Another Biden Assault on Speech

Are we tired of being told we can use some words, not others? Are we tired of being told free speech is only free when agreeable? Is there a breaking point, after which the country says whatever it wants and feels relief?  I think most Americans would answer, yes.  Enter the latest speech policing:  Biden says “illegal alien” will no longer be used by federal employees.  See, e.g., https://www.nbcnews.com/news/latino/biden-seeks-replace-alien-less-dehumanizing-term-immigration-laws-n1255350.

Let us get this clear – before the media muddies it. The Merriam-Webster dictionary, not owned by Twitter, Facebook or DNC contributors, just an institution dedicated to word definition, defines “illegal alien” as “a foreign person who lives in a country without having official permission,” that is, a foreign-origin alien living in a nation illegally.

US Legal defines the term as follows: “An illegal alien … is a foreign national who has entered the United States without legal permission, authorization, or inspection; or who entered the U.S. legally but has since fallen out of status by overstaying or by violating the terms of legal entry,” adding “an illegal alien is subject to deportation if apprehended.”

Even liberal “fact checkers” call “illegal alien” standard parlance, since it pervades federal statute law, making its meaning – as a matter of judicial notice – clear and unambiguous, not political, prejudicial, or discriminatory, just factually accurate.  But factual accuracy seems less and less in

vogue. See, e.g., https://www.politifact.com/factchecks/2018/may/09/steve-mccraw/illegal-alien-legal-term-federal-law/.

In a world where truth is increasingly fungible, malleable, subject to redefinition by manipulative “thought leaders” and politicians (who often lead without “thought”), words are subject to constant redefinition.  They are a new battlefield, in the war for understanding reality.  The prevailing mantra is:  If you cannot win, change the rules.  Only that is not how most Americans see things.  They tend to go for factual accuracy, definitional consistency, truth.

We have moved from moral relativity, which denied right and wrong, to total relativity, which denies any one answer to any one question, and finds historical reference points irrelevant.  Thus, we are told there are now “64 genders,” which would make past generations spin. See, e.g., https://www.healthline.com/health/different-genders#why-it-matters. We are told that executive orders which are unconstitutionally “making laws” are “not making laws.”  See, e.g., https://www.foxnews.com/media/biden-white-house-cries-foul-after-new-york-times-editorial-board;  https://cnsnews.com/article/washington/melanie-arter/gop-congressman-bidens-executive-orders-are-dictatorial.

Now, Biden dictates that “illegal aliens” will no longer exist – they are neither illegal nor aliens. They are non-illegal (that is, legal) non-aliens (that is, resident, domiciliary, or citizens), which is why – by executive order – they are now going to be counted in the Census, which redistributes federal resources and allocates congressional seats. The latest Biden gambit is banning words. See, e.g., https://www.foxnews.com/politics/biden-immigration-bill-alien-noncitizen; https://clarion.causeaction.com/2021/01/22/biden-wants-to-change-term-illegal-alien-to-illegal-noncitizen/; https://clarion.causeaction.com/2021/01/29/democrats-seek-to-ban-federal-agencies-from-using-illegal-alien-term/; https://www.breitbart.com/politics/2021/01/20/joe-biden-includes-illegal-aliens-in-census-to-change-congressional-seats-electoral-college-votes/.

All this makes sense, right? Of course, it does not.  One cannot redefine longstanding legal terms and expect people to say fine, okay, red it now blue, up is now down, illegal is now legal, male and female are 64 flavors of gender.  At some point, Americans say stop the nonsense, enough.

Note that we are talking about speech. Political action, peaceful protests, constitutionally forbidden political violence are not in play. This is just speech, the sort meant to hold meaning over time, and always free – no matter what the federal government may dictate.

The irony is that free speech is already under attack from Democrats, big money media, and monopolistic social media, which aim to control what is said about whom, or what you can say and what you cannot say, based on who they favor and disfavor.  That is not America – government-endorsed, monopolistic control over personal, professional, and political speech.

On top of social media, Democrat activists, network message minders, we now have Biden’s team telling us what terms in common use are permitted and not, in this “brave new world.”

Well, here is a news blast from the deep red universe, that place so mysterious to congressional Democrats where reality lives, works, is locked down, wants to use skills, earn a living, and raise families – without government intrusion.  Call this the high land, with no swamp dwellers.

Message: We can and will speak freely, as the Constitution – and 200 years of judicial precedent – allow. We will use words to describe life as it is, as we see it, as our Founders permitted us to speak, and as every generation before this one has done. We will honor our history, intellect, and common sense.  We will not call red blue, up down, or illegal legal – just a spade a spade.

In deference to Merriam-Webster, legal scholars, federal statutes, governing caselaw, and the Constitution, we will call those residing inside the US illegally “illegal aliens.” The Constitution permits citizens to choose their own words, even if some offend.  See, e.g., Brandenburg v. Ohio, 1969 (allowing offensive speech), NY Times v. Sullivan (allowing mistaken speech), and Cohen v. California, 1971 (people are “free to choose their words,” even if angry or offensive).

If you are not convinced, try reading the 200 cases defending freedom of speech, religion and assembly – which overlap and favor peaceful, vocal, offensive, sincere, liberty-minded citizens. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_United_States_Supreme_Court_cases_involving_the_First_Amendment.  We are still a land of laws, and as long as we are, those cases count.

Unilaterally dictating an end to Keystone is one thing.  Telling Americans what words mean is another. Free speech – if you will forgive the idea – is free and speech. In a phrase, hands off!