WATCH: Padilla, Colleagues Announce Bill to Stand Up to Trump’s Attacks on Free Speech, Safeguard Against Politically Motivated Harassment and Prosecutions

WASHINGTON, D.C. - As President Trump and his Administration launch repeated attacks against Americans' First Amendment rights, U.S. Senator Alex Padilla (D-Calif.) joined Senators Chris Murphy (D-Conn.), Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.), Cory Booker (D-N.J.), Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.), and Tina Smith (D-Minn.) in announcing the No Political Enemies (NOPE) Act, upcoming legislation to protect individuals and organizations, including non-profits, faith groups, media outlets, and educational institutions, from politically motivated harassment and prosecution by the federal government.

This bill would reaffirm the constitutionally protected right to free speech and establish clear, enforceable protections to deter abuse, empower individuals and organizations to defend themselves, and create meaningful accountability. The legislation would also prohibit the use of federal funds for any investigations or regulatory actions aimed at suppressing protected speech. The announcement follows threats from President Trump, Vice President JD Vance, Attorney General Pam Bondi, and White House Senior Deputy Chief of Staff Stephen Miller who have vowed to use the tragic shooting of Charlie Kirk as justification to weaponize the federal government against left-leaning individuals and organizations that don't align with Trump's political agenda.

Padilla's remarks came a day after ABC announced that it would stop airing Jimmy Kimmel's late-night show indefinitely following pressure from Trump's hand-picked chairman of the Federal Communications Commission. Padilla criticized President Trump for suing the New York Times and Wall Street Journal over coverage he opposed, and for threatening a reporter who asked about Attorney General Bondi's ridiculous pledge to prosecute people for "hate speech."

Senator Padilla's full remarks, as delivered, are available below:

Thank you, Senator Murphy and all my colleagues, for leaning in at this additional critical moment.

This is the United States of America, where, since the beginning, we have protected free speech.

That's why we're here today, because we have a president and an administration that has been weaponizing the government against their critics, plain and simple. An attorney general who is vowing to prosecute Americans for what she alone deems "hate speech," a president who threatens a reporter with prosecution for asking a question about that, and Donald Trump personally suing the New York Times and the Wall Street Journal for publishing stories that he doesn't like. And just last night, ABC announcing they're pulling down Jimmy Kimmel's show following the pressure from the chairman of the FCC.

Now, what happened to Jimmy Kimmel last night, and Stephen Colbert, for that matter, isn't just about one comedian or one television personality, or any one network - it's about whether we as Americans still have the freedom to laugh at those in power, to question authority, and to tell the truth without fear of retribution. Now, history shows us that when leaders start silencing entertainers and journalists and critics, it's not because they're strong, it's because they're weak.

So we have to ask, what is this Administration afraid of? They're afraid of accountability, plain and simple, they're afraid of being questioned and their record being held up to the light, because when their record is exposed on health care, on the economy, on corruption, they know the American people won't stand for it.

So make no mistake, they are looking for excuses to crack down on dissent. I'm proud to represent California, and California knows these efforts far too well. We've seen Trump respond to overwhelmingly peaceful protests in Southern California to federalize and send in National Guard troops and then deploy the Marines into an American city. We see it today as Donald Trump is trying to extort UCLA and other universities for not falling in line with his agenda, and I experienced it personally when I had the audacity to ask a question at a press conference with the Secretary of Homeland Security and was thrown to the ground and handcuffed.

So today, it's no surprise that the Trump Administration is using the horrific assassination of Charlie Kirk last week to justify its latest crackdown, and we have all denounced that assassination. We have all denounced political violence in all its forms, anywhere in our country. Now you could disagree with just about everything he stood for or agreed with him, for that matter, but in the spirit of Charlie Kirk, he came to debate, and he was proud to say so. He came to debate and to exercise his right to free speech, no matter how controversial.

So we're here to help protect that right for all Americans through legislation to prevent the President of the United States from punishing people for constitutionally protected speech.

Because the day that we stop fighting for our rights is the day that we lose them, and we're not going to go quietly.

Thank you, colleagues, thank you, Senator Murphy.

A recording of today's full press conference is available here. A one-pager on the NOPE Act can be found here.

Specifically, the NOPE Act would prevent the targeting of individuals or organizations on the basis of their constitutionally protected speech, beliefs, and political participation by:

• Reaffirming our Constitution and laws prohibit the president from weaponizing government against people who disagree with the administration. Uphold foundational constitutional principles that protect free speech and political participation. The Department of Justice, Federal Bureau of Investigation, Internal Revenue Service, and other government agencies cannot be used to silence or target people for criticizing the government with constitutionally protected speech.

• Deterring government officials from abusing their power to silence or retaliate against critics. Deter misconduct by making clear there are consequences for violating federal civil rights laws and that federal officials can be held accountable for abuses.

• Providing tools for those wrongly targeted to defend themselves in court, including meaningful access to evidence, correcting the imbalance of proof, having the legal costs to defend themselves covered, and allowing courts to quickly dismiss abusive actions.

• Providing due process for any U.S. nonprofits the government attempts to label as criminal or terrorist organizations.

• Improving transparency and accountability for federal agencies that seek to silence critics. Create mechanisms for improved reporting and accountability for government agencies so that officials who commit misconduct by abusing their power to censor or retaliate against critics can be held accountable.

Shortly after CBS announced they were canceling The Late Show with Stephen Colbert, Padilla joined the show to call out the Trump Administration's cruel, unpopular mass deportations.

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