The New "Facebook Files" Show Everything the First Amendment Was Designed to Prevent

A House Subcommittee releases internal Facebook correspondence showing how a White House that was itself spreading disinformation tried to ban criticism

House Judiciary Chair Jim Jordan of Ohio went Gonzo on Twitter yesterday, releasing a string of documents subpoenaed by Facebook:

The “Facebook Files” story Jordan went on to tell revealed a worst-case scenario for modern digital censorship, in which the White House not only strong-armed Facebook to remove content, but did so over exactly the kind of speech the Constitution was designed to protect, political satire. Not only that, but the White House’s demand had clear political motivation. A law professor would have a difficult time scripting an episode more directly offensive to the First Amendment.