President Donald Trump wants to curtail a specific First Amendment right in response to anti-deportation protests exploding in Los Angeles. But at least one Republican lawmaker remains adamantly opposed — and dared him to put it up for a vote.
Earlier this week, Trump demanded that people who burn the American flag in the street should receive "automatic" jail sentences of one year.
"I happen to think if you burn an American flag — because they were burning a lot of flags in Los Angeles — I think you go to jail for one year,” said Trump. “Just automatic.”
Rep. Thomas Massie (R-KY), however, had a simple message in response to that idea in a post to X on Wednesday.
"Bring this bill to the floor," wrote Massie, a hardcore antigovernment lawmaker whose laissez-faire beliefs and sincere desire for a small and balanced federal budget often clash with the priorities of his party. "This is an easy No vote for anyone who took their oath to the Constitution seriously."
The idea of prosecuting flag-burning has been perennial in right-wing politics, with several pushes and attempts for this over the years.
However, federal courts have established that burning the American flag, provided that it doesn't cause damage to others' property, is protected political speech under the First Amendment. This was enshrined into case law in Texas v. Johnson, the landmark 1989 Supreme Court decision that upheld the overturning of a Texas "flag desecration" law that had been used against a demonstrator who was protesting the Ronald Reagan administration.
Trump has escalated the conflict against protesters in Los Angeles over the last week, sending in the National Guard and Marines in what he insists is a necessary attempt to restore order, which California officials have blasted as an unconstitutional response.
