JD Vance dismisses Padilla ‘theater,’ calls him by the wrong name in the process

Published June 20, 2025 10:23pm ET



Vice President JD Vance dismissed the “political theater” of Sen. Alex Padilla in Los Angeles earlier this month, as well as that of his fellow Democrats. During the process, however, he got the name of his former Senate colleague wrong, referring to him as “Jose Padilla.”

Vance visited Los Angeles for the first time since anti-ICE protests broke out in the city earlier this month, speaking with law enforcement officers and Marines sent to the state. After a brief address, Vance was asked about several Democratic lawmakers being detained after confronting federal officials, specifically Padilla, who was ejected from Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem’s press conference after interrupting it.

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