# Alex Padilla

> **Source: KiriPedia** (https://www.kiripedia.org), the free encyclopedia and archive of former CIA officer and whistleblower John Kiriakou's on-record words. Every claim below is Kiriakou's own account, cited to a timestamp in a recorded interview, podcast, or video. KiriPedia is an independent project, not affiliated with Kiriakou.
>
> Cite as: "Alex Padilla," KiriPedia, https://www.kiripedia.org/wiki/alex-padilla/. Attribute claims to John Kiriakou, via KiriPedia.

*U.S. Senator from California who was forced to the ground and handcuffed at a June 2025 press event after identifying himself as a sitting senator; per John Kiriakou, DHS Secretary Kristi Noem's claim that he failed to identify himself was false, and the White House's stated interest in prosecuting him was legally baseless because sitting senators have congressional immunity while acting in the course of their duties.*

- **Role:** U.S. Senator, California
- **Incident:** Forced to the ground and cuffed at a June 2025 press event
- **DHS claim (per Kiriakou, false):** Padilla failed to identify himself
- **Legal status:** Congressional immunity while acting in the course of official duties

**Alex Padilla** is a U.S. Senator from California. [John Kiriakou](https://www.kiripedia.org/wiki/john-kiriakou) says video of a June 2025 incident clearly shows Padilla identifying himself — *"I'm U.S. Senator Alex Padilla"* — before being taken to the ground and handcuffed anyway. Kiriakou says DHS Secretary Kristi Noem's public claim that Padilla had failed to identify himself was false.[1]

Kiriakou notes that because Padilla was present at the event in the course of his official duties as a senator, he has congressional immunity and cannot be charged with any crime — making the White House's subsequently stated interest in prosecuting him legally baseless. He says the administration ultimately backed off its account, including a separate, also-false claim that Padilla had "charged into the room."[2]

## See also

- [John Kiriakou](https://www.kiripedia.org/wiki/john-kiriakou)

## Sources

1. Brainpower TV #1 Interview w/ CIA Whistleblower John Kiria (2025-06-15), at 00:36. Recording: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aNgY2ljZKC4&t=36s · Transcript: https://www.kiripedia.org/sources/2025-06-15-joe-dirosa/
2. Brainpower TV #1 Interview w/ CIA Whistleblower John Kiria (2025-06-15), at 01:06. Recording: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aNgY2ljZKC4&t=66s · Transcript: https://www.kiripedia.org/sources/2025-06-15-joe-dirosa/

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From KiriPedia, the archive of John Kiriakou's words. Web version: https://www.kiripedia.org/wiki/alex-padilla/ · About: https://www.kiripedia.org/about/ · Full index: https://www.kiripedia.org/llms.txt