Both the Trump administration and other elected officials continue to develop protections for Americans from encroaching foreign censorship.
Sen. Eric Schmitt (R-MO) wrote a letter, which he posted on X, asking the Trump Administration to “sanction foreign actors—in the European Union and elsewhere—who aid and abet this censorship regime.” A State Department official responded by declaring that foreign governments censoring Americans’ online speech crosses “a red line,” which is why that department is looking to take more action also.
MRC Vice President for Free Speech America Dan Schneider highlighted the importance of this effort. “The Brits are locking up people who post things in America that the UK authorities don't like. The Europeans are imposing fines on Americans simply for supporting free speech rights. The people we once saved from fascism have joined the other side and declared war on fundamental human rights. This is a battle we must once again win,” he said.
Schmitt wrote in the letter to Under Secretary of State Sarah B. Rogers on his “grave concerns about the threats to American speech and sovereignty posed by an emergent international censorship regime.” He accused foreign governments of launching “a full-scale bid for control of American public discourse, seeking to impose hard-left ideological strictures on our nation from abroad.”
As an example, he cited the fact that the European Union recently fined X $140 million under the anti-free speech Digital Services Act. The EU has been pressuring X to be more aggressive in censoring speech online, whether the individuals are EU citizens or not, Schmitt warned.
He asked Rogers if the State Department has the “statutory tools” necessary for taking on foreign government censorship and if congressional legislation is needed to assist the department in this effort. He also asked if the department is aware of changes X has made to comply with EU demands, whether X censors Americans at foreign request and whether other governments have demanded X censorship of Americans since 2023.
Rogers reacted to Schmitt’s announcement by approving the legislation and indicating that the State Department is interested in assisting the senator’s goals with its own plan. “When foreign governments censor foreign speech, they err. But when they aim to censor American speech—on American soil, and American networks — they cross a red line. We look forward to @SenEricSchmitt’s forthcoming legislation. And, watch for more from @StateDept soon.” Rogers’ comments seem to refer to the fact that Schmitt is working on legislation to address foreign censorship, though it is not clear if she meant specific existing legislation or his ongoing efforts.
As another instance of what Schmitt highlighted, Google, Microsoft and Meta were exposed in November as key parts of the complex and far-reaching German censorship network, according to a recent study from Liber-net, a digital civil liberties initiative. Earlier this year, Vice President JD Vance bashed European censorship at the Munich Security Conference.
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