Magical rainbow show wraps up an MU Extension-meeting week

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“Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.”

The First Amendment is a critical piece of our country’s framework and one of our defining qualities as a nation. There is a reason our forefathers chose to make this the first amendment to the Constitution.  After living under an oppressive system that maintained its power by controlling what the people see, read, say, and even how they pray, the Founders knew the freedom of thought and expression was fundamental to a “government of the people, for the people.”

In today’s world full of safe spaces, trigger words, and faux offense taken to nearly every word uttered in public, some people, including some of my colleagues, have seemingly begun to find the First Amendment more of an imposition than a Constitutional necessity. Apparently, some believe a person is only free to speak his or her mind as long as that person is agreeing with their beliefs.

This week, House Democrats forced through the House a bill called the SHIELD Act. While they touted their bill as an effort to enhance election security, the only thing the bill would actually accomplish is giving the government control over free speech and the media. The SHIELD Act would actually give the Federal government the authority to determine what qualifies as legitimate news and censor the content viewed by the public.  It is a scary thought – having our news cycle controlled by a government agency.

This bill would also give the Federal Election Commission (FEC) even more authority to monitor citizens’ political speech on the internet.  It even allows the FEC to decide what qualifies as “political” speech in an effort to limit and control it. An agency charged with guaranteeing free and open elections has no business monitoring and deciding what we choose to read and watch. Again, these restraints are alarmingly rigid and do not reflect our American values.

For a bill about election security, there are also some major elements missing. This Soviet-style takeover of our media, ironically contains no provisions to prevent Russians from tampering with our elections.  In fact, when Republicans tried to attach an amendment offered by Congressman Rodney Davis of Illinois that strengthens our ability to target foreign actors that meddle in our elections, only three democrats voted in favor.

Fortunately, this bill has no chance of passing the Senate and the White House has already publicly stated it would be vetoed if it made it to the President’s desk.  However, its passage in the House illustrates just how far Democrats are willing to go to control public opinion.  Their war on President Trump is already preventing us from meaningful achievements like the passage of the USMCA, and now it is threatening the fundamental rights of all Americans. I was proud to vote “no” on this bill and will continue to be a strong defender of the First Amendment.

CONTACT US: As always, for those of you with Internet access, I encourage you to visit my official website. For those without access to the Internet, I encourage you to call my offices in Jefferson City (573-635-7232) Washington, Mo. (636-239-2276), or Wentzville (636-327-7055) with your questions and concerns. If you want even greater access to what I am working on, please visit my YouTube site, Facebook page, and keep up-to-date with Twitter and Instagram.