- Sen. Alex Padilla was removed from a press conference held by Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem.
- Noem was in Los Angeles amid protests against immigration raids, vowing to "liberate" the city.
- A U.S. district judge is hopeful for a ruling soon on California's lawsuit on military use in law enforcement.
LOS ANGELES — Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem pledged to "liberate" Los Angeles on Thursday at a press conference that was dramatically interrupted when federal agents dragged a Democratic senator out of the room, forced him to the ground and handcuffed him.
Sen. Alex Padilla, of California, was forcibly ejected after he tried to ask Noem a question during her press conference in Los Angeles, Reuters video showed. Noem said later Padilla had not identified himself as a senator during the scuffle, but the video clearly shows him doing so.
Noem, who later met with Padilla and said the two agreed to talk further, was in the city after days of protests against federal immigration raids by the Trump administration. President Donald Trump, a Republican, has deployed the National Guard and the Marines, despite the objections of the state's Democratic governor, Gavin Newsom, and other officials, who say the move is unnecessary and illegal.
Trump has defended his decision, saying if he had not done so the city would be in flames. The protests so far have been mostly peaceful, punctuated by incidents of violence and restricted to a few city blocks. The mayor of Los Angeles has also imposed a nighttime curfew in parts of the city.
"We're going to stay here and build our operations until we make sure we liberate the city of Los Angeles," Noem said.
In a statement, DHS said Secret Service agents believed Padilla was an "attacker" who did not comply with orders to back away.
The video showed Padilla being forced to lie on the ground in a corridor outside the press conference room by federal agents, who then handcuffed his hands behind his back.
Padilla met with reporters after the incident, telling them, "If this is how the Department of Homeland Security responds to a senator with a question, you can only imagine what they're doing to farmers, to cooks, to day laborers throughout the Los Angeles community and throughout California and throughout the country."
Noem said later on X that she met with Padilla, and though they disagree on "90% of the topics" and she accused him of "creating a scene," they exchanged phone numbers and agreed to keep talking.
"That is the way it should be in this country," Noem said.
Marines to arrive
Some 700 U.S. Marines will be on the streets of the city by Thursday or Friday, the military has said, to support up to 4,000 National Guard troops in protecting federal property and federal agents, including on immigration raids.
The state of California is seeking a federal court order on Thursday that would stop troops from "patrolling the streets of Los Angeles" and limit their role to protecting federal personnel and property. California's lawsuit ultimately seeks to rescind Trump's order to deploy the National Guard to the area.
In a court filing on Thursday, California argued that the federal government has already violated the law by having National Guard troops assist immigration agents in raids.
Throughout the hearing, U.S. District Judge Charles Breyer appeared skeptical of the Trump administration's assertion that the courts had no right to second-guess the president's determinations that the military's deployment was necessary to enforce the law.
"I try to distinguish in my mind, how is that any different than what a monarch does?" Breyer said. "This country was founded in response to a monarchy, and the constitution is a document of limitations."
Breyer ended the hearing without issuing a decision on California's request he restrict the military's activities but said he was hopeful he would have a ruling before the end of the day.
Related:
Utah leaders offer split views on California protesting, National Guard deployment
Utah leaders are offering split opinions on California protesting and the National Guard deployment there as nationwide protests against President Donald Trump are planned.The administration has circulated images showing National Guard troops protecting immigration agents who were arresting suspected illegal migrants, a permissible function for the troops under federal law.
But the state argues those Guard troops have crossed the line into illegal activity under the 1878 Posse Comitatus Act, which prohibits the military from participating in civilian law enforcement.
"For example, photos posted on social media by ICE depict heavily armed members of the National Guard standing alongside ICE agents during arrests," California said in a filing before the hearing.
Unless a judge intervenes, the military's role likely will grow to include "detention, interrogation, and other activities that are practically indistinguishable from urban policing operations," the filing asserts.
The Trump administration said in a Wednesday court filing that the judge should not restrict the military's activities in Los Angeles.
Trump is carrying out a campaign promise to deport immigrants, employing forceful tactics consistent with the norm-breaking political style that got him elected twice.
Even as troops guard federal buildings in Los Angeles, Americans will witness troops and armored vehicles in the nation's capital on Saturday when Trump holds a military parade honoring the Army's 250th birthday in Washington.
Nearly 2,000 protests against the parade, which is taking place on Trump's 79th birthday, are planned around the country in one of the biggest demonstrations against Trump since he returned to power in January.
Contributing: Sandra Stojanovic, Omar Younis, Jane Ross, Arafat Barbakh, Dietrich Knauth, Idrees Ali, Costas Pitas, Christian Martinez, Ryan Jones, Ted Hesson and Alexia Garamfalvi
