New Hampshire’s federal delegation generally stays out of national political fights, filling their social media feeds with comments about supporting veterans or their recent visits to Granite State events, rather than engaging in hot-button debates.
Which is why it was notable when Sens. Maggie Hassan and Jeanne Shaheen, along with U.S. Senate candidate Rep. Chris Pappas and other Democratic candidates, all took to Twitter Thursday evening to advance the cause of press conference crasher Sen. Alex Padilla (D-Calif.)
A new era of political communications? Not quite.
As of midnight Thursday night, not one of these New Hampshire Democrats had released a statement or a social media post in support of Israel and its strike on Iran.
On the subject of Padilla, the Granite State delegation did not hold back its passionate support for the progressive West Coast senator.
“In a democracy, police don’t treat elected representatives of the people standing up for their constituents in the way law enforcement officers just manhandled and cuffed Sen. Padilla,” said Hassan. “We need more answers from the administration. Now.”
Shaheen called the Padilla incident “shocking and un-American.”
The incident happened Thursday afternoon, when Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem was in Los Angeles holding a press conference to reiterate her support for DHS employees, local police, and military personnel. Padilla pushed his way into the DHS event uninvited and began shouting questions.
Perhaps not surprisingly, DHS security forced him out of the room, pushed him to the floor, and put plastic handcuffs on him.
“Sen. Padilla was doing his job by seeking answers from a cabinet official. If a sitting U.S. senator can’t demand accountability from this administration without being met with aggression and handcuffs, who can?” Shaheen asked.
The Democrat who hopes to replace Shaheen when she retires in 2026 joined in, too.
“The fact that a U.S. senator who identified himself was shoved and handcuffed for trying to ask questions is a shocking abuse of power,” Pappas posted. “This must be condemned.”
Democratic congressional candidates Stefany Shaheen and Maura Sullivan posted their support for Padilla on Thursday evening as well.
But as Israel launched a preemptive strike against Iran, which has repeatedly pledged to wipe the “Zionist entity” off the map, nothing from New Hampshire Democrats.
That stands in stark contrast to other members of their party willing to speak out on Israel’s behalf.
“Our commitment to Israel must be absolute, and I fully support this attack,” posted Sen. John Fetterman (D-Pa.). “Keep wiping out Iranian leadership and the nuclear personnel. We must provide whatever is necessary—military, intelligence, weaponry—to fully back Israel in striking Iran.”
New York Democrat Rep. Ritchie Torres wrote, “Make no mistake: Israel is not the aggressor. It is defending itself against an existential threat that long predates the present preemptive strike. The true aggressor is the Islamic Republic and its empire of terror—an empire stained with the blood of innocent Israelis.”
But both Sen. Shaheen — the ranking member of the Senate Armed Services Committee — and Rep. Maggie Goodlander (D-NH02), a Navy veteran who sits on the House Armed Services Committee, are oddly silent on Israel’s military action.
Goodlander did, however, post a message of outrage on behalf of Sen. Padilla.
“Senator Alex Padilla was doing his job — asking questions for the millions of people he represents. Instead of getting answers, he was met with force, pushed to the ground, and handcuffed,” Goodlander wrote. “This is shocking. It is not right. It is not America.”
Once again, the four members of the delegation rarely comment on breaking news. But they released a barrage of pro-Padilla messages so close together they appear to be part of a coordinated effort. That makes the delegation’s silence on what could be an existential moment for Israel even more notable. It’s likely a sign that the national Democratic Party truly believes the Padilla incident is a winner for them with the voters — a view many Republicans reject.
But it’s true that Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) took to the Senate floor to denounce Padilla’s treatment.
“I just saw something that sickened my stomach, the manhandling of a United States Senator,” Schumer said. “We need immediate answers to what the hell went on.”
And at least one senator, Adam Schiff of California, has called on Noem to resign over the incident.
All of which could indicate that the typically taciturn New Hampshire delegation is part of a national Democratic effort to capitalize on the Padilla incident. (That effort was likely wiped out by the international news of Israel’s preemptive strike on Iran’s nuclear program.)
Then there is the irony factor. All four Democrats expressing outrage that Padilla wasn’t allowed to interrupt a press conference have blocked reporters from legitimate news outlets, including New Hampshire Journal, from their own press events.
In fact, during the 2022 U.S. Senate race, incumbent Maggie Hassan’s campaign staff tried to throw an NHJournal reporter out of a press briefing. “You weren’t supposed to come,” a campaign staffer hissed at the reporter.
UPDATE: On Friday afternoon, Hassan and Pappas posted messages of support for Israel.
“Iran is a terrorist state that has long fueled death and destruction aimed squarely at the United States, Israel, and our allies. A nuclear-armed Iran is a severe threat to America’s national security, global stability, and the existence of Israel,” Pappas wrote.
“Israel is justified in seeking to degrade Iran’s nuclear program, as an international nuclear watchdog agency just verified Iran is in violation of non-proliferation agreements.”
Hassan echoed these sentiments, but added: “We need more information about the decision making and intelligence that led to this attack. And the Trump Administration must ensure the safety of Americans in the area and work to prevent a broader regional conflict.”
