California Democrats are calling for committee hearings and an investigation into how Sen. Alex Padilla was treated by federal agents when he was forcibly removed from a press conference held by Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem.
The incident occurred at a press conference Thursday in Los Angeles. It immediately captured the attention of the rest of the California congressional delegation in Washington, which quickly mobilized to respond.
“To see him abused that way … to be mishandled that way, this is an assault not only on the person of Alex Padilla, but it is an assault on our democracy,” Sen. Adam Schiff told reporters outside the Senate before giving a floor speech on the matter. “There ought to be an investigation of the conduct of those officers.”