Thursday, June 12, 2025.
This is the latest in a list of famous conflicts between California elected leaders and members of the Trump administration. Last week, President Trump’s “border emperor” Tom Homan threatened arrests and prosecutions when Gov. Gavin Newsom and Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass interfered with ice operations.
Padilla’s brief detention brought international headlines and unanimous condemnation from her Democratic colleagues.
Among his most loyal supporters is Newsom, who left Padilla empty in the then-Vircan Senate seat after Kamala Harris joined Joe Biden in the White House.
“[Padilla] He’s one of the most decent people I know. This is outrageous, dictatorial and shameful. Trump and his shocking army are out of control. The governor wrote on social media.
Mayor Bass repeated his emotions and described Padilla’s removal as “absolutely abomination and outrageous.”
“He is the United States Senator, and this administration’s violent attacks on our cities must end,” Bus wrote.
Gov. Gavin Newsom shared this image of Senator Alex Padilla on June 12, 2025.
Padilla’s predecessor Harris said, “Alex Padilla was representing millions of Californians who were demanding answers to this administration’s actions in Southern California. This is a shameful and surprising abuse of power.”
They joined the chorus of other local Democratic leaders and expressed shock and disgust by how the incident unfolded.
“This administration is out of control,” said Janice Hahn, Los Angeles County manager. “The entire Trump administration is indifferent. Senator Padilla is as many federal governments as the federal government.”
“This treatment of a formally elected sitting senator is shameful and rude. Use your strength to be silent. [Padilla] California Attorney General Rob Bonta said.
The unified Latin American Citizens’ Federation also came to the defense of Padilla, the first Latin American, to represent California in the US Senate.
“What happened to Senator Alex Padilla is nothing but the outrageous abuse of power and a direct attack on our democracy,” said President Rome Palomales, a national of Lelac. “It is not acceptable and quietly tolerated in our country that the Latino US senator has dared to ask federal minister officials a lot of questions.”
Civil rights groups urged their supporters to “not accept this as a new normal.”
Federal officials justified the treatment of California senators, claiming that DHS Deputy Director Tricia McLaughlin has accused Padilla of “incredibly aggressive behavior” and that “no one knows who he is.”
In response to several well-known Democrats and politicians in X, DHS issued a statement describing Padilla’s actions as “an unruly political theatre,” claiming that the US senator had rushed to Chief Noem, not wearing “Senate security pins” and suspended without identifying himself. The FBI shared a similar statement.
Newsom came to defend his colleagues again with a rebuttal.
“‘Don’t you identify yourself?’ The governor’s official news agency wrote on social media. “You have detained the mayor. Judge. Union leader. Now you are the US Senator. You deployed Marines in the US soil. If the President went overseas, we’d have that word: dictator.”
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