Rep. Clyde (R-GA) Introduces Legislation to Eliminate Government-by-Proxy Censorship

Rep Andrew Clyde (R-GA) led 10 of his colleagues in introducing the Free Speech Defense Act to eliminate government-by-proxy censorship. The legislation:

• Prohibits the federal government from directing, encouraging, or coercing social media companies to de-platform users, label content as misleading, trusted, true, or untrue, or share users’ data without a warrant
• Dismantles the Disinformation Governance Board and bans federal funding for any future iterations of such a panel
• Strengthens the Anti-deficiency Act by prohibiting employees of the federal government from soliciting or accepting no-cost services, such as free advertising
• Allows enforcement against the government in federal court if Americans can show that they were censored, de-platformed, or labeled, as these actions would violate the Free Speech Defense Act
• Requires an annual report to Congress by the U.S. Attorney General, in consultation with the Assistant Attorney General for Civil Rights, on the federal government’s compliance with the provisions within the legislation