Senator Padilla, who was forced to the ground and handcuffed last week after interrupting a press conference with the homeland security secretary, is warning his colleagues that the recent unrest in California is a “test case” and that President Trump sent soldiers into his city because he wanted a “spectacle” to distract from other issues.

On Thursday, a video of Mr. Padilla being aggressively removed from Kristi Noem’s press conference in Los Angeles shot around the Capitol at lightning speed. Senator Schumer and other Senate Democrats and House members demanded investigations and accountability. 

Mr. Padilla on Tuesday delivered his first Senate speech since he was handcuffed by federal agents. He says that the whole affair has nothing to do with him, but rather has everything to do with the president’s use of federal immigration enforcement officers and his lack of respect for states’ rights to operate as they see fit. 

“This isn’t about me. In fact, it’s not just about immigrant communities or even just the state of California. It’s about every single American who values their constitutional rights,” Mr. Padilla told his fellow senators. “It’s about anyone who’s ever exercised their First Amendment rights, or anyone who’s ever disagreed with a president, or anyone who simply values our democracy and wants to keep it.”

When he delivered the remarks on Tuesday afternoon, about 40 Democratic senators were seated in the chamber. Usually, the room is empty or near-empty when lawmakers deliver speeches. 

Mr. Padilla said that he would have no objections to the ICE raiders if the administration would simply go after migrants with serious criminal convictions. He said there would be no “disagreement” or “debate” if that was the case. 

He cited a recent CNN report showing that, based on public data from ICE, less than 10 percent of those detained by ICE between October and the end of May have convictions for serious crimes like murder, rape, robbery, or assault. 

Mr. Padilla says that the president’s nationalization of the California National Guard and the move to deploy active-duty Marines to his home city was an attempt to distract from bad headlines — not actually improve safety. 

“A couple weeks ago, it seemed that Donald Trump was at the lowest point of his presidency so far. He was drowning in a week of terrible headlines. The American people were finally waking up to the realities of the budget reconciliation bill,” Mr. Padilla said, referring to the president’s “one big beautiful bill.” 

“He was losing his tariff wars as the cost for everyday goods were continuing to rise. His promises to end Russia’s invasion of Ukraine were falling flat,” Mr. Padilla said on the floor. “He’d been handed loss after loss in federal court. He even had a very public breakup with Elon Musk.

“When Donald Trump is having a bad week, he turns to the same tired playbook he always has: When in doubt, scapegoat immigrants and manufacture a crisis to distract the media,” he said. 

“He wants the spectacle,” Mr. Padilla declared, slamming his hand on his desk. 

More than just a spectacle, Mr. Padilla warned, Mr. Trump is testing the bounds of his executive authority, having taken control of the National Guard without the consent of Governor Newsom and without invoking the Insurrection Act. 

“If you really think this is just about immigrants and immigration, it’s time to wake up,” he declared “What’s happening is not just a threat to California — it’s a threat to everyone in every state.”

“If he can deploy the Marines to Los Angeles without justification, he can deploy them to your state, too,” the senator said. “If he can ignore due process, strip away First Amendment rights, and disappear people to foreign prisons without their day in court, he can do it to you, too.”

“California is just a test case for the rest of the country,” Mr. Padilla told a silent Senate chamber.

Multiple Republican senators sat in the chamber and listened intently to Mr. Padilla’s remarks, even though a meeting with Vice President Vance had already begun across the hallway. 

Senators Murkowski, Tillis, Lummis, Boozeman, Sheehy, and Rounds all sat on the other side of the chamber to listen to the remarks. 

Mr. Padilla’s wife and three sons were also up in the gallery, where the public can watch Senate floor proceedings. The California senator grew emotional when he looked up to his family and wondered aloud how they would have reacted to seeing him forced to the ground and handcuffed. 

“What will my wife think? What will our boys think?” Mr. Padilla said, fighting back tears. “I also remember asking myself: ‘If this aggressive escalation is the result of someone speaking up against the abuses and overreach of the Trump administration, was it really worth it?’”