![Donald Trump Threatens To Rip 1st Amendment To Shreds [Video]](https://victorygirlsblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/04/Constitution-on-Fire.jpg)
Donald Trump’s campaign rally in Fort Worth today was littered with promises, grandiose gestures, a harangue against Marco Rubio, an endorsement from Chris Christie (woopty doo), and a threat to decimate our 1st Amendment rights. Yes, you are reading that correctly. Donald Trump is promising, no he’s threatening to tear down the 1st Amendment. Watch:
https://youtu.be/Q-c_CvNhQsQ
You heard correctly. He wants to go after any news media outlet (he specifically names the Washington Post and New York Times) that writes up stories on him that HE deems as wrong or malicious and sue the pants off of them, and wants us all to do the same.
What’s the big deal you ask? Lets check out the reaction across the Twitterverse first:
@mckaycoppins Oh cool, now he's down with squashing freedom of the press. What won't that wacky Trump say next?
— The Mental Recession (@rustyweiss74) February 26, 2016
Your freedom of speech, if you can keep it. #Cato2016 https://t.co/ksVi4rSBrx
— Walter Olson (@walterolson) February 26, 2016
A constitutional conservative https://t.co/89ASDaS6Uf
— James Pethokoukis (@JimPethokoukis) February 26, 2016
In case you didn’t catch it, there is a YUUUGGE amount of sarcasm in that last tweet. Others have noted something else…something the media hasn’t quite figured out yet.
And yet the cable news nets are giving him — and none of his competitors — wall-to-wall coverage… https://t.co/FZoqDAWzmb
— Josh Kraushaar (@HotlineJosh) February 26, 2016
Exactly. And that just boggles the mind. No matter which way you slice and dice what The Donald just said, its very clear to most rational thinkers that Donald Trump is NOT a fan of the Constitution nor the 1st Amendment. He wants free speech alright. He just wants it HIS way and if people don’t toe his line; he throws Twitter tantrums, threatens their livelihoods, and today blatantly threatens the very fabric and foundation of this Republic, our Constitution.
Our Constitution is very clear. The 1st Amendment as part and parcel of the Bill Of Rights is equally clear and unequivocal:
Written by James Madison in response to calls from several states for greater constitutional protection for individual liberties, the Bill of Rights lists specific prohibitions on governmental power. The Virginia Declaration of Rights, written by George Mason, strongly influenced Madison.
One of the many points of contention between Federalists and Anti-Federalists was the Constitution’s lack of a bill of rights that would place specific limits on government power.
Key phrases: Constitutional protection for INDIVIDUAL liberties and SPECIFIC limits on government power. Hence the powerful words of the 1st Amendment:
Amendment I
Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the government for a redress of grievances.
Yes, people have tried to sue news media outlets regarding stories. Yes, people have been harmed by stories that have been printed or aired. I have personal knowledge of some who’ve had to deal with reports long on innuendo and short on facts. But that Does. Not. Excuse. what Donald Trump said and is threatening to do!
https://twitter.com/Not4Chau/status/703296927132196864?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw
And that ladies and gentlemen is the crux of the matter. We have an electorate AND a media who doesn’t know, doesn’t care, and certainly doesn’t understand why the Rights granted to us by the Constitution are so very important and must be safeguarded. Celebrity Apprentice Wanna Be President Donald Trump threatens to decimate two of the major bedrocks of our nation – Freedom of Speech and Freedom of Press and people cheer.
"So this is how Liberty dies, with thunderous applause?" https://t.co/bhrrqYXdgi
— Passive Ingenuity (@ShaneWright22) February 26, 2016
Today Donald Trump demonstrated that he doesn’t care one whit about our Constitution, our 1st Amendment rights, our individual liberties, or about limiting government power. I’ll keep asking this until I am blue in the face. Is this REALLY who we want as President? For me the answer is an absolute, unequivocal NO.
Merle says: I doubt this will be a favored view, but here it is anyhow.
Frankly some of those people need to be sued – libel & slander have gotten out of control. Maybe if one of them takes a big financial hit for doing so, the others will reconsider.
Merle
Believe me, I know some of the “media” has overstepped. Actually they’ve hurdled boundaries many times.
What really bothered me about this is that Trump is stating that as President, he would ignore Constitutional law and settled law concerning libel. In fact he would wipe it to the side so that he or anyone else could have a field day.
The press does have a Constitutional right – whether we like how they handles themselves or not. A President should safeguard that right (even if distasteful at times) instead of threatening to take it away…
Ralph Warner says: The media, for too long, has twisted the truth, to make news, instead of reporting the facts. The problem is, people have been adversely affected by their yellow journalism. So I have very little sympathy for a group of people that inject themselves into the story, instead of taking an impartial position and simply report the news.
I personally don’t believe that, unlike the current occupant of the white house, he would blatantly violate the constitution. But that’s just me.
Rick says: Frankly, your article is skewed. Yes, he did state he would open libel laws.. BUT.. you state it is if they write bad things about him or what he deems wrong… he never said that…. holding our media to facts is what he talking about. I not a Donald fan, but again, let’s not write exactly what he talking about for our purposes.
Respectfully I beg to differ. He specifically called out two major publications during that speech. Publications that have published stories about him that he did not like. He also specifically called out Jeff Bezos and said that he only has the WaPo so it can help Amazon.
Not only that but he stated that he wants to open up the libel laws against those who write purposely negative stories… In other words, he doesn’t like news stories about him that are negative and he wants to rig the system in his favor.
Given the laws and statutes that are and aren’t on the books, a President cannot wave a magic wand and open up the libel laws so people can sue if they don’t like the story. That specifically flies in the face of settled law and more specifically flies in the face of the Constitution.
Thanks!
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