JD Vance calls Sen. Alex Padilla 'Jose' during news conference in LA

VP JD Vance calls California Sen. Alex Padilla 'Jose Padilla' during LA immigration press conference

Vice President JD Vance referred to Sen. Alex Padilla as "Jose" during a press conference in Los Angeles on Friday.

LOS ANGELES - Vice President JD Vance referred to Sen. Alex Padilla as "Jose" Padilla when asked about Democratic lawmakers being handcuffed during Friday afternoon's news conference in Los Angeles. The vice president was in Southern California discussing the recent unrest concerning immigration protests, National Guard deployment, and ICE enforcement.

A reporter asked Vance to comment on the Trump administration's alleged "crackdown" on Democrats. Vance responded that he'd hoped "Jose Padilla" would be present at the conference to ask a question, but "decided not to show up because there wasn't a theatre." 

"Pure, political theatre. These guys show up, they want to be captured on camera doing something. They want to be able to go back to their far-left groups and to say 'Look, me, I stood up against border enforcement,'" Vance answered. 

It's unclear if the mistake was intentional or not. 

The news conference comes just one day after the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals in San Francisco sided with President Donald Trump in a unanimous vote, allowing the National Guard to stay in Los Angeles despite Newsom's objections that Trump trampled on his sovereignty as governor.

The backstory:

On June 12, Padilla was forcibly removed during a news conference with Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem, also at the FBI headquarters. 

Padilla was heard on camera identifying himself as a senator, though he was still handcuffed by officers and forced to the ground. Padilla said he was trying to ask Noem a question.

The other side:

Los Angeles-based Fox News reporter Bill Melugin shared a video of what happened and alleged Padilla "crashed" the press conference and that, in the eyes of the DHS, was "lunging" at Noem. 

On Fox News, a DHS spokesperson echoed those claims, saying Padilla "chose disrespectful political theatre and interrupted a live press conference without identifying himself or having his Senate security pin on as he lunged toward Secretary Noem."

What they're saying:

In a tweet with a video of Vance calling Padilla "Jose," Gov. Gavin Newsom said the mistake was not accidental. 

"JD Vance served with Alex Padilla in the United States Senate. Calling him 'Jose Padilla' is not an accident," Newsom said.

Additionally, on the official account for the governor's office, Newsom quoted another tweet of the video with a thumbnail of Vance titled "Are You A Racist?"

"It was very generous of the Vice President to take time out of his closed-door fundraiser to stage a photo op in front of a fire truck — where he mistakenly called a Latino U.S. Senator 'Jose.' We are grateful for his visit!" Newsom's press office said in a statement.

Communications Director for Padilla, Tess Oswald, spoke about the mistake, saying the vice president "should be more focused on demilitarizing [LA] than taking cheap shots."

"As a former colleague of Senator Padilla, the Vice President knows better…another unserious comment from an unserious administration," Oswald said.

Dig deeper:

At Friday's news conference, Vance accused the California governor of endangering law enforcement and preventing officers from doing their jobs. 

"Newsom and [Los Angeles' mayor] Karen Bass, by treating the city as a sanctuary city, have basically said that it is open season on federal law enforcement," Vance said. "They have treated Border Patrol and border enforcement as somehow an illegitimate force, so when [Newsom] encourages violence and rioting, he encourages people to get in the face of our great Border Patrol officers."

Both Newsom and Bass have denounced violence during anti-ICE protests throughout Los Angeles and California.

Neither Vance nor Padilla have publicly spoken about the mistake. KTVU has reached out to both offices and is awaiting comment.