Alex Padilla was thrown to the ground and handcuffed

We are now living in an authoritarian state. You can help fight back, or you can watch videos of puppies eating ice cream. Your call.

In case you have yet to see this/hear about this, earlier this morning Sen. Alex Padilla attended Kristi Noem’s press conference in Los Angeles, tried interrupting to ask a question, was grabbed, manhandled, dragged, tossed to the ground and handcuffed by FBI agents.

Here’s are two videos, if you need to see them …

And, to be clear, Padilla did nothing wrong or illegal. Like, let’s say you think he was being inappropriately rude—well, inappropriate rudeness is no crime. Let’s say you thought it was poor timing and he should have waited for Noem to finish. Well, poor timing also is no crime.

This was nothing short of an authoritarian power grab by an administration that is—at this point—pressing every available button to crush suppression and turn the United States of America into a land ruled by one ideology, one political viewpoint and, truly, one man.

Donald Trump.

It is ugly. It is fucked up. It is terrifying. The Republican Party is suppressing free speech, flexing military muscle and utilizing masked agents to make us, collectively, kneel.

It is also, however, far from a foregone conclusion that this is our future. The people we are fighting against are, with rare exception, morons. Take the Padilla scuffle, for example. Had he been allowed to ask a question, Noem (limitless wardrobe, IQ of 12) could have figured a way to brush it aside. Fuck, Trump has mastered that tactic. But, now, Alex Padilla is an emerging martyr. He’s a guy who tried standing up for his people, and was thrown to the ground, a la a Martin Luther King or Malcolm X. As soon as he was released, he was surrounded by reporters and TV cameras …

In short, he is the new face of resistance and standing up to the thuggery.

Now, we, need to join him.

There are rallies to attend.

There are Republicans to heckle.

There are donations to be made.

There are candidates to back.

This is a fight against the end of freedom.

This is a fight men like Alex Padilla are ready for.

So am I.