In response to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s speech to Congress on Wednesday, noisy anti-Israel figures protest Protests broke out in Washington, D.C., with protesters destroying a statue outside Washington’s Union Station and chanting slogans such as “Hamas is coming” and “Long live the resistance.” Protesters at one point replaced the American flag with a Palestinian flag and then burned the American flag.
In response to flag burning, former President Trump tells fox and friends On Wednesday, he argued that those who burn or damage the American flag should face jail time. Trump also dismissed those who pointed out that flag desecration is protected speech under the First Amendment.
“If you do anything to desecrate the American flag, you should be sentenced to one year in prison.” explain trump card. “Now, people are going to say, ‘Oh, this is unconstitutional.'” Those who say that are stupid people.
“We have to work in Congress to get a year in prison,” Trump continued. “When they are allowed to stomp on the flag, put lighter fluid on it and light it on fire, when you are allowed to do that – you get a year in prison and you never see it again.”
This isn’t the first time Trump has called for jailing people who burn the flag.
“We should have legislation that says if you burn the American flag, you will be imprisoned for a year,” Trump said in a 2020 speech. assembly In Tulsa, Oklahoma. “We should do this. We talk about freedom of speech… but this is blasphemy,” he added.
However, Trump is dead wrong. In 1989, the Supreme Court ruled Texas v. Johnson Burning flags is protected speech. While you can still face property damage-related charges for burning someone else’s flag (as happened Wednesday), burning a flag you own is protected political expression.
Chief Justice William Brennan wrote in the Court’s majority opinion: “If there is a fundamental principle of the First Amendment, it is that the government may not impose an objection simply because society finds an idea inherently objectionable or offensive. “We do not recognize exceptions to this principle even when it comes to our flag. “
While anti-Israel protesters in Washington, D.C., may still face vandalism charges for their actions on Wednesday, every American has the right to burn their own American flag — no matter how offensive some presidential candidates consider their actions.
