At the beginning of this year, the law to protect reporters from exploitative state espionage (PRESS LAW) passed the Republican-controlled House of Representatives. However, in line with that of President-elect Donald Trump TruthSocial Policy to “kill the bill!” Last month, Republicans’ stance changed dramatically. On Tuesday, a Senate Republicans blocked the bill.
The PRESS Act is intended to protect journalists from state pressure to disclose their sources and limit unjustified data confiscation. Oregon Democratic Senator Ron Wyden brought the bill forward for a unanimous vote, while Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) made the usual hyperbole and railed against incoming President-elect Donald Trump (as if we weren’t there with him). would watch him yap about it). with the “Great Orange Threat to Democracy” at the Al Smith dinner in October).
But okay, back to political theater.
Trump has a affable chat with Chuck Schumer at the Al Smith dinner. This is the guy who they say is going to start rounding up his enemies from day one?
Kamala could/would never chat to Ted Cruz or Jim Jordan like that.
Do you want the nation to heal? Vote for Trump. pic.twitter.com/oUxvbKKBnl
– Free (@KaladinFree) October 19, 2024
Schumer argued that the bill’s passage occurred as follows:
Today it is more vital than ever as some in the previous administration have talked about cracking down on the press in one way or another.
As in 2022, Sen. Tom Cotton (R-AR) single-handedly blocked the bill under the unanimous consent process, in which only an objection can stop the process. In defense of his stance, Cotton argued on the Senate floor that the bill posed a significant threat to U.S. national security and claimed it would force the Senate to:
to the lively accomplices of deep state leakers, traitors and criminals, along with the America-hating and fame-hungry journalists who aid them.
Cotton also called the legislation:
the greatest gift to the liberal press in American history.
Tom Cotton defends his opposition to the PRESS Act by citing journalism during the wars in Vietnam, Iraq and Afghanistan that revealed to Americans that their government had lied to them about the status of the campaigns https://t.co/ZfG6OguWpf pic.twitter.com/uhGieLY80R
– a journalist (@a_newsman) December 10, 2024
While Cotton vehemently opposes the bill, a closer look shows that Republicans support it significantly. The report, authored by California Republican Kevin Kiley, passed the House of Representatives without a single dissenting vote.
I’m grateful that today the House of Representatives passed my bill, the PRESS Act, which protects journalists from being forced to disclose their sources. Freedom depends on freedom of the press. Journalists are often the first to expose government fraud, waste, abuse and overreach. pic.twitter.com/Gy1YLnthS5
– Rep. Kevin Kiley (@RepKiley) January 18, 2024
The legislation was also advocated by Catherine Herridge, both in testimony before the Justice Committee in April and during one captivating discussion with Tucker Carlson about her own experiences with CBS News, during an episode titled “Why did CBS News fire Catherine Herridge and confiscate her reporting records? And like that Press act can save the country.“
SEE ALSO:
WATCH: Catherine Herridge sheds lithe on CBS and explains what happened to the firing and the seized files
While there are fears of a Trump dictatorship, there is silence as Biden becomes authoritarian with the press
Once the over-the-top “Trump-proofing” rhetoric dies down, perhaps this bipartisan bill can receive the fair reconsideration it deserves and focus solely on its merits in preserving the role of the Fourth Estate in our democracy.
