[UPDATE, 2-25-25: In the original post we stated that Teresa Borrenpohl was zip tied, as per a report by the Idaho Statesman, which said, "The men forcibly carry Borrenpohl out. A man in the background can be seen in the video holding zip ties, and photos show them being used on her." But, although IS shows a man bending towards her with a zip tie in his hand as she grabs the other end, it's unclear whether or not she was actually restrained by them. We have changed our headline slightly to better reflect what was reported. In either case, the forcible removal of Borrenpohl was traumatic and, as Coeur d'Alene Police Chief Lee White later stated via the Coeur d'Alene Press, was "not appropriate for law enforcement to forcefully remove a person from a town hall for speaking out of turn or shouting." We will update this again if more information on this matter comes out.]
In Trump 2.0, "free speech" only applies to those who agree with the new regime. Everyone else will "suffer the consequences," as warned by the host of Idaho's Republican town hall, where a woman who disagreed with Saturday's talking points was dragged out in zip ties by several unidentified men.
"This gentleman is assaulting me!" town hall attendee Teresa Borrenpohl screamed to Kootenai County Sheriff Bob Norris, who stood by as the men began to pull her out of her chair. "Who the f*ck are you!?" she asked the men repeatedly. But the manhandlers did not answer the question. They did, however, proceed to pull her from her chair, push her to the ground, and, according to the Idaho Statesman, zip tie her before carrying her out of the venue.
Meanwhile, town hall host Ed Bejarana piled on in with taunting remarks. "Just look at this. This little girl is afraid to leave. She spoke up and now she doesn't want to suffer the consequences," he said. "That is shameful." He continued to narrate the dramatic scene with snide quips, even imitating Borrenpohl in his best "little girl" voice. (See video below, posted by tonyajean81.)
"Nobody was telling people cheering to stop cheering, but any time there was a negative reaction, we were scolded," said Borrenpohl, who unsuccessfully ran as a Democratic candidate for Idaho's State House of Representatives, according to Post Falls' Coeur d'Aline Press. "I felt comfortable expressing displeasure because people were very openly expressing their appreciation for the legislators there."
"I screamed — out of turn, admittedly — 'Phil Hart stole timber from public land,'" Borrenpohl said. "That's when they seized on me."
"It was really violent and really traumatic," she continued. "They had grabbed my wrists. They contorted my body. They lifted me up and dropped me down. My only thought was to maintain my airway. They were forcing me down on the ground. I just wanted to make sure I could still breathe."
"I was so confused and I didn't know if I was being arrested by the sheriff's office or if I was being kidnapped."
From Couer d'Alene Press:
Coeur d'Alene Police Chief Lee White confirmed Sunday that the men who dragged Teresa Borrenpohl from the meeting worked for the private security firm LEAR Asset Management. …
[Police Chief] White said it's not appropriate for law enforcement to forcefully remove a person from a town hall for speaking out of turn or shouting.
"I don't care what your message is, especially in an open town hall like this," White said. "We have to respect everybody's First Amendment rights, regardless of what side of the aisle you happen to sit on. I know there's some people up here who probably disagree with me and would like us to take action and maybe try to silence a voice that's in opposition to theirs at a town hall, but there's very little we can do with regard to First Amendment protections. We have to make sure people have the protections afforded them under the Constitution." …
Coeur d'Alene city code requires security agents to wear uniforms "clearly marked" with the word "security" in letters no less than 1 inch tall on the front and no less than four inches tall on the back. The security personnel at Saturday's town hall were in plainclothes, with no visible sign they were security.
Borrenpohl was hospitalized after leaving the town hall, according to Newsweek, but no other details on that were provided.
Previously: Trump lovin' Congressman belittles his own constituents at town hall — gets jeered in return (video)
