'It's Time for Kristi Noem to Resign,' Say Lawmakers After Assault on Padilla

Sen. Elizabeth Warren put herself alongside other Democratic lawmakers and outside critics who say Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem should resign from office following the assault on Sen. Alex Padilla (D-Calif.) at a press event she was holding inside a federal building in Los Angeles on Thursday.

"It's time for Republican Senators to speak up and support an independent investigation into what happened to Senator Padilla," Warren said Friday. "And it's time for Kristi Noem to resign."

"This is not a drill. This is an assault on our democracy." —Sen. Elizabeth Warren

Appearing on MSNBC's "All With With Chris Hayes" Thursday night, Warren explained that the attack on Padilla, who simply wanted to ask Noem questions about the ongoing Immigration and Custom Enforcement (ICE) raids taking place in Los Angeles and elsewhere, is "something bigger" than a case of mistaken identity or the poor training of the officers who wrestled the Democratic lawmaker to the ground and put him in handcuffs.

"Why was Senator Padilla handcuffed?" said Warren. "He was handcuffed for asking a question. He was handcuffed for doing his job as a senator."

"Anyone who isn't already convinced that the Trump administration is trying to undermine free speech in this country; trying to shut down anyone who doesn't agree with Donald Trump and doesn't bend a knee to Donald Trump—anyone who doesn't believe that's what the Trump administration is doing," said Warren, "needs to watch that video of Senator Padilla being wrestled to the ground and handcuffed simply for trying to ask a question. That's why this is a big deal."

Warren was far from alone in her call for the immediate resignation of Noem, who, following the incident, claimed not to know who Padilla was and falsely stated that he did not identify himself, despite the video showing that he did.

"Kristi Noem should resign in disgrace," said Sen. Tina Smith (D-Minn.), who also accused the secretary and her underlings at DHS of lying about the incident.

"Resign now, Kristi Noem," echoed Rep. Pramila Jayapal (D-Wash.) in a social media post.

Lisa Gilbert, co-president of the pro-democracy watchdog group Public Citizen, called the attack on Padilla "utterly unacceptable" and held the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) responsible.

"This was an open event, and the senator was there to do his job and represent his state," said Gilbert. "Answering the questions of a sitting U.S. senator with assault is a blatant abuse of power, demonstrating the Trump administration's increasingly brazen authoritarian tendencies."

Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) also weighed in, saying that those responsible for the treatment of Padilla must be held to account.

"The assault in California by federal agents against my colleague Sen. Alex Padilla was outrageous, and those responsible must be held accountable," said Sanders. "Tragically, what happened to Sen. Padilla today is becoming normal behavior for a Trump administration which is moving us toward authoritarianism."

In a floor speech in the U.S. Senate following the assault on Padilla, Warren called on her Senate colleagues to condemn Noem's actions and the increasingly authoritarian moves by Trump's cabinet and federal agencies under his command.

"Every day, Donald Trump is making this nation look more and more like a fascist state," Warren warned.

"This is not a drill. This is an assault on our democracy," she declared. "I am calling on my Republican colleagues to join us in demanding a bipartisan investigation into this incident. What happened at this press conference was disgraceful. It was un-American. And every member of the United States Senate should condemn it and condemn it now."