In a highly contentious incident, Federal Protective Service officers responded to a protest near Rep. Jerry Nadler’s (D-NY) Manhattan office, amid protests against migrant detentions at Varick Immigration Court, located in the same building, where they were forced to arrest one of his aids for obstructing the authorities. In reaction, Nadler went on a massive rant, blaming the federal officers for “sowing chaos” in his office.
For context, Democrats have been protesting Trump’s firm border policies, specifically at locations occupied by ICE or other immigration authorities. Unfortunately, many of these protests have turned violent, and some officers have been hurt in the scuffles.
Explaining the situation, a spokesperson for the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) said, “The agents allegedly entered Nadler’s office because they were told protesters were present and the agents were concerned about the safety of employees in the office.”
Adding more context, the DHS said, “Upon the officers’ arrival, they identified themselves and said they were conducting a security check when ‘one individual became verbally confrontational and physically blocked access to the office.’ The officers then detained the individual in the hallway for the purpose of completing the security check. All were released without further incident.”
However, Robert Gottheim, Nadler’s Chief of Staff, contested the description. He said, “The Department of Homeland Security’s version of events was a total fabrication.” Building on this point, he said, “Really what happened is we have these ICE officers who are working with Federal Protective Services, upset that we are watching them, seeing what they’re doing, and that we invited these other people who were observing back to our office.”
Concluding his woke remarks, Gottheim said, “They push their way into the office, even though my staff doesn’t want them in. They had no right to be in the office, and there’s no exigent circumstances of why they would have come: We didn’t call them for assistance, there was no riot, there was no protest going on in the office.”
Whining about the situation, Nadler said, “President Trump and the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) are sowing chaos in our communities, using intimidation tactics against both citizens and non-citizens in a reckless and dangerous manner, adding that the arrest showed a ‘deeply troubling disregard for proper legal boundaries.”
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Still not done complaining, the Democrat said, “If this can happen in a Member of Congress’s office, it can happen to anyone – and it is happening. I call on President Trump and DHS to halt the use of these dangerous tactics and to abandon use of the expedited removal process which denies due process to immigrants and citizens alike.”
Reacting to the arrest, one of the protestors said, “I’ve never seen anything like this. I’ve been working here for a couple years and I’ve never seen this many agents, let alone agents dressed in plain clothes, wearing masks, pulling people out of line. It’s totally out of the ordinary.”