Rep. Andrew S. Clyde, US Representative for Georgia's 9th District | Official U.S. House headshot
Rep. Andrew S. Clyde, US Representative for Georgia's 9th District | Official U.S. House headshot
WASHINGTON, D.C. — Congressman Andrew Clyde (GA-09) has reintroduced the Free Speech Defense Act aimed at eliminating government-by-proxy censorship.
In recent years, instances have emerged of the federal government collaborating with Big Tech to bypass Americans’ First Amendment rights. Notable examples include revelations from the Twitter Files, Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg’s admission that FBI warnings led to the suppression of posts related to the Hunter Biden laptop story before the 2020 election, and actions by the Department of Homeland Security’s Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency in regulating online speech.
“By using social media companies as private sector proxies to carry out its bidding, the federal government is circumventing the Constitution to silence the American people,” said Clyde. “Moreover, these nefarious censorship efforts have been weaponized to interfere in our elections. Given the dire electoral consequences of the Left’s suppression of the Hunter Biden laptop story, Congress must act swiftly to rid our country of this unconstitutional muzzle before the 2024 election. It’s imperative that we advance my Free Speech Defense Act, which will finally eliminate government-by-proxy censorship — protecting both Americans’ free speech and America’s free elections.”
The Daily Caller has published an exclusive on this legislation. The full text of the Free Speech Defense Act is also available for review.
Rep. Clyde's Free Speech Defense Act includes several key provisions:
- Prohibits federal directives or encouragements for social media companies to remove users or label content as misinformation without a warrant.
- Forbids public-private partnerships between federal agencies and social media companies for content monitoring.
- Bars federal funding for entities involved in classifying speech as misinformation or directing censorship.
- Allows individuals to take legal action against government censorship in federal court.
- Strengthens existing laws by prohibiting federal employees from soliciting no-cost services such as free advertising.
- Requires an annual compliance report from the U.S. Attorney General, in consultation with the Assistant Attorney General for Civil Rights.
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