Biden Administration Appeals To Supreme Court Over Online Censorship
The Biden Administration is taking a step that could fundamentally reshape Americans’ First Amendment rights. Last week, the Department of Justice (DOJ) made an emergency application for an appeal to the Supreme Court, essentially asking for the green light to control what Americans read and see online. This move exposes a chilling ambition to muzzle Americans’ free speech and should concern everyone, regardless of political affiliation.
The crux of the issue centers around the federal government’s request to remove or flag content on social media platforms like Facebook, Google, and X (formerly Twitter). The case known as Missouri v. Biden, brought by Republican attorneys general and individual plaintiffs, argues that the administration “coerced, threatened, and pressured social-media platforms to censor” them.
Yet the Biden administration claims it is only trying to “mitigate the hazards of online misinformation.” In layman’s terms, they’re saying they have a right to determine what constitutes misinformation and control its spread online for the sake of “national security.”
Such a rationale sets a dangerous precedent. As independent reporter Matt Taibbi notes, “The position of Biden’s Department of Justice is essentially that the First Amendment endangers national security.” This argument seems in direct contradiction to the very essence of the First Amendment, which exists to protect citizens from government overreach.
Remember, the First Amendment doesn’t only protect speech that everyone agrees with. It’s there to protect controversial, inconvenient, or even offensive speech. If history teaches us anything, it’s that curtailing free speech under the guise of “national security” can lead to trampling individual freedoms.
Furthermore, it’s worth pointing out the audacity in the administration’s claim that their freedom of speech as government officials is restricted. Let’s be clear: government officials have no freedom of speech when acting in their official capacities. Their activities must align with the Constitution, which strictly prohibits abridging citizens’ freedom of speech.
Justice Samuel Alito has put the lower court’s order restricting the administration on hold, giving the Republican attorneys general an opportunity to respond and the justices time to rule on the request.
If the Biden administration succeeds, it would erode the fundamental American value of free speech and encourage future administrations to exercise similar powers. One can only imagine the outcry if President Donald Trump had used such authority to remove content claiming the 2020 election was fair and legitimate.
As Missouri Attorney General Andrew Bailey aptly put it: “It’s dripping with irony that the people who claim to be protecting us from misinformation are promulgating misinformation.”
At a time when the government has expanded in size and scope, the First Amendment’s protections are more vital than ever. In this case, the Supreme Court’s decision will reveal whether those protections will hold strong or be diluted in the digital age.
