The GOP reps seem to believe that they will always be in power, so they don’t think they need to worry that one day they’ll be in Senator Padilla’s shoes. That kind of hubris always leads to disaster.
Tim has it right- they actually think roughing up a US senator is good for them, proves to the "base" how have all the power. To show even senators who's boss, in whatever humiliating, abusive way they choose. They actually think this helps them. Because as always, the cruelty is the point. I think Padiila should sue both Noem and her criminal organization posing as an agency for assault. He won't, but he'd be within his rights simply as a citizen, not to mention a US senator.
Also significant and ominous here are the immediate reactions of the federal agents who grabbed and manhandled Padilla. While the fact that Noem didn't say anything to stop them reflects badly on her personally, it's also important that what the automatic reaction of these men--some combination of SS, CBP, and FBI--was. They could hear him saying who he was and yet they pushed him out of the room, put him on the floor, and handcuffed him.
The fact that they did this--perhaps on the orders of one of them, perhaps spontaneously--matters. Sure it's bad that Noem didn't say anything to stop it, sure it's bad that the norms of our political discourse are deteriorating. But let's also look at this as one of many phenomena out there that shows armed personnel of one kind or another (is LEOs the umbrella term here?) working closely with or for Trump administration officials and apparently adopting norms and practices that are antithetical to our country's best principles. From ICE and CBP personnel to the Secret Service and FBI agents and perhaps sooner rather than later other services, there's a dangerous pattern of viewing anyone different and any opposition as the enemy and of ignoring norms of tradition and even human decency as well as laws in dealing with those they see as the enemy. This is bad.
9:50. Middle Eastern name correctly pronounced by a white male former Republican from flyover country and electively living in Louisiana. Y'all CAN do it, you just don't CARE to. (I know, we all know all of this, but still.)
Trump should have a 10th anniversary ride down the golden escalator. It was all there right from the very first Trump rally wasn't it? All these brown people need to go and if you disrespect or dissent we will beat your ass, drag you out on a stretcher and I'll pay the legal bills. So there Americans, media, business "community" or whatever. All you need to kill a Republic is a 35% of hardcore disciplined, misinformed believers and 15 or 20% of the population to not care or be afraid and pre comply and you can use the system to take control of the system and destroy it.
I sincerely hope the Senator will sue. Noemnothing is a fraud and a pathological liar. She is being a good little cosplayer because if she does not, Miller will spank.
Please also not that just before Sn. Padilla is dragged out, Sec. Noem clearly states that the National Guard and Marines are staying there to “liberate” LA from their mayor and governor (starts at 7:30 in this video):
I really appreciate both Tim and Sarah’s perspective highlighting the significance of DHS silencing Senator Padilla by throwing him to the ground. Unfortunately, that shocking event detracted from what was most important about that Press Conference. Kristi Noem came to LA to incite and threaten. Her presentation was aggressive and full of lies. She threatened Unions and NGOs with IRS Investigations. She threatened a coup against the state of California. Noem said she was going to “Liberate Los Angeles” from their democratically elected officials. That is very concerning. But no one is discussing Kristi Noem’s lies and threats and they should be.
The thing that I haven’t seen highlighted, although I am probably just being blind and deaf, is that this was in an FBI building. Who did they think got thru all that security to protest in a freaking federal building, that they had to do a takedown?
📣 A Message to My Fellow Grandparents: The Escalation We Cannot Ignore
My dear friends and fellow guardians of memory and wisdom,
What happened to U.S. Senator Alex Padilla — a sitting senator, forcibly detained and dragged by Department of Homeland Security agents — should send a chill through the heart of every American who remembers our nation’s history and who understands how democracy begins to unravel.
This is not an isolated moment. This is part of a pattern. We’ve watched as:
ICE raids increased under orders from Trump adviser Stephen Miller, targeting minority neighborhoods and families at dawn.
Peaceful protestors were gassed and beaten, journalists detained, and federal agents in unmarked vehicles abducted citizens from the streets.
And now, a U.S. Senator, simply for participating in a peaceful protest for immigrant dignity, is violently subdued on camera — while identifying himself.
This is not law enforcement. This is intimidation.
This is not security. This is state-sponsored suppression.
And yes, it echoes the early tactics of fascist regimes:
Mussolini began by using paramilitary squads to silence critics.
Hitler used legal structures and state violence to criminalize dissent, beginning with raids, surveillance, and arrests — before the machinery of full authoritarianism took over.
In both cases, people were told it was for “order,” for “security,” for “the good of the nation.” Sound familiar?
We cannot let our children and grandchildren grow up in a country where silencing elected officials becomes a precedent, not an outrage.
💥 This is the trajectory of tyranny.
🛑 What Can We Do?
Speak truth at family dinners, in church halls, and over coffee with friends.
Call it what it is: unconstitutional, un-American, and dangerous.
Educate our families on historical patterns — because those who forget are doomed to repeat them.
Contact your representatives and demand accountability from DHS and Homeland Security Secretary Mayorkas.
Support independent media that reports the truth, not sanitized talking points.
Show our grandchildren that standing up is not just our right — it’s our legacy.
We are the keepers of stories — of Selma, of Normandy, of the Freedom Riders.
We’ve seen this before, and we must say now, together:
To play devils advocate. Did he have a press pass or does it make a difference since he's a senator. Can this be a private press event? Some would say he was resisting arrest.
Personally I do think he was talking out of turn and this was very disturbing. But these were the reasons of what some friends said and I just do not know the legality of it all.
Fuck off. Have you considered quitting this site and going to live in exile in Saudi Arabia, North Korea or Russia where you'll find a better match for your values?
Do you really think someone who wants to defend DHS would pay for a subscription you went from 0 to 100 real quick. I am just as upset as you are with the situation.
You are now being just as obnoxious as the guys who threw Padilla to the ground. A simple question was asked. I wondered myself how these pressers work, do senators show up like that, etc. nobody is defending noem or the response.
I understand what you are asking. Ignore anyone like Joshua scholar who is being so angry and childish. There are plenty of people on here who will engage better.
Is there video of how the incident started? The DHS tweet said it was during a live press conference but I haven't seen any other footage.
The GOP reps seem to believe that they will always be in power, so they don’t think they need to worry that one day they’ll be in Senator Padilla’s shoes. That kind of hubris always leads to disaster.
This is what i often think about - they seem to trust the other side to respect the law and follow the rules...
Tim has it right- they actually think roughing up a US senator is good for them, proves to the "base" how have all the power. To show even senators who's boss, in whatever humiliating, abusive way they choose. They actually think this helps them. Because as always, the cruelty is the point. I think Padiila should sue both Noem and her criminal organization posing as an agency for assault. He won't, but he'd be within his rights simply as a citizen, not to mention a US senator.
Also significant and ominous here are the immediate reactions of the federal agents who grabbed and manhandled Padilla. While the fact that Noem didn't say anything to stop them reflects badly on her personally, it's also important that what the automatic reaction of these men--some combination of SS, CBP, and FBI--was. They could hear him saying who he was and yet they pushed him out of the room, put him on the floor, and handcuffed him.
The fact that they did this--perhaps on the orders of one of them, perhaps spontaneously--matters. Sure it's bad that Noem didn't say anything to stop it, sure it's bad that the norms of our political discourse are deteriorating. But let's also look at this as one of many phenomena out there that shows armed personnel of one kind or another (is LEOs the umbrella term here?) working closely with or for Trump administration officials and apparently adopting norms and practices that are antithetical to our country's best principles. From ICE and CBP personnel to the Secret Service and FBI agents and perhaps sooner rather than later other services, there's a dangerous pattern of viewing anyone different and any opposition as the enemy and of ignoring norms of tradition and even human decency as well as laws in dealing with those they see as the enemy. This is bad.
9:50. Middle Eastern name correctly pronounced by a white male former Republican from flyover country and electively living in Louisiana. Y'all CAN do it, you just don't CARE to. (I know, we all know all of this, but still.)
It was in the federal building!!!! Everyone had to go through security to even be there!!!!!
Great piece -- thanks! And it was refreshing to hear Tim talk for 16 minutes and not drop one F-bomb. So it CAN be done -- who knew? 😂
They have been setting this precedent since Trump took power; they’ve already capitulated most of their power to DOGE and The Heritage Foundation.
It makes me think they may know something that the rest of us don’t; the next election won’t be free or fair! IMHO..:)
The NY Times article made light of this. Look this nerdy senator is getting attention!
I cancelled my subscription.
Trump should have a 10th anniversary ride down the golden escalator. It was all there right from the very first Trump rally wasn't it? All these brown people need to go and if you disrespect or dissent we will beat your ass, drag you out on a stretcher and I'll pay the legal bills. So there Americans, media, business "community" or whatever. All you need to kill a Republic is a 35% of hardcore disciplined, misinformed believers and 15 or 20% of the population to not care or be afraid and pre comply and you can use the system to take control of the system and destroy it.
I sincerely hope the Senator will sue. Noemnothing is a fraud and a pathological liar. She is being a good little cosplayer because if she does not, Miller will spank.
Please also not that just before Sn. Padilla is dragged out, Sec. Noem clearly states that the National Guard and Marines are staying there to “liberate” LA from their mayor and governor (starts at 7:30 in this video):
https://youtu.be/DJth_zJyMZw?si=eYvqblPWS92tfzRY
No one seemed to remind her that both of them were elected!!!!
This, on the other side, is what you hear endlessly whenever Trump is crticized for challenging rules and dismissing the law..
I really appreciate both Tim and Sarah’s perspective highlighting the significance of DHS silencing Senator Padilla by throwing him to the ground. Unfortunately, that shocking event detracted from what was most important about that Press Conference. Kristi Noem came to LA to incite and threaten. Her presentation was aggressive and full of lies. She threatened Unions and NGOs with IRS Investigations. She threatened a coup against the state of California. Noem said she was going to “Liberate Los Angeles” from their democratically elected officials. That is very concerning. But no one is discussing Kristi Noem’s lies and threats and they should be.
The thing that I haven’t seen highlighted, although I am probably just being blind and deaf, is that this was in an FBI building. Who did they think got thru all that security to protest in a freaking federal building, that they had to do a takedown?
📣 A Message to My Fellow Grandparents: The Escalation We Cannot Ignore
My dear friends and fellow guardians of memory and wisdom,
What happened to U.S. Senator Alex Padilla — a sitting senator, forcibly detained and dragged by Department of Homeland Security agents — should send a chill through the heart of every American who remembers our nation’s history and who understands how democracy begins to unravel.
This is not an isolated moment. This is part of a pattern. We’ve watched as:
ICE raids increased under orders from Trump adviser Stephen Miller, targeting minority neighborhoods and families at dawn.
Peaceful protestors were gassed and beaten, journalists detained, and federal agents in unmarked vehicles abducted citizens from the streets.
And now, a U.S. Senator, simply for participating in a peaceful protest for immigrant dignity, is violently subdued on camera — while identifying himself.
This is not law enforcement. This is intimidation.
This is not security. This is state-sponsored suppression.
And yes, it echoes the early tactics of fascist regimes:
Mussolini began by using paramilitary squads to silence critics.
Hitler used legal structures and state violence to criminalize dissent, beginning with raids, surveillance, and arrests — before the machinery of full authoritarianism took over.
In both cases, people were told it was for “order,” for “security,” for “the good of the nation.” Sound familiar?
We cannot let our children and grandchildren grow up in a country where silencing elected officials becomes a precedent, not an outrage.
💥 This is the trajectory of tyranny.
🛑 What Can We Do?
Speak truth at family dinners, in church halls, and over coffee with friends.
Call it what it is: unconstitutional, un-American, and dangerous.
Educate our families on historical patterns — because those who forget are doomed to repeat them.
Contact your representatives and demand accountability from DHS and Homeland Security Secretary Mayorkas.
Support independent media that reports the truth, not sanitized talking points.
Show our grandchildren that standing up is not just our right — it’s our legacy.
We are the keepers of stories — of Selma, of Normandy, of the Freedom Riders.
We’ve seen this before, and we must say now, together:
Not on our watch. Not in our name.
🇺🇸 With love, fire, and peaceful courage,
Clarissa Sr., an American Grandma
For democracy. For justice. For family.
Thank you!!
To play devils advocate. Did he have a press pass or does it make a difference since he's a senator. Can this be a private press event? Some would say he was resisting arrest.
Personally I do think he was talking out of turn and this was very disturbing. But these were the reasons of what some friends said and I just do not know the legality of it all.
Fuck off. Have you considered quitting this site and going to live in exile in Saudi Arabia, North Korea or Russia where you'll find a better match for your values?
Dude, chill out. This is not a forum for flame wars.
Do you really think someone who wants to defend DHS would pay for a subscription you went from 0 to 100 real quick. I am just as upset as you are with the situation.
I am just repeating what the crazies said and am asking does he have to have a press pass to be there? I had no response to their answers
The question itself betrays utterly unacceptable values. And so does answering it on its own assumption.
You are now being just as obnoxious as the guys who threw Padilla to the ground. A simple question was asked. I wondered myself how these pressers work, do senators show up like that, etc. nobody is defending noem or the response.
Which is why I just don't know wtf to say to their answers and or questions.
Idk if ur listening to the secret podcast but it's 100% with what I agree with
I understand what you are asking. Ignore anyone like Joshua scholar who is being so angry and childish. There are plenty of people on here who will engage better.
Thanks 🙏
You don't know what to say? SAY THOSE ARE NOT APPROPRIATE QUESTIONS! SAY THE ANSWERS DON'T MATTER.
TELL YOUR "FRIEND" TO FUCK OFF AND LEAVE.
Woah calm down. I am just playing devil's advocate. I am disturbed by what DHS is doing not what the senator is doing I support him and what he did.
Those are the defenses that more of my friends whom were saying if you push back against a cop that's resisting arrest.
Jackson. a US Senator has access to a Federal building and this so called press conference was not a closed activity.