Former presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr., an early supporter of Donald Trump, proposes the creation of a Presidential Commission to investigate federal assaults on the First Amendment, specifically under the Biden-Harris administration.
Former Democratic presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has proposed the creation of a Presidential Commission to investigate federal assaults on the First Amendment, particularly under the Biden-Harris administration.
Kennedy, a vocal supporter of former President Donald Trump, believes that the commission should probe instances where federal officials colluded with social media companies to censor political speech, violating the First Amendment rights of individuals.
Kennedy Commission to Investigate First Amendment Violations Under Biden-Harris
One of the primary examples Kennedy cited was the suppression of the Hunter Biden laptop story during the 2020 presidential election. After the New York Post published an exposé on the contents of Hunter Biden's laptop, which contained evidence of potential corruption involving the Biden family, social media companies such as Facebook and Twitter censored the story, citing concerns of Russian disinformation.
Kennedy contends that this censorship was orchestrated by the Biden-Harris campaign, with the support of former intelligence officials who dismissed the story as a Russian operation.
Kennedy Commission to Investigate First Amendment Violations Under Biden-Harris
Kennedy, himself a victim of censorship during the pandemic when his concerns about COVID-19 vaccines were suppressed, argued that the investigation should identify every federal employee who perpetrated these unconstitutional outrages.
He emphasized that "when a U.S. president colludes with, or outright coerces, media companies to censor political speech, it's an attack on our most sacred right of free expression."
Kennedy Commission to Investigate First Amendment Violations Under Biden-Harris
The commission, Kennedy suggested, should recommend disciplinary actions for those involved, including disbarring attorneys and prosecuting those who violated federal law.
Kennedy's proposal comes amidst ongoing concerns about the erosion of free speech in the United States. The Biden-Harris administration has faced criticism for its proposed Disinformation Governance Board, which was ultimately scrapped due to public ridicule, and its investigation into "domestic terrorists" who opposed Critical Race Theory and transgender treatment of minors.
If elected, Trump has indicated that he would support the creation of such a commission. Kennedy's endorsement of Trump in the 2024 election adds a bipartisan element to the call for an investigation into First Amendment violations.
By launching a Presidential Commission to investigate such violations, Trump could send a strong signal that censorship is unacceptable and that free speech will be protected under his leadership.
