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Earlier in August, European Union Commissioner Thierry Breton sparked controversy by sending Elon Musk a letter, posted on X, warning him to comply with the E.U.’s censorship laws ahead of an interview with presidential candidate Donald Trump. Musk responded to Breton’s letter by quoting a line from the film “Tropic Thunder,” suggesting that the commissioner should, among other things, “take a step back.”
Watch the video above as Straight Arrow News contributor Ben Weingarten argues that Breton’s comments were an outrageous attack on free speech and questions why the Biden administration remained silent on the issue.
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The following is an excerpt from the above video:
While the EU officially distanced itself from Breton’s remarks, it did not condemn them. Musk, for his part, told Breton to pound sand. The British government did not so respond to the metropolitan commissioner’s threats. They remained. American lawmakers were almost uniformly silent, with the exception of Republican senators like Mike Lee and the Republican leaders of the House Judiciary Committee.
This is an outrage. Where were President Biden and Vice President Harris? Where’s the State Department? This is a question that ought to be on the ballot in 2024. Will you defend Americans from being extradited for protected speech? Will you defend American platforms that facilitate free and open discourse from foreign attacks, and indeed, as reflected in the Musk-Trump threats, from election interference?
Our freedom of speech, and thus, all our other freedoms will die if no one will stand for them.
