Democrat Virginia Sen. Tim Kaine raged on Friday over Democrat California Sen. Alex Padilla getting thrown out of a press conference for heckling Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Kristi Noem’s press conference.
Secret Service agents forcibly removed Padilla from Noem’s press conference and was put in handcuffs after he demanded to ask a question of the Homeland Security secretary. Kaine, who was former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton’s running mate in 2016, said on “CNN News Central” that the removal of Padilla is the most “outrageous” thing that he had seen in his whole lifetime.
“It was one of the most outrageous things I’ve ever seen in my 67 years on the planet, John [Berman] … [Padilla] attended a meeting at a federal office building, he walked into a public press conference and when the secretary said something about she was there to liberate Los Angeles from its government, he tried to ask a question,” Kaine said. “And he was manhandled, taken out of the room and handcuffed. The First Amendment guarantees to all Americans, we can peacefully assemble and petition the government for grievances. That action yesterday and the Trump actions more generally in deploying the military into a situation where there’s no need for them is an attempt to suppress legitimate descent against Trump policies.” (RELATED: ‘Morning Joe’ Guest Says Noem ‘Failed’ To ‘De-Escalate’ Situation By Not Letting Heckling Dem Sen Ask Question)
WATCH:
Footage shows Padilla resisting the Secret Service’s attempts to remove him from the premises as he shouted who he was and that he had a question. He also disobeyed the agents’ orders when they demanded that he put his hands up.
The senator said on Thursday that he was simply fulfilling his responsibilities as a senator and arrived at the press conference to ask a question in a peaceful manner.
DHS said in a statement on X that Padilla engaged in “political theatre” by interrupting the press conference as he “lunged” at Noem. The agency confirmed that Noem met with the senator for a 15-minute meeting after the incident. Tricia McLaughlin, the assistant secretary of the DHS, said that the Secret Service believed Padilla was an “attacker” and “appropriately” removed him from the premises.
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