{"id":1053535,"date":"2025-06-12T16:52:48","date_gmt":"2025-06-12T20:52:48","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/democrats.org\/?p=1053535"},"modified":"2025-06-12T16:52:49","modified_gmt":"2025-06-12T20:52:49","slug":"dnc-chair-ken-martin-statement-on-assault-of-senator-alex-padilla","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/democrats.org\/news\/dnc-chair-ken-martin-statement-on-assault-of-senator-alex-padilla\/","title":{"rendered":"DNC Chair Ken Martin Statement on Assault of Senator Alex Padilla\u00a0"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

In response to the assault of Senator Alex Padilla, <\/em>the first Latino elected to the U.S. Senate from California,<\/em> at a Department of Homeland Security press briefing today, <\/em>DNC Chair Ken Martin released the following statement:<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThis assault on U.S. Senator Alex Padilla has sent a violent message to all of America: If you dissent against Donald Trump and openly disagree with the government, then you are not safe in our country. It doesn\u2019t matter if you are a duly elected official \u2014 if you ask questions, if you stand up to Trump and Kristi Noem\u2019s abuse of power, then government thugs will come after you. Make no mistake: This horrifying escalation of violence is straight out of an authoritarian playbook. Trump is a weak man, yet he\u2019s desperate to look strong as more Americans become enraged by the chaos he\u2019s inciting in California. His dangerous approach to immigration enforcement stokes fear, profiles Black and Brown communities, rips families apart, and sows violence. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cTrump is out of control. He\u2019s now using federal law enforcement to silence those who are exercising their rights. This has nothing to do with law and order \u2014 it\u2019s a disgusting abuse of power.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

WATCH<\/strong><\/a>: In an unprecedented move, federal law enforcement forcibly removed Senator Alex Padilla during a press briefing for asking questions about Donald Trump and Kristi Noem\u2019s abuse of power. <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Meredith Lee Hill, Politico<\/a>: \u201c\u2018I\u2019m Senator Alex Padilla. I have questions for the secretary.\u2019 <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cFBI agent and others proceed to drag him out of the room\u201d <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Sam Stein, The Bulwark<\/a>: \u201c[T]his is from Padilla\u2019s staff, it\u2019s of them cuffing the Senator out in the hall\u201d <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

John Bresnahan, Punchbowl<\/a>: \u201cNever seen a US senator treated like this.<\/strong> Wow. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cYes, he interrupted Noem\u2019s presser but that\u2019s a US senator\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Trump bypassed the authority of a sitting governor \u2014 the first time in about 60 years that a president has done so \u2014 and sent National Guard troops to suppress protests in California. <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Washington Post<\/a>: \u201cPresident Donald Trump\u2019s order to deploy 2,000 California National Guard troops to Los Angeles appears unprecedented, relying on an unorthodox use of a law aimed at quelling serious domestic unrest or an attack on the United States by a foreign power, some legal experts said Sunday.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIt marks the first time in about 60 years that an American president has taken such action without a governor\u2019s consent<\/strong>. Furthermore, his executive order authorizes the Pentagon to dispatch military personnel domestically to enable federal functions and protect government property \u2014 a chilling sign, the experts said, that Trump is prepared to send troops into other cities in response to protests.\u201d <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Politico<\/a>: \u201cCalifornia Gov. Gavin Newsom said Donald Trump\u2019s threats against him and other Democrats following the president\u2019s unilateral deployment of National Guard troops to the Los Angeles area carried all the markings of authoritarianism. \u2026<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cTrump and his border czar have targeted Newsom and Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass by name with threats of arrests<\/strong> \u2014 and other ominous unspecified acts to be carried out by the federal government if the two don\u2019t fall in line. \u2026<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cCalifornia on Monday sued the Trump administration for authorizing the deployment against their will. The president and aides portrayed the move as just the start of potentially escalated action, including sending hundreds of U.S. Marines from nearby Camp Pendleton.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

REMINDER: Trump has suggested using the military to suppress political speech before. <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

NPR<\/a>: \u201cFormer Pentagon chief Esper says Trump asked about shooting protesters\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cFormer Defense Secretary Mark T. Esper said President Donald Trump inquired about shooting protesters amid the unrest that took place after George Floyd\u2019s murder in 2020. \u2026<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cEsper said he stayed in the administration because he worried that if he left, the president would more easily implement some of his \u2018dangerous ideas.\u2019 \u2026 <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cEsper said he and other top officials were caught off guard by Trump\u2019s reaction to the unrest in the summer of 2020.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

In response to the assault of Senator Alex Padilla, the first Latino elected to the U.S. Senate from California, at a Department of Homeland Security press briefing today, DNC Chair Ken Martin released the following statement: \u201cThis assault on U.S. Senator Alex Padilla has sent a violent message to all of America: If you dissent […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":292,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1053535","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-press-release"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nDNC Chair Ken Martin Statement on Assault of Senator Alex Padilla\u00a0 - Democrats<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/democrats.org\/news\/dnc-chair-ken-martin-statement-on-assault-of-senator-alex-padilla\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Democrats\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2025-06-12T20:52:48+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2025-06-12T20:52:49+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/democrats.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/Black-Logo-White-Fill-For-Email.png?w=1024\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Adrianna Tomasello\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Adrianna Tomasello\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"4 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/democrats.org\/news\/dnc-chair-ken-martin-statement-on-assault-of-senator-alex-padilla\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/democrats.org\/news\/dnc-chair-ken-martin-statement-on-assault-of-senator-alex-padilla\/\",\"name\":\"DNC Chair Ken Martin Statement on Assault of Senator Alex Padilla\u00a0 - 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