So, is Robert Kennedy Jr. this hypocritical on purpose? He can’t be that dumb, can he?
“You have Democrats out there saying you have to get rid of the First Amendment, you have to get rid of freedom of speech,” he says, likely unable to point to a single Democrat who actually is saying such things. Remember, the First Amendment doesn’t apply to private companies. It only applies to the government.
For example, here at Daily Kos, we can ban whoever we want. The Constitution is utterly silent regarding our right to do so. Our forum, our rules. So yes, Facebook should shut down Kennedy, but not because the government demands it. That would be unconstitutional. Private companies should shut him down because people are dying from his dangerous lies, and who wants that stain on their conscience?
That said, it is really rich to whine about attacks on the First Amendment when he, himself, is suing Daily Kos because a community member dared criticize him for attending a Nazi rally, at the behest of a white supremacist extremist party, in Berlin.
You can get the background here, here, here, here, and here. Nothing new to report since then, as the next hearing isn’t until early November. Still, we’re feeling good about our long-term legal chances because, drum roll: the First Amendment!
Kennedy, presumably, is pissed on that soapbox because he’s been kicked off of several private platforms, including Instagram and YouTube. He’s still on Facebook, though, so don’t worry. He’s not off the world’s ‘top distributor of people-killing misinformation’ list. I did do a brief scan of his Facebook page, and it seemed devoid of anti-vaxx bullshit. So that seems like a good thing. He clearly doesn’t want to be banned from there either. But again, that has nothing to do with the First Amendment. Government isn’t mandating any muzzle.
So it is bizarre and hypocritical for him to utter the words “First Amendment,” given his efforts to dox one of our community members. He’s smart enough to know that our Constitution gives him zero chance to win any defamation suit. He’s not even trying to sue other media outlets that reported on his Nazi soirée. He’s not suing me or Daily Kos for repeating the same information. Nope. He’s solely focused on learning the identity of a pseudonymous person who reported the story in a Daily Kos community story.
Why? Who the hell knows. He’s a twisted, sick individual who has made a mockery of his family’s legacy. His own family has distanced itself, calling him “dangerous,” as if he has the plague, because he likely does. Maybe even more than one plague. He is, indeed, against all vaccinations.
But here’s a pro tip: Don’t stand on a literal pedestal and cry about the loss of free speech when not a single governmental entity tried to shut you down. They let him have his speech, for free.
Kennedy has unlimited financial resources, so we wouldn’t be able to protect our community without your help. Thanks to everyone who has already contributed. Thanks to Public Citizen for waging an amazing defense of our community, pro bono. If you want to help fund these legal efforts against a dangerous, murderous conspiracy theorist, please click here. Also consider a donation to Public Citizen for having this community’s back.
