A shocking viral video shows Capitol Police arresting wheelchair-bound protesters—then zip-tying their wrists.
The group, at least one of them a senior, was part of a protest against cuts to Medicaid in Donald Trump’s “One Big Beautiful Bill,” which is currently in front of the Senate.
The video, shared by left-wing political activist Aaron Black, shows a line of wheelchair users being escorted from the Senate office building by police officers.
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The protestors in the video were peaceful, according to Scripps News, which also ran footage of the protest.
As cops moved in, protestors can be heard chanting, “No cuts to Medicaid.” Scripps reported that some of the protestors briefly unfurled a banner reading “DON’T KILL US” but police quickly took it down.
Capitol Police told the Daily Beast that a total of 33 people were arrested for protesting inside the congressional building, which is illegal. One other person was arrested for crossing a police line outside.
“It should be noted that there are other places on Capitol Grounds where people can lawfully demonstrate without issue,” the police said.
The protest was organized by Popular Democracy, a progressive advocacy group.
Many social media users reacted to the video with outrage.
“Zip ties? How on earth did they think a disabled person confined to a wheelchair would attack them? Run over their foot?” wrote X user @burrell_barney.
Bluesky user @martijon had a similar response: “Why would you zip tie elderly people in wheelchairs? One guy looked fully quadriplegic. WTF?”
Trump’s much-touted thousand-plus-page bill passed the House last month by a single vote. However, it has sparked controversy on many fronts and faces an uphill battle in the Senate as Republicans try to settle their disputes over its wide-ranging content.
The bill’s cuts to Medicaid have sparked some of the fiercest disagreement. If passed, the legislation would institute new stipulations for beneficiaries, such as co-pays for those earning above the poverty level and work requirements for many adults without children, according to The Washington Post.
The Senate version of the bill takes the cuts even further by rolling back federal support for states that widened Medicaid’s coverage through Obamacare.
