A federal appeals court ruled Friday that the Biden administration likely violated the First Amendment with some of its communications with social media companies.
Specifically, the US 5th Circuit Court of Appeals found that some White House administration officials such as the Surgeon General, FBI, and US Centers for Disease Control “coerced or significantly encouraged social media platforms to moderate content” to curb COVID-19 disinformation, a move that violated the First Amendment.
That said, the judge found that a preliminary injunction issued on July 4 by a judge in Louisiana that prohibited the Biden administration from communicating with social media companies at all on certain types of content was “both vague and broader than necessary to remedy the Plaintiffs’ injuries, as shown at this preliminary juncture.”
The suit was originally filed by the states of Louisiana and Missouri as well as the owner of a conservative website and four individuals that opposed how the administration handled COVID-19.
In addition to determining the original injunction was overly broad, the judge also said it included more agencies than were appropriate and removed some agencies from the order: the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency, and the State Department.
Specific concerns named in the suit include the administration asking platforms to take down posts dealing with election fraud, the pandemic, and yes, Hunter Biden’s laptop.
The Biden administration has claimed that the administration should have the power to discuss the removal of content when it impacts important things such as election security and public threats, including COVID-19.
Left in place by the 5th Circuit is part of the injunction that bars officials from “threatening, pressuring, or coercing social-media companies in any manner to remove, delete, suppress, or reduce posted content of postings containing protected free speech,” but argued that the injunction needs to be adjusted to target specifically illegal conduct given “those terms could also capture otherwise legal speech.”
In a tweet, Louisiana Attorney General Jeff Landry called the ruling a “major win against censorship.”
The 5th Circuit left the order on pause for 10 days so it could potentially be appealed to the Supreme Court.
“DOJ is reviewing the court’s decision and will evaluate its options in this case," the White House said in a statement. "This administration has promoted responsible actions to protect public health, safety, and security when confronted by challenges like a deadly pandemic and foreign attacks on our elections. Our consistent view remains that social media platforms have a critical responsibility to take account of the effects their platforms are having on the American people, but make independent choices about the information they present.”
