AMAC Exclusive
Yesterday in front of his stately clubhouse in Bedminster, NJ, former President Donald Trump formally launched a legal and political battle to stop Big Tech’s assault on free speech. President Trump announced that he has filed a class action lawsuit against Twitter, Facebook, and Google—and their CEOs—to put an end to what he described as unconstitutional censorship of protected political speech on their platforms.
Trump serves as the lead class representative on the lawsuit, filed in conjunction with the America First Policy Institute (AFPI) in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida. The suit asks the technology giants to stop political censorship of users, and as well as impose punitive damages and the option for the former president to restore his social media accounts. The legal effort is being spearheaded by John Coale, a prominent lawyer in Washington, D.C.
Trump, along with Coale, his legal team, and representatives from AFPI, held a press conference Wednesday morning to outline details of the case and spell out the dangers posed by Big Tech companies to the free speech rights of all Americans.
Brooke Rollins, AFPI’s president, said on Wednesday that Twitter, Facebook, and Google now effectively make up the American public square: where ideas are born, opinions are expressed, and thoughts are freely and openly exchanged. Since the American Founding, speaking freely—whether in person, in writing, or online—has been a fundamental part of the American tradition, harkening all the way back to the ratification of the First Amendment in 1791. “From the very beginning of our nation, freedom of speech has always been understood as a bedrock of our liberty,” Trump said in his remarks Wednesday.
But as the former President indicated, Big Tech has failed to live up to its duty of preserving the timeless American tradition of free speech—and in doing so, it has forfeited the trust of the American people and undermined confidence in American democracy.
Trump acknowledged that although social media platforms are formally private companies with the legal prerogative to control their platforms as they see fit, in recent years, they have effectively become public companies as they have taken advantage of Congressionally granted legal protections under Section 230 to censor voices that do not align with their political worldview.
Section 230 was codified into law by Congress in 1996 as part of the Communications Decency Act, and initially rested on the logic that social media platforms are indeed platforms tasked with maximizing “user control over what information is received by individuals, families, and schools.” Its controversial immunity provision maintains that social media platforms are not held legally liable for content shared by their users.
Yet, as President Trump indicated in his remarks, these platforms have abused these protections and routinely exercised editorial judgments in arbitrarily determining what speech to allow and what speech to forbid. Big Tech, he stated, is “working with government, the mainstream media, and a large segment of a political party, to silence and suppress the views of the American People.”
Also joining Trump at the announcement was a small group of Americans who have experienced the overreaches of Big Tech firsthand, including a Michigan schoolteacher whose Facebook account was deactivated for sharing content questioning the efficacy of masks for children. Also present were Kiyan and Bobby Michael, Angel Parents whose son was killed by a twice-deported illegal alien in a road collision. They were banned from Twitter after sharing their experiences and speaking out against illegal immigration.
Because of these platforms’ now-outsized role in the restriction of speech and content online, Coale and his legal team are seeking to prove that they have positioned themselves as government actors. Coale reiterated that the flow of information in American society ought not be controlled by “a couple guys out in California,” and asked the Supreme Court to intervene. The Court, Coale noted, has a long and steady history of preserving First Amendment rights and preventing non-government actors from carrying out de facto government responsibilities.
If successful in Court, the suit could diminish or possibly eliminate social media companies’ Section 230 protections altogether. It could also force the platforms to reinstate Trump’s access to the platforms, which he said on Wednesday that he may or may not use should he regain control of his accounts.
The fight to preserve “the American people’s birthright of freedom,” in President Trump’s words, is notably not a partisan effort. Democrat Senator and former presidential candidate Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) has repeatedly expressed support for regulations against social media giants, saying she hopes to “rein in the unfettered power of Big Tech.” Additionally, a poll released by Scott Rasmussen in July indicates a majority of Americans share concerns about the growing power of these platforms: 63 percent of Americans believe Big Tech should be required to abide by the First Amendment guarantee of free speech, and 68 percent of Americans believe social media companies should guarantee the fair treatment of every citizen over protecting their own interests.
From the days of the American Founding 245 years ago, the American people and their government have always recognized free speech to be an indispensable component of our democracy, as Trump noted yesterday. With legal fights like this one and continued legislative efforts on the state and local levels, the nationwide movement to rein in Big Tech and restore free speech rights is only just beginning.
I’ve had it with Facebook tossing me in FB Jail and calling me a Bully. I’m 73 years old and have just gotten out of a week of FB Jail and called a Bully which I am not. I know what a Bully is since I was bullied as a child growing up. Seems when someone uses the Black card and they are not Black you cannot call them out or call them an ugly B. The person who must have turned me is is nothing more than a radical leftist Democrat who takes joy in causing problems and I guess she thinks I one. I posted what a Bull is and I do not fit what they said a Bully is. FB said it did not conform to their standards. What standards are they talking about since what I said was not even close to their so-called standards. They have even put people in jail for sharing shelter dogs to much. How is that against standards since I cannot find one thing about sharing shelter dogs to much. This has got to stop. They are attacking all of us conservatives or should I say Republicans. They are also using posts from months and years ago and putting people in jail for them…These Dictators of Facebook and Twitter and Google and UTube need to be stopped. Section 230 needs to be done away with. These big Techs think they are God and are treating us less like Americans with freedoms to a dictatorship like Cuba. Between my husband and I we have over 100 years of career military men who have been in war protecting America and the people. My husband alone spent 30 years in the US Marines, three tours in Vietnam, wounded receiving the Purple Heart, several Bronze starts and was awarded the Silver Star My family story would shock you and everyone else. My father was a full Bird Col in the Air Force and was with Strategic Air Command and worked with Lockheed Martin on the super spy plans that the American people knew nothing about back then. He had a Top Secret Clearance and my family had Secret Clearances. I knew things growing up that I wasn’t allow to talk about but I can now like the U-2 and SR-71 both aircraft my father flew. My grandfather was a full Col in the Army and was a medical doctor and after leaving the Army became Chief of Staff of the VA in Los Angeles. My father-in-law was a Chief Petty Officer and stationed with his wife and two sons (my husband was only 3 months old) in Hawaii during Pearl Harbor attack so they all were consider Pearl Harbor Survivors. I could go on and on but I just wanted everyone know that I’m not a nut case or anything like that. I was born a true Patriot and I’m tire of being censored. I want to help anyway I can to stop this madness in our country today. My grandparents and parents produced true products of the Greatest Generation. I will not allow what they did for America be tossed in the trash.
Google is surpressing search results for trump class action law suit can someone direct me to where i myself can jkin the suit please
Good Go 45! Nail these creeps!
Remember way back in 1978 when “Peanut Brain”‘ Jimmy Carter established Department of Education?
This IS what happens. We The People no longer have ANY control over what The Communist Indoctrination Bureau feeds the brains of OUR children!
I am old and on a fixed income. I donate to OUR cause when i can but that ability is shrinking. Thanks to ” Puss for Brains” and the Lunatics in Charge of “The Asylum” prices on everything especially essentials has become a burden. I am considering selling my car to keep expenses down. I rarely go anywhere because of hate and violence here in Illinois. Comrade Commissar’s answer is to punish law abiding gun owners and kiss the criminals!
Thank YOU DemoRats!
How come it’s all to donate money and no place to join in law suit sign up ?
Thank you Mr. President for taking this next step to rein in big tech once & for all…This is long overdue & I believe the President will succeed in this along with his excellent legal team…
After all is said & done, I foresee Section 230 protections going away for Facebook, Twitter, Google & others & becoming ” public utilities. ” As to whether or not the President utilizes these companies again, it really matters not at this point, I personally think Mr. Trump will find better platforms, if not build his own…
Off subject here just a tad, perhaps not, I believe Mr. Zuckerberg will be facing some jailtime as a direct result of his tampering in the 2020 US Presidential Election. When that day arrives as I hope it does sooner rather than later, he will lose his social media company in either case & that will in of itself be a blessing in disguise. It is time for every American to get his/her 1st Amendment Freedom of Speech back back per the United States Constitution…
Bill on the Hill… :~)
Big Tech’s ability to ‘ban’ certain users or censor their views is like the phone company monopoly of yore, Ma Bell, being able to decide who could have a telephone and what they could say on it or to whom. They could not refuse service to all Blacks for instance.
Big Tech is the same type of monopoly that Ma Bll was in its day in the marketplace for the distribution of information. They MUST NOT be able to exclude people based simply on the premise that they ‘don’t like them personally’ or disagree with their opinions. If they aren’t going to provide equal access to ALL the people, they should be broken up so the smaller entities can and will.
Add LinkedIn too into mix,
President Trump once again our champion!! You sir are a great patriot, you see wrongs and take action to right them. The greatest President in my 71 year lifetime!! I hope I have the privilege to vote for you again in 2024.
All teachers who are patriots should IMMEDIATELY cancel membership in NEA and AFT. They no longer are interested in EDUCATING children. They want to INDOCTRINATE them into Marxists!
If enough teachers cancelled their memberships, these creeps would lose a large portion of their money stream! (I have been a teacher for 45 years.)
In regards to the lawyer that responded that private businesses have the right to reject anyone that they feel like. I would like to direct this lawyers attention to the cake shop owners,the florist and several teachers and parents! Any other comments Mr. lawyer?
Charge___Go get’em! OUR PRESIDENT is the only one that I’ve seen in my life time with the guts to defend our Constitutional rights! Too bad his Supreme Court appointees don’t know enough about the constitution to defend it. They’ve been indoctrinated also!
I am all for this lawsuit, someone needs to fight and win against the un-American left, and their controlling free speech, we became a strong nation by the free exchange of ideas, if you don’t like what I have to say don’t read or listen to what I have to say its that simple. I don’t like what ABC, NBC, CBS, MSDNC, CNN, say so I don’t watch them, they are morons and buffoons and have little intellect to share that I agree with, but, I will defend their right to say what whatever they want, and if I disagree with their view it is my responsibility to give my point of view, we don’t stop free press and speech, we encourage more free speech and press. If you are so little minded that you have to stop my exchange of ideas so yours is the only one, then you must have a very weak position, and cannot win with you point of view in a competitive world and you will wither and die like fruit left on the vine.
WIN TRUMP, WIN !!!!!!!!!!
To President Trump: “You get ’em, big boy!”
One lawyer responded within the hour with an opinion that this class action lawsuit will be put down right away because private business has the right to exclude anyone. Others, especially the ones who have been kicked off of twitter and facebook can feel the pain when they are kicked. We know what being censored (thus denied freedom of speech) feels like. It is not quite as bad as a lynching but close and we have to escape the noose.