Padilla calls Trump a "tyrant" in emotional Senate floor speech
Add Axios as your preferred source to
see more of our stories on Google.
Sen. Alex Padilla (D-Calif..) walks to the Senate Chambers at the U.S. Capitol on June 17 in Washington, D.C. Photo: Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images
Sen. Alex Padilla (D-Calif.) called President Trump a tyrant surrounded by "yes men and under-qualified attack dogs" who is testing the boundaries of his power during a Senate floor speech to fellow lawmakers on Tuesday.
Why it matters: Padilla was forcibly removed from a Homeland Security press conference last week where he said he wanted to get answers about Trump sending the military to Los Angeles following pro-immigrant protests.
- "Throughout this country's history we've had conflict," he said. "We've had tumult. But we've never had a tyrant as a commander-in-chief."
- The White House did not immediately respond to Axios' request for comment.
Friction point: The Trump administration has detained or charged multiple Democrats that have sought more information about immigration detention and deportation.
- New York City Comptroller Brad Lander, a mayoral candidate ,was detained by ICE at an immigration court on Tuesday.
- Rep. LaMonica McIver (D-N.J.) was indicted following a visit to an ICE detention center in Newark, New Jersey. Newark Mayor Ras Baraka was also arrested at the scene.
Zoom in: Padilla also criticized Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem for saying that the purpose of the military in Los Angeles was to "liberate" the city from its Democratic governor and mayor.
- "Let that fundamentally un-American mission statement sink in," he said. "Are we truly prepared to live in a country where the president can deploy the armed forces to decide which duly elected governors and mayors should be allowed to lead their constituents?"
- "We are staying here to liberate the city from the socialist and the burdensome leadership that this governor and this mayor have placed on this country," Noem said at the conference.
What he's saying: "Colleagues, how may Americans in our nation's history have marched, have protested, have shed blood, even lost their lives, to protect our rights? How many Americans have served in wars overseas to protect our freedoms here at home?"
- "And how many Americans in the year 2025 see a vindictive president on a tour of retribution unrestrained by the majority of this separate and co-equal branch of government and wonder if it's worth it to stand up, or to speak out?"
- "If a United States senator becomes too afraid to speak up, how can we expect any other American to do the same?"
- Padilla is one of the U.S.'s highest-ranking Hispanic public officials and is the ranking Democrat on the Senate Judiciary Committee's immigration panel.
State of play: More than 5 million people protested Trump's deportation agenda Saturday at demonstrations across the country.
- The nationwide rallies followed days of protests in Los Angeles after immigration officials targeted undocumented day workers at a local Home Depot.
- Trump nationalized the California National Guard and deployed 700 Marines to the city in response.
Go deeper:
