‘Did She Just Sign Off?!’ Tara Palmeri Floored When Congressional Candidate Indicted by DOJ Cuts Off Live Interview After 4 Minutes

Independent journalist Tara Palmeri scored an interview with Kat Abughazaleh a few days after the Democratic congressional candidate was indicted by the Department of Justice, but the podcast soon went off the rails when Abughazaleh abruptly walked out during the live broadcast.

Abughazaleh, 26, is a first-time candidate for Illinois’ 9th congressional district and a former reporter for progressive outlets like Media Matters for America and Mother Jones, hoping to build her large social media following into a platform to elected office.

In September, she was in a viral video being tear-gassed and slammed to the ground by an ICE agent during protests outside an ICE facility in Broadview, a Chicago suburb. Earlier this month, Abughazaleh was again among protesters at the Broadview ICE facility and said that she was struck in the face with a baton by a police officer.

Wednesday, Abughazaleh posted a video announcing that she had been indicted by the DOJ in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois, slamming the charges as a “political prosecution” and an “attack” on her First Amendment rights. She is charged with two counts: conspiracy to impede or injure a federal officer and forcibly impeding, intimidating, or interfering with a federal law enforcement officer while engaged in official duties.

Abughazaleh’s interview, which was broadcast live on Substack and YouTube, began with Palmeri asking her “how are you feeling ever since you found out [about the indictment]…What’s going on through your head?”

It was “surreal” to see her own name on the indictment, Abughazaleh said, and this “definitely” was not something she expected to happen.

She said that she “plan[ned] on pleading not guilty,” calling it a “political prosecution plain and simple” and “an effort to criminalize free speech, an effort to criminalize free association, and an effort to criminalize the very act of protest.”

Palmeri asked about some specific allegations in the indictment, which says Abughazaleh and the other defendants “surrounded a federal officer’s vehicle, banged on its hood and windows, etched ‘PIG’ on the side, and impeded movement.”

Abughazaleh replied that she was “not speaking to the specifics of anything that’s in the indictment right now,” reiterating that she would be pleading not guilty.

Palmeri then cued up a video clip of the day of the incident, and asked her, “What do you when you see that?”

“You know, Tara, once again, this is my first time being federally indicted. Like I said, I plan on pleading on not guilty. The evidence will come out in court and I plan on winning. Thank you so much for having me.”

And that was it for Abughazaleh, less than four minutes into the live broadcast.

Palmeri, initially unaware her guest had taken her leave, asked about the seriousness of the charges against her, along with potentially years-long prison sentences, and if she was “concerned” the indictment “could actually hinder your ability to serve in Congress?”

Palmeri paused for a few seconds waiting for a response and then asked, “Did she just sign off?”

“Did she just leave the chat?” Palmeri continued. “I’m so confused. I’m sorry. I don’t know what just happened.”

“I’ve never had that happen before,” said Palmeri, telling her audience that she would “continue with the conversation on my own” and calling the situation “very bizarre.”

Palmeri continued speaking for a few more minutes, taking questions from the commenters in her live chat.

On her Substack, The Red Letter, Palmeri wrote about the prematurely ended podcast, calling Abughazaleh quitting the podcast so early “genuinely shocking” because she thought that the questions were “[p]retty standard journalism.”

Abughazaleh had told her before the broadcast started that ” there were some things she couldn’t discuss because it’s an ongoing legal case,” Palmeri wrote, which was very “normal” and she expected her to possibly answer some questions by saying she couldn’t get into details, but “[i]nstead, she shut down.”

“Her reaction gave me déjà vu,” wrote Palmeri, mentioning the viral video of former Rep. Katie Porter (D-CA) walking out on a local reporter.

“What is going on with these social-media-born politicians who think they can bypass the press, the very people who represent the voters they hope to serve?” Palmeri continued, adding Abughazaleh was “only 26,” so she would “like to believe this was just a lapse in judgment, not a pattern.”

She added she hoped Abughazaleh “reconsiders,” because “if she wants to be a public servant, she’ll have to handle tough questions, not walk away from them.”

Palmeri posted a short follow-up video, calling the sudden end of the interview “a Katie Porter moment.”

Mediaite reached out to Abughazaleh’s campaign for comment but did not receive a reply.

Watch the video above via The Tara Palmeri Show on YouTube.