Sen. Adam Schiff Called Out Trump’s Militarization Of Los Angeles, Defended Sen. Alex Padilla

Sen. Adam Schiff (D-Calif.) condemned President Donald Trump’s militarization of Los Angeles on Sunday.

His remarks come after mass deportations, and subsequently, recurring protests popped up across Los Angeles. Trump then moved to deploy the National Guard and the Marines to the Southern California city last week against the wishes of California Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) and Mayor Karen Bass (D). Still, Trump stated on Wednesday that the city would have been “burning to the ground” without his aid, but Schiff said that Trump’s sentiment was a “flat-out lie” during an interview on NBC’s “Meet the Press” with Kristen Welker.

“The idea that Los Angeles would have burned to the ground, it’s absurd,” Schiff told Welker. “These demonstrations were taking place in a multi-block area in a city that is 500 square miles.”

He added that the local police, sheriff’s department and highway patrol were well equipped to address the demonstrations.

“And if they weren’t, then the mayor and the governor would request the help of our guard. That was not done. It was not necessary,” Schiff said. “And I think this is just Donald Trump doing what he wanted to do in the first administration, which was essentially use the military for domestic law enforcement, to make himself look tough.”

“In the first administration, there were at least a few people in the Cabinet of some independence who could say, ‘No, Mr. President. That’s a lawless idea. That’s a stupid idea.’ But there’s no one in this current administration to tell the president, “That’s a stupid idea. It will make matters worse,” he continued. “And so we are seeing this – this terrible escalation, this increasing lawlessness.”

Welker also asked Schiff for his thoughts on a scuffle on Thursday in which federal agents manhandled, handcuffed and removed Sen. Alex Padilla (D-Calif.) from Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem’s press conference after he interrupted with a question.

Schiff defended Padilla for his interruption, saying he had “every right to do so.”

“That’s part of his oversight responsibilities,” Schiff said. “And for those of us that know Alex, and you would be hard pressed to find a more beloved senator on either side of the aisle, respected by members on both sides of the aisle, you know, for his intellect, for his demeanor.”

“And to see him mistreated that way and tackled to the ground and shackled that way and in the midst of what we’re seeing more broadly in Los Angeles is just atrocious. And I think all of us that work with him reacted with that kind of revulsion,” Schiff added.