Yes, They’re Going After Medicare Too; The Bulwark, June 15, 2025

JONATHAN COHN , The Bulwark; Yes, They’re Going After Medicare Too

"One of the more important health care cuts in the legislation would affect Medicare beneficiaries.

And not just any Medicare beneficiaries. I’m talking about some of the most vulnerable seniors and people with disabilities who are on Medicare—the ones who can least afford to deal with punishing medical bills.

The reason these people will feel the impact of this cut is a bit hard to explain. Like so many other provisions in the GOP legislation, it’s not a straight-up reduction in benefits or restriction in eligibility. Rather, it’s a change in the enrollment process for a particular program within Medicaid called the “Medicare Savings Program.”

Yes, you read that right: It’s a program within Medicaid with the word “Medicare” in its title. That’s one of the things that makes it so confusing!

But the short of it is that the program (along with a related initiative) plays a critical role in helping vulnerable Medicare beneficiaries cover their medical costs. And thanks to the Republican bill, roughly 1.3 million people who qualify for the assistance wouldn’t get the benefits, according to official estimates.

Many would respond by not getting medical care they need, and their health would deteriorate as a result. Thousands could die prematurely every year, according to one estimate that a group of health researchers put together last month.2"

It’s not a genuine apology’: Spanish women reject Catholic attempt to redress Franco incarceration; The Guardian, June 15, 2025

Ashifa Kassam , The Guardian; It’s not a genuine apology’: Spanish women reject Catholic attempt to redress Franco incarceration

"As the members of the Catholic organisation wrapped up their speech with an appeal for forgiveness, the auditorium in Madrid exploded in rage. For decades, many in the audience had grappled with the scars left by their time in Catholic-run institutions; now they were on their feet chanting: “Truth, justice and reparations” and – laying bare their rejection of any apology – “Neither forget, nor forgive”.

It was an unprecedented response to an unprecedented moment in Spain, hinting at the deep fissures that linger over one of the longest-running and least-known institutions of Francisco Franco’s dictatorship: the Catholic-run centres that incarcerated thousands of women and girls as young as eight, subjecting them to barbaric punishments, forced labour and religious indoctrination.

The centres operated under the direction of the Women’s Protection Board, a state-run institution revived in 1941 and helmed by Franco’s wife, Carmen Polo. They aimed to rehabilitate “fallen women”, aged 15 to 25, as well as others deemed to be at risk of deviating from the narrow path marked out for women during the dictatorship.

Survivors, however, describe a reality that was far more brutal. “It was the greatest atrocity Spain has committed against women,” said Consuelo García del Cid, who was drugged by a doctor at her home in Barcelona and taken to a centre in Madrid at the age of 16."

AI chatbots need more books to learn from. These libraries are opening their stacks; AP, June 12, 2025

  MATT O’BRIEN, AP; AI chatbots need more books to learn from. These libraries are opening their stacks

"Supported by “unrestricted gifts” from Microsoft and ChatGPT maker OpenAI, the Harvard-based Institutional Data Initiative is working with libraries and museums around the world on how to make their historic collections AI-ready in a way that also benefits the communities they serve.

“We’re trying to move some of the power from this current AI moment back to these institutions,” said Aristana Scourtas, who manages research at Harvard Law School’s Library Innovation Lab. “Librarians have always been the stewards of data and the stewards of information.

Harvard’s newly released dataset, Institutional Books 1.0, contains more than 394 million scanned pages of paper. One of the earlier works is from the 1400s — a Korean painter’s handwritten thoughts about cultivating flowers and trees. The largest concentration of works is from the 19th century, on subjects such as literature, philosophy, law and agriculture, all of it meticulously preserved and organized by generations of librarians. 

It promises to be a boon for AI developers trying to improve the accuracy and reliability of their systems."

Many Older People Embrace Vaccines. Research Is Proving Them Right.; The New York Times, June 14, 2025

Paula Span, The New York Times ; Many Older People Embrace Vaccines. Research Is Proving Them Right.

[Kip Currier: Read my previous post. Then reflect on this New York Times article highlighting the benefits and promise of vaccine-related research. We as individuals and members of societies have so much to lose as a result of the anti-science policy positions and decisions of RFK, Jr. and this Trump administration.

Consider the documented benefits of vaccine research throughout prior decades that lead to revolutionary medical advances like vaccines for Polio, Measles, Mumps, Rubella, Pertussis, Hepatitis, Shingles, HPV, MPox, COVID, and more.]

[Excerpt]

"For older adults who express more confidence in vaccine safety than younger groups, the past few months have brought some welcome research. Studies have found important benefits from a newer vaccine and enhanced versions of older ones, and one vaccine may confer a major bonus that nobody had foreseen.

The new studies are coming at a fraught political moment. The nation’s health secretary, Robert F. Kennedy Jr., has long disparaged certain vaccines, calling them unsafe and saying that the government officials who regulate them are compromised and corrupt.

This week, the secretary fired a panel of scientific advisers to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, replacing them with some who have been skeptical of vaccines. But so far, Mr. Kennedy has not tried to curb access to the shots for older Americans.

The evidence that vaccines are beneficial remains overwhelming."

US experts fear all vaccines at risk as Trump officials target mRNA jabs; The Guardian, June 14, 2025

Melody Schreiber, The Guardian ; US experts fear all vaccines at risk as Trump officials target mRNA jabs

[Kip Currier: How tragic that so many will suffer preventable ailments and some will die needlessly because of vaccine misinformation and disinformation and conspiracy theories fueled by quack science.]

[Excerpt]

"As top US health officials turn against some mRNA vaccines, experts fear for the country’s preparedness for the next pandemic and worry that other vaccines will be targeted next.

Donald Trump’s administration recently canceled a $766m award to Moderna on the research and development of H5N1 bird flu vaccines, and officials have announced new restrictions and regulations for Covid mRNA vaccines – actions that signal a move away from the breakthrough technology.

These changes add to other vaccine-related shakeups at health agencies, including layoffs and resignations of top vaccine officials and the abrupt termination of HIV vaccine research.

On Monday, Robert F Kennedy Jr, secretary of health and human services, announced he was disbanding the independent advisory committee on vaccines for the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

“I think mRNA vaccines are particularly at risk, although I think all vaccines are at risk,” said Paul Offit, professor of pediatrics at the University of Pennsylvania Perelman School of Medicine.

“I think that this administration will do everything it can to make vaccines less available, less affordable and more feared.”"

Two men jailed for life for supplying car bomb that killed Daphne Caruana Galizia; The Guardian, June 10, 2025

Juliette Garside, The Guardian ; Two men jailed for life for supplying car bomb that killed Daphne Caruana Galizia

[Kip Currier: It's encouraging to see that justice can occur, even in places and situations where corruption is deeply entangled and seemingly intractable. I vividly remember learning from The Guardian's reporting about the horrific car bomb murder of courageous investigative journalist Daphne Caruana Galizia in Malta in October 2017:

The journalist who led the Panama Papers investigation into corruption in Malta was killed on Monday in a car bomb near her home.

Daphne Caruana Galizia died on Monday afternoon when her car, a Peugeot 108, was destroyed by a powerful explosive device which blew the vehicle into several pieces and threw the debris into a nearby field.

A blogger whose posts often attracted more readers than the combined circulation of the country’s newspapers, Caruana Galizia was recently described by the Politico website as a “one-woman WikiLeaks”. Her blogs were a thorn in the side of both the establishment and underworld figures that hold sway in Europe’s smallest member state.

Her most recent revelations pointed the finger at Malta’s prime minister, Joseph Muscat, and two of his closest aides, connecting offshore companies linked to the three men with the sale of Maltese passports and payments from the government of Azerbaijan.

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2017/oct/16/malta-car-bomb-kills-panama-papers-journalist

As mentioned in the 2017 article, Galizia was reporting about corruption that involved the Maltese government at the time. Journalists like Galizia risk -- and all too often lose -- their lives to expose corruption and promote public awareness and accountability for wrongdoing.

These intrepid reporters also shed important light on the ways that the wealthy, powerful, and famous are frequently able to circumvent laws and ethical standards that apply to everyone else, as was revealed by the Panama Papers investigation.

Non-profit groups like Transparency International are committed to exposing corruption and promoting democracy and accountability:

We are Transparency International U.S. (TI US), part of the world’s largest coalition against corruption. We give voices to victims and witnesses of corruption, and work with governments, businesses, and citizens to stop the abuse of entrusted power.

In collaboration with national chapters in more than 100 countries, we are leading the fight to turn our vision of a world free from corruption into reality. Our U.S. office focuses on stemming the harms caused by illicit finance, strengthening political integrity, and promoting a positive U.S. role in global anti-corruption initiatives. Through a combination of research, advocacy, and policy, we engage with stakeholders to increase public understanding of corruption and hold institutions and individuals accountable.

https://us.transparency.org/who-we-are/]

My forthcoming Bloomsbury book Ethics, Information, and Technology (January 2026) examines the corrosive impacts of corruption. It also explores organizations like Transparency International that report on and educate about corrupt practices, as well as efforts to root out public trust-damaging activities and positively influence and change organizational cultures where corruption exists.

Corruption is often intertwined, too, with other ethical issues like conflicts of interest, censorship, research misconduct, misinformation and disinformation, counterfeit goods and deficits of transparency, accountability, data integrity, freedom of expression, and free and independent presses, which are critically assessed and considered in the book.]

[Excerpt]

"Two men have been sentenced to life in prison for supplying the car bomb that killed the anti-corruption journalist Daphne Caruana Galizia in Malta eight years ago.

The sentencing on Tuesday of Robert Agius and Jamie Vella, reported to be members of the island’s criminal underworld, marked a significant step in the long campaign to bring those charged with Caruana Galizia’s murder to justice.

Her death in October 2017 sparked outrage across Europe and embroiled Malta’s governing party in accusations of a coverup, ultimately leading to the resignation of the then prime minister, Joseph Muscat.

Prosecutors have brought charges against seven people, including a millionaire businessman who is still awaiting trial."

Seven partners depart law firm Willkie Farr to join Cooley after Trump deal; Reuters, June 13, 2025

 Sara Merken, Reuters; Seven partners depart law firm Willkie Farr to join Cooley after Trump deal

"A group of seven partners is leaving Willkie Farr & Gallagher, which struck a deal with U.S. President Donald Trump in April to avert an executive order targeting its business, to join Cooley, which is representing one of the law firms fighting Trump's orders.

Cooley on Friday said Simona Agnolucci, Benedict Hur, Joshua Anderson, Tiffany Lin, Jonathan Patchen, Michael Rome and Eduardo Santacana are joining the firm as litigation partners in San Francisco."

Newsom Tells Nation That Trump Is Destroying American Democracy; The New York Times, June 10, 2025

 Laurel Rosenhall, The New York Times; Newsom Tells Nation That Trump Is Destroying American Democracy

"Gov. Gavin Newsom made the case in a televised address Tuesday evening that President Trump’s decision to send military forces to immigration protests in Los Angeles has put the nation at the precipice of authoritarianism.

The California governor urged Americans to stand up to Mr. Trump, calling it a “perilous moment” for democracy and the country’s long-held legal norms.

“California may be first, but it clearly won’t end here,” Mr. Newsom said, speaking to cameras from a studio in Los Angeles. “Other states are next. Democracy is next.”

“Democracy is under assault right before our eyes — the moment we’ve feared has arrived,” he added."

Trump’s Un-American Parade: What looks like an excess of strength may really be a deficit of liberty.; The Atlantic, June 13, 2024

 T. H. Breen, The Atlantic; Trump’s Un-American Parade: What looks like an excess of strength may really be a deficit of liberty.

"To discern the values of a nation and its leaders, watch their parades. Tomorrow, on the 250th anniversary of the U.S. Army, President Donald Trump plans not only to display the country’s military might but also to present himself as its supreme leader. Some 6,600 soldiers and 200 tanks, warplanes, helicopters, and the like are expected to descend on Washington, D.C., to the tune of tens of millions of dollars. According to reports, parachuters will land on the Ellipse, where Trump instructed rioters on January 6 to “fight like hell,” and submit to him a folded American flag. All of this will occur on the president’s birthday, which spurs the question of whether we’re celebrating the country or the man who seeks to dominate it.

President George Washington offered a very different model of an American parade—one better suited for a moment that tested the nation’s founding principles. In October 1789, Washington was scheduled to visit Boston, which had planned a celebration in his honor. Unlike Trump, Washington resisted attempts to turn the event into a military display. The very notion of a ceremony organized around him made the first president uneasy...

Washington served in the Continental Army, so he understood the sacrifices that soldiers make for their country, and the public reverence those sacrifices are due. But he also knew the dangers of using the military for personal purposes. He saw clearly the need for the citizens of a republic to stand vigilant against the pretensions of a leader who would use the Army to flex his own might. He had no wish to become America’s elected monarch."

Kennedy has caused irreparable harm to vaccines; The Washington Post, June 13, 2025

Leana S. Wen, The Washington Post ; Kennedy has caused irreparable harm to vaccines

"Robert F. Kennedy Jr. this week put to rest any doubt about his intent to use his perch as health and human services secretary to advance his long-standing anti-vaccine agenda. In an unprecedented move, Kennedy fired all 17 members of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s key vaccine advisory committee. He has since named eightreplacements, at least two of whom are outspoken vaccine skeptics.

One of them is Robert Malone, who became known during the pandemic as a prominent critic of coronavirus vaccines, suggesting, among other falsehoods, that they cause a form of AIDS. More recently, he claimedthat a Texas child who died of measles had not actually succumbed to the disease. Another pick is Vicky Pebsworth, who blames vaccines for causing her son’s autism. She has praised discredited former physician Andrew Wakefield, whose fraudulent research falsely linked vaccines to autism, and represented organizations that question vaccine safety.

Less is known about some of the other committee members’ vaccine views or, with the exception of infectious-disease specialist Cody Meissner, what makes them qualified to advise the CDC on vaccine recommendations. No matter what the newly restructured panel — known as the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices, or ACIP — decides, Kennedy will have already achieved his goal of causing irreparable harm to the CDC and eroding the public’s trust in vaccines."

New library branch opening inside Eastwood Mall; WKBN, June 13, 2025

Chelsea Simeon, WKBN; New library branch opening inside Eastwood Mall

[Kip Currier: With lots of heavy news occurring these days, this upbeat story about the opening of a public library branch inside Eastwood Mall in Niles, Ohio is an encouraging surprise today!

I grew up across the state border in nearby Pennsylvania and have many fond memories of family visits to Eastwood Mall where we enjoyed an occasional patty melt or ice cream sundae at the long-closed Sweet William restaurant there. (As this Niles Historical Society account of the mall underscores "Hungry shoppers could stop in Sweet Williams.")

Public libraries and their customers/patrons will increasingly feel the impacts of Trump 2.0 cuts to library services with Trump's abolition of the Institute for Museum and Library Services (IMLS) that provided fiscal assistance. Many information centers have counted on IMLS grants to help them carry out their service missions. 

Patrons also count on having access to many things at libraries: not just books, but also computers, databases, programs, and much more. So, it's great to see that this new branch library "plans to offer Internet-accessible computers, printers and Wi-Fi for public use, as well as programming for children, teens and adults."

Remember that the next time someone asks what libraries provide or says that libraries aren't needed when so many people today have access to smartphones. Libraries are one of the only things left in this world that are guided by an egalitarian ethos of "Free To The People", just as that saying inscribed at the entrance to the Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh continues to remind us.

Keep in mind, too, all the great things that libraries provide "free to the people" the next time you vote. Support candidates who support libraries and the many life-enhancing materials and services that people and communities can access through service-centered, well-maintained libraries.]

[Excerpt]

"Warren-Trumbull County Public Library customers will soon have access to books and other library materials while shopping at the Eastwood Mall.

A new branch — the Eastwood Mall Library — is tentatively scheduled to open Sept. 2 at the mall, according to a news release from W-TCPL. 

The branch will offer access to books, technology and programming for people of all ages at a central, accessible location...

Along with materials available for checkout, the library plans to offer Internet-accessible computers, printers and Wi-Fi for public use, as well as programming for children, teens and adults."

Federal funding cuts reach Vineyard libraries; MV Times, June 12, 2025

Eunki Seonwoo, MV Times ; Federal funding cuts reach Vineyard libraries

"Due to federal funding cuts, the Massachusetts Board of Library Commissioners (MBLC), a state agency, announced in May it will discontinue freely providing 21 services, including a newspaper archive, certain peer-reviewed research journal databases, and career and education prep, after July 1. This decision followed an April announcementthat uncertainty stemming from federal cuts has led to various library services and trainings to be slashed. 

“Every library on the Vineyard is impacted,” said Allyson Malik, director of Oak Bluffs Public Library and president of the Massachusetts Library System executive board. 

The state agency’s decision stems from an executive order signed in March by President Donald Trump. The order directed a reduction in seven federal agencies, including the Institute of Museum & Library Services, which provided $3.6 million in fiscal year 2025 for Massachusetts libraries’ services and grants. The institute is also listed in Trump’s fiscal year 2026 budget request as one of several “small agencies” the president wants to defund or eliminate outright to “enhance accountability, reduce waste, and reduce unnecessary governmental entities.” The institute had also placed its entire staff on administrative leave in March."

Why are the media ignoring growing resistance to Trump?; The Guardian, June 13, 2025

Margaret Sullivan, The Guardian ; Why are the media ignoring growing resistance to Trump?

"When hundreds of thousands of Americans gathered across the US on 5 April for the “Hands Off” events protesting Donald Trump and Elon Musk’s governmental wrecking ball, much of the news media seemed to yawn...

The US media will get a chance to atone for these sins of omission this coming weekend when Americans once again get together, this time for Saturday’s “No Kings” day, which organizers describe as “a nationwide day of defiance”.

“From city blocks to small towns, from courthouse steps to community parks, we’re taking action to reject authoritarianism,” they say. More than 100 pro-democracy groups are involved, according to Axios.

It’s expected to be the largest anti-Trump protest since the start of his second term, according to organizers who are planning rallies in 1,500 cities in all 50 states. It’s happening, in part, as a reaction to the military parade in Washington DC that Trump has planned on his 79th birthday and the US army’s 250th anniversary...

A study from a Harvard University political scientist presents a statistic worth remembering: that, around the world, once 3.5% of the population became engaged in sustained and non-violent campaigns of resistance, change has always happened.

Erica Chenoweth, the academic researcher who conducted the study, was surprised by what her team found.

“I was really motivated by some skepticism that non-violent resistance could be an effective method for achieving major transformations in society,” Chenoweth said in a 2019 BBC interview.

But her skepticism was overcome as the study turned up clear results. As one example of many she cites: in 1986, the Marcos regime folded after the fourth day of millions of Filipino citizens taking the streets of Manila.

Non-violent protests, she found, are much more effective – and bring about more lasting change – than armed conflict.

In the US, that 3.5% of the adult population is roughly 9 million people – about the population of New York City. That’s a high bar, many more people than showed up on 5 April.

The encouraging thing is that real change is possible.

However, if journalists consistently look the other way, the power of peaceful citizen protests can fade."

Vatican roundtable: Pope Leo XIV, AI ethics and sexual abuse crisis reforms; America Magazine, June 12, 2025

Inside the Vatican, America Magazine; Vatican roundtable: Pope Leo XIV, AI ethics and sexual abuse crisis reforms

 "Pope Leo and AI

What early signals has Pope Leo given about artificial intelligence, deep fakes and the ethical challenges of new technologies? How might these shape the church’s approach to rapidly evolving technology environments?"

What We Know About the ‘No Kings’ Protests on Saturday; The New York Times, June 13, 2025

Chris Hippensteel , The New York Times; What We Know About the ‘No Kings’ Protests on Saturday

"Planned protests against the Trump administration that are expected to be among the largest since the president’s second term began will be held across the country on Saturday.

The demonstrations will occur in all 50 states, and organizers have estimated roughly 2,000 gatherings — ranging from small groups in more rural communities to larger rallies in major cities including New York, Philadelphia, Chicago, Atlanta, Dallas and Denver. According to a map by organizers, there are some three dozen events scheduled in Indiana alone. Protests are also scheduled in other countries including Britain, Mexico and Germany.

They come as President Trump’s immigration crackdown and decision to deploy the military in Los Angeles have already led to large-scale protests there and additional protests in several other cities.

On the same day as the protests, Mr. Trump has scheduled a military parade in Washington for the Army’s 250th anniversary, which also coincides with his 79th birthday...

One major city is notably absent from the list of planned demonstrations: Washington, D.C., the site of the military parade. The omission was intentional, Ms. Greenberg said.

In remarks earlier this week, Mr. Trump warned that any protesters who rallied against the military parade in Washington would be met with “very big force.”"

Nationwide 'No Kings' protests set for Saturday; Florida officials take hardline stance; CBS News, June 12, 2025

Anna McAllister, CBS News; Nationwide 'No Kings' protests set for Saturday; Florida officials take hardline stance

 "Florida leaders issue stern warnings

In anticipation of the protests, which are expected to draw hundreds to the streets of Broward and Miami-Dade counties, Florida leaders made their positions clear.

"If you throw a brick, a firebomb or point a gun at one of our deputies, we will be notifying your family where to collect your remains at. Because we will kill you graveyard dead," said Brevard County Sheriff.

Governor Ron DeSantis added: "If you're driving on one of those streets, and a mob comes and surrounds your vehicle and threatens you, you have a right to flee for your safety. And so if you drive off and you hit one of these people that's their fault for impinging on you — you don't have to sit there and just be a sitting duck and let the mob grab you out of your car and drag you through the streets."

How Disney’s AI lawsuit could shift the future of entertainment; The Washington Post, June 11, 2025

Tatum Hunter

 and 

Will Oremus

, The Washington Post ; How Disney’s AI lawsuit could shift the future of entertainment

"The battle over the future of AI-generated content escalated on Wednesday as two Hollywood titans sued a fast-growing AI start-up for copyright infringement.

Disney and Universal, whose entertainment empires include Pixar, Star Wars, Marvel and Despicable Me, sued Midjourney, claiming it wrongfully trained its image-generating AI models on the studios’ intellectual property.

They are the first major Hollywood studios to file copyright infringement lawsuits, marking a pivotal moment in the ongoing fight by artists, newspapers and content makers to stop AI firms from using their work as training data — or at least make them pay for it."

Trump, Who Has Likened Himself to a King, Bristles at ‘No Kings’ Protests; The New York Times, June 12, 2025

Chris Cameron, The New York Times ; Trump, Who Has Likened Himself to a King, Bristles at ‘No Kings’ Protests

"President Trump bristled on Thursday at the mention of a series of “No Kings” protests against his administration scheduled for the day of his planned military parade in Washington — coinciding with his 79th birthday...

And the military parade scheduled for Saturday is the latest example of Mr. Trump’s desire to flex military might in openly political displays and surround himself in the pageantry of the armed forces. On Tuesday, Mr. Trump said that any protesters who assembled during the parade would be met with “very big force,”making no distinction between violent confrontations and constitutionally protected peaceful demonstrations.

The organizers of the “No Kings” marches have said that they intentionally had not scheduled demonstrations in Washington, D.C., on Saturday to order to avoid the military parade, instead encouraging demonstrators in the area to join their flagship march in Philadelphia."

What to know about ‘No Kings’ protests against Trump’s policies; AP, June 12, 2025

 LISA BAUMANN , AP; What to know about ‘No Kings’ protests against Trump’s policies

"President Trump bristled on Thursday at the mention of a series of “No Kings” protests against his administration scheduled for the day of his planned military parade in Washington — coinciding with his 79th birthday...

And the military parade scheduled for Saturday is the latest example of Mr. Trump’s desire to flex military might in openly political displays and surround himself in the pageantry of the armed forces. On Tuesday, Mr. Trump said that any protesters who assembled during the parade would be met with “very big force,”making no distinction between violent confrontations and constitutionally protected peaceful demonstrations.

The organizers of the “No Kings” marches have said that they intentionally had not scheduled demonstrations in Washington, D.C., on Saturday to order to avoid the military parade, instead encouraging demonstrators in the area to join their flagship march in Philadelphia."

A senator's warning before his arrest On Sen. Alex Padilla's detention by the Trump regime — and the speech that put him in the crosshairs; The Ink, June 12, 2025

The Ink; A senator's warning before his arrest

On Sen. Alex Padilla's detention by the Trump regime — and the speech that put him in the crosshairs

"This afternoon Donald Trump’s aspiration of a police state came one step closer.

A sitting United States senator, Alex Padilla, Democrat of California, was arrested at a Los Angeles press conference held by Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem.

As Noem told the press that the federal government was "going to liberate the city from the burdensome leadership, mayor and governor," Padilla interrupted, saying, “I am Sen. Alex Padilla. I have questions for the secretary," and was then shoved repeatedly out of the room by plainclothes agents, where he was then dropped to the ground, then handcuffed and detained. He has since been released.

This comes as the White House has increasingly dismissed the authority of Congress, and just a day after New Jersey Congresswoman LaMonica McIver was indicted on charges of “assaulting, resisting, impeding, and interfering” with federal officers as she tried to defend Newark Mayor Ras Baraka during an inspection of an ICE facility. 

And it comes a day after Padilla — the first Latino senator to represent California — delivered a speech calling out and condemning the lawlessness of the federal response in his home state and city — and making it clear why it matters to every American.

These words were the senator’s final warning before the Trump regime arrested him. Because they probably don’t want them to spread, we are printing them in full here."

'Completely inappropriate': Kristi Noem opens up after Democratic senator removed from event; Fox News, June 12, 2025

 Martha Maccallum, Fox News ; 'Completely inappropriate': Kristi Noem opens up after Democratic senator removed from event

[Kip Currier: Kristi Noem is lying when she says Sen. Alex Padilla did not identify himself. Padilla clearly and unequivocally identifies himself. Noem's conduct on Fox News is Orwellian.

Fox News anchor Martha Maccallam acquiesces to the inaccurate statement of Noem.

Watch and listen to the recording.

Listen for the person saying "there's no recording allowed in here" while Padilla is handcuffed.]