A woke senator who started shouting down Kristi Noem and got himself removed from a press conference could barely hold back tears while describing the incident to reporters, going on to fiercely critique the Trump Administration and blaming them for his removal.
For context, Sen. Alex Padilla (D-CA) was forcibly removed from a news conference held by Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem on June 12, 2025, after the senator began to disrupt the conference by shouting and interrupting Secretary Noem. Later that day, the senator got visibly emotional and nearly teared up while recounting what happened, saying that he was “forced to the ground” and put in handcuffs.
During a statement to the press, Senn. Padilla explained that while he had been “awaiting a scheduled briefing from federal officials,” he learned that “the Secretary was holding a press conference just a couple of doors down the hall.” He added, “Since the beginning of the year—especially over the course of recent weeks—several of my colleagues and I have been asking the Department of Homeland Security for more information and more answers about their increasingly extreme immigration enforcement actions.”
Continuing, Sen. Padilla began to get increasingly emotional as he said that he “came to the press conference to hear what she had to say and to see if I could learn any new or additional information.” Attempting to defend his behavior, he told reporters, “At one point, I had a question. Let me emphasize, just as we emphasize the right for people to peacefully protest and to stand up for their First Amendment rights—for our fundamental rights—I was there peacefully.”
Next, Sen. Padilla said that he was “almost immediately and forcibly removed from the room” after he “began to ask” a question. He added, “I was not arrested. I was not detained.” The senator then criticized the Trump Administration, arguing that if “this is how this administration responds to a senator with a question…you can only imagine what they are doing to farmers, to cooks, to day laborers out in the Los Angeles community, throughout California, and across the country.”
Moreover, according to coverage from the Associated Press, Sen. Padilla’s fellow Democrats were “shocked” when they saw the footage of the senator being removed from the conference, with Sen. Lisa Blunt Rochester (D-DE) saying, “I showed it to as many people as I could.” In addition, Sen. Cory Booker (D-NJ) said, “What was really hard for me to see was that a member of this body was driven to his knees and made to kneel before authorities.”
In addition, Sen. Chris Van Hollen (D-MD) predictably said to the press, “This is what a dictatorship looks like” in reference to Sen. Padilla’s removal. He added, “We have to stand up.” Furthermore, Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer said watching the video of Sen. Padilla being removed from the conference “sickened my stomach.”
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In addition, even some Republicans were reportedly critical of Sen. Padilla’s forceful removal from the conference, with Sen. Susan Collins (R-ME), who some have described as a “RINO,” saying, “It looks like he’s being manhandled and physically removed, and it’s hard to imagine a justification for that.”
Watch Sen. Padilla’s emotional statement:
Senator Alex Padilla is crying on live television after his arrest.
These are not serious people.
pic.twitter.com/5RwdnuDRsw— Benny Johnson (@bennyjohnson) June 12, 2025
Featured image credit: screengrab from the embedded video