Rep. Clay Higgins, the deeply problematic Louisiana Republican, threatened to have anybody who he says “belittled the assassination of Charlie Kirk” banned from social media platforms.
“If they ran their mouth with their smartass hatred celebrating the heinous murder of that beautiful young man who dedicated his whole life to delivering respectful conservative truth into the hearts of liberal enclave universities, armed only with a Bible and a microphone and a Constitution… those profiles must come down,” Higgins wrote in a publish on X of Kirk, who was gunned down on Wednesday at a university occasion in Utah. “So, I’m going to lean forward in this fight, demanding that big tech have zero tolerance for violent political hate content, the user to be banned from ALL PLATFORMS FOREVER.”
“Sorry, Charlie” by Clay Jones
In fact, it’s in dangerous style to joke about somebody who was killed. However that’s in no means unlawful conduct. It’s additionally a wild transfer from a man who purports to be a supporter of free speech.
Certainly, Higgins co-sponsored the “Protecting Speech from Government Interference Act” in 2023, which sought to ban “federal employees from censoring the speech of others while acting in an official capacity.” Banning individuals from social media for making posts you don’t like positive seems like censorship to me.
What’s extra, if Higgins desires individuals who make gross social media posts banned from platforms, he would not have social media accounts himself.
Again in 2020, Higgins threatened to shoot Black protesters, writing in a Fb publish alongside a picture of armed Black males, “One way ticket fellas…Have your affairs in order…I’d drop any 10 of you where you stand.”
“Nothing personal. We just eliminate the threat. We don’t care what color you are. … If you show up like this … you won’t walk away,” Higgins’ publish, which was faraway from Fb for violating its insurance policies round inciting violence, stated.
And when former Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s husband was practically bludgeoned to demise in his own residence in 2022, Higgins made one other sick joke on social media concerning the assault. Higgins deleted that disgusting publish on his personal.
Higgins isn’t the one Republican who has made detestable social media posts about assassinations.
In June, Sen. Mike Lee (R-UT) despatched a vile X publish mocking the assassinations of former Minnesota state Home Speaker Melissa Hortman and her husband, in addition to the tried homicide of Minnesota state Sen. John Hoffman.
Lee tweeted a safety footage picture of the alleged murderer, who was wearing a masks, together with the textual content “Nightmare on Waltz Avenue.”
Lee later deleted the posts after he was confronted by Democratic lawmakers.
