The First Amendment Doesn’t Protect The Federal Workers Tweeting … – Huffington Post
The Constitution can be heartbreaking sometimes.
The free speech protections enshrined in the First Amendment do not apply to the rogue National Park Service employees who have been tweeting out facts about climate change, courageously defying the Trump administrations stance on the environment.
Many people have rallied around these government workers, whose social media postings on climate science and research could very well land them in trouble, according to First Amendment experts.
Federal agencies, not individual employees, control messaging on their official accounts,explained Eugene Volokh, a law professor at UCLA who specializes on free-speech issues.
The First Amendment doesnt protect [these employees] right to speak on the employers Twitter feed in a way that the employer disapproves of, he said, pointing to an important Supreme Court case dealing with the speech of government workers.
Esha Bhandari, a staff attorney with the American Civil Liberties Unions Speech, Privacy, and Technology Project,more or less concurred with that assessment.
The new administration is entitled to use the official channels of government whether they be press briefings or websites or social media accounts to put out its own messages, and it can decide what federal employees are allowed to communicate when they are on the job, Bhandari wrote in a blog post.
This means that these brave employees couldnt raise the First Amendment defense if they get in trouble at their jobs for these tweets, although there may be other civil service protections available to them.
In addition, nothing prevents these workers from using their personal Twitter accounts to speak out about issues of public concern but even there, Bhandari cautions that First Amendment protections are strongest when they are speaking about issues that do not relate to their job duties.
There are also whistleblower protections for federal workers who would like to sound the alarm about unethical or otherwise illegal activity occurring at their agencies.
The federal government must foster an environment where employee disclosures are welcomed, Carolyn Lerner, the head of theU.S. Office of Special Counsel, said Wednesday in a statement.This makes our government work better and protects taxpayer dollars through disclosures of waste, fraud, and abuse.
But on the broader realm of freedom of speech, things are more complicated. Ken White, a longtime criminal defense attorney and First Amendment lawyer, wrote acheat sheet on these issues for people who would like to learn more, which may come handy in the Donald Trump era.
Those limitations aside,public outcry may ultimately play a role.
Heidi Kitrosser, a law professor at the University of Minnesota, told Reuters that the Bush administration caused an outcry in 2006 after The New York Timesreported that a public affairs appointee at NASA was essentially placing a gag order on a climate scientist who wanted to speak freely to the press. Things changed at the agency after a congressional investigation.
Bad press and public pressure help,Kitrosser said. The main thing right now is screaming.
See the original post:
The First Amendment Doesn't Protect The Federal Workers Tweeting ... - Huffington Post
- Opinion - Jesse Green: Congress must not violate First Amendment in fight against anti-semitism - Northern Kentucky Tribune - June 29th, 2025 [June 29th, 2025]
- VICTORY: New York high school to strengthen First Amendment protections following FIRE lawsuit - FIRE | Foundation for Individual Rights and... - June 28th, 2025 [June 28th, 2025]
- FCCs First Amendment Tour Arrives in Kentucky - The Daily Yonder - June 28th, 2025 [June 28th, 2025]
- ACLU of Pennsylvania Applauds Passage of Legislation to Expand First Amendment Protections in the Commonwealth - ACLU of Pennsylvania - June 28th, 2025 [June 28th, 2025]
- FIRE to court: AI speech is still speech and the First Amendment still applies - FIRE | Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression - June 28th, 2025 [June 28th, 2025]
- Podcast: Broadcast Journalism, First Amendment, and the Future - Wisconsin Broadcasters Association - June 28th, 2025 [June 28th, 2025]
- Advertising Companies Cave to the FTC. Media Matters Sues To Defend the First Amendment. - Reason Magazine - June 28th, 2025 [June 28th, 2025]
- Punishing Universities for Their Viewpoints Violates the First Amendment - Cato Institute - June 28th, 2025 [June 28th, 2025]
- Palestinian Student Sues Michigan School Over Teachers Reaction to Her Refusal To Stand for Pledge - First Amendment Watch - June 28th, 2025 [June 28th, 2025]
- CDT and EFF Urge Court to Carefully Consider Users First Amendment Rights in Garcia v. Character Technologies, Inc. - - Center for Democracy and... - June 24th, 2025 [June 24th, 2025]
- University of Oregon ordered to cover legal fees after settling First Amendment lawsuit - Campus Reform - June 24th, 2025 [June 24th, 2025]
- City attorney cites First Amendment rights in allowing rally; Third Street to open soon - Northern Wyoming News - June 20th, 2025 [June 20th, 2025]
- Guest column: 1,000 gathered in Oak Ridge to defend First Amendment - Oak Ridger - June 20th, 2025 [June 20th, 2025]
- Fighting Antisemitism Should Not Come at the Expense of the First Amendment - Reason Magazine - June 18th, 2025 [June 18th, 2025]
- How Hawley, Marshall choose Trump over the First Amendment | Opinion - Kansas City Star - June 18th, 2025 [June 18th, 2025]
- FARRAND: Saturday was a day we exercised three of our First Amendment rights - thenewsherald.com - June 18th, 2025 [June 18th, 2025]
- The State of the First Amendment in the University of North Carolina System - FIRE | Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression - June 18th, 2025 [June 18th, 2025]
- The First Amendment is Again in Colorados Crosshairs - The Federalist Society - June 18th, 2025 [June 18th, 2025]
- The Military Parade and Protections of the First Amendment - Just Security - June 18th, 2025 [June 18th, 2025]
- Court ruling clarifies limits of NCs First Amendment protection - Carolina Journal - June 18th, 2025 [June 18th, 2025]
- Letter to the Editor - Campbell County Democrats Cherish First Amendment Rights - The Mountain Press - June 18th, 2025 [June 18th, 2025]
- Editorial: Lets remember the peaceably part of First Amendment - Everett Herald - June 18th, 2025 [June 18th, 2025]
- PETA Sues NIH, NIMH in Groundbreaking First Amendment Lawsuit - People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) - June 18th, 2025 [June 18th, 2025]
- First Amendment expert explains the right to protest amid 'No Kings' movement - CBS News - June 18th, 2025 [June 18th, 2025]
- ACLU of Nevada shares guidelines for protesters to safeguard their First Amendment rights - KSNV - June 18th, 2025 [June 18th, 2025]
- Las Vegas ICE protests: First Amendment right or breaking the law? - KLAS 8 News Now - June 18th, 2025 [June 18th, 2025]
- Rights afforded to protestors by the First Amendment, and what it does not give you the right to do - Action News Now - June 18th, 2025 [June 18th, 2025]
- What can and can't you do with your First Amendment right of free speech? - KMPH - June 18th, 2025 [June 18th, 2025]
- The First Amendment Is the backbone of democracy - Herald-Banner - June 18th, 2025 [June 18th, 2025]
- First Amendment thoughts ahead of weekend protests | Whales Tales - Auburn Reporter - June 18th, 2025 [June 18th, 2025]
- Mass. AFL-CIO president says Trump administration is 'ripping up' the First Amendment - WBUR - June 10th, 2025 [June 10th, 2025]
- No First Amendment Violation in Excluding Associated Press from "the Room Where It Happens" - Reason Magazine - June 10th, 2025 [June 10th, 2025]
- Contra the Trump FTC, Boycotts Are Protected by the First Amendment - RealClearMarkets - June 10th, 2025 [June 10th, 2025]
- Letter to the editor: Thanks to EPD for respecting my First Amendment rights on Palestine and Israel - Evanston RoundTable - June 10th, 2025 [June 10th, 2025]
- Texas Harassment Conviction for Sending 34 Messages Over 15 Weeks to Ex-Therapist Violates First Amendment - Reason Magazine - June 10th, 2025 [June 10th, 2025]
- Opinion | This Trump Executive Order Is Bad for Human Rights and the First Amendment - The New York Times - June 10th, 2025 [June 10th, 2025]
- Contra the FTC, Boycotts Protected by First Amendment - RealClearMarkets - June 10th, 2025 [June 10th, 2025]
- PBS sues Trump administration over funding cuts, alleging they violate First Amendment - CBS News - June 1st, 2025 [June 1st, 2025]
- British Attacks on Free Speech Prove the Value of the First Amendment - Reason Magazine - June 1st, 2025 [June 1st, 2025]
- Students Protesting the Genocide in Gaza Are Losing Their First Amendment Rights - splinter.com - June 1st, 2025 [June 1st, 2025]
- PBS sues Trump administration, says executive order cutting federal funding violates First Amendment - Fox News - June 1st, 2025 [June 1st, 2025]
- PBS sues Trump over funding cuts to public media and alleges First Amendment violation - Business Insider - June 1st, 2025 [June 1st, 2025]
- Trump Lawyers Claim 60 Minutes Harris Interview Caused Him Mental Anguish, Argue That the First Amendment Is No Shield to News Distortion in Motion to... - June 1st, 2025 [June 1st, 2025]
- Trumps executive orders: Due process, breathtaking sweeps, and the evils of intentional vagueness First Amendment News 472 - FIRE | Foundation for... - June 1st, 2025 [June 1st, 2025]
- Free speech is the rule: Alito wants more First Amendment protections for students after middle schooler is punished for wearing There Are Only Two... - June 1st, 2025 [June 1st, 2025]
- Judge Denies Artificial Intelligence Chatbot First Amendment Protections in Lawsuit - FindLaw - June 1st, 2025 [June 1st, 2025]
- NPR sues over Trump order cutting off its funding, citing First Amendment - Duncan Banner - June 1st, 2025 [June 1st, 2025]
- South Bend Stops YouTubers Bid to Revive First Amendment Claim - Bloomberg Law News - May 17th, 2025 [May 17th, 2025]
- Trump Administration Likely Violated American Bar Association's First Amendment Rights - Reason Magazine - May 15th, 2025 [May 15th, 2025]
- Perkins Coie Litigation Team Secures First Amendment Federal Court Win for DEF CON - Perkins Coie - May 15th, 2025 [May 15th, 2025]
- How swiftly power can be weaponized against dissenting voicesincluding the free and open press as protected by the First Amendment - Northeast Valley... - May 15th, 2025 [May 15th, 2025]
- NYUs First Amendment Watch Launches Trump 2.0: Executive Power and the First Amendment - NYU - May 10th, 2025 [May 10th, 2025]
- CCIA Files Amicus Brief Defending the First Amendment Rights of Email Service Providers - CCIA - May 10th, 2025 [May 10th, 2025]
- Zick on executive orders and official orthodoxies First Amendment News 469 - FIRE | Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression - May 10th, 2025 [May 10th, 2025]
- Why Journalists Must Band Together to Defend the First Amendment - PEN America - May 10th, 2025 [May 10th, 2025]
- Youngkin vetoes Confederate tax break roll back, but First Amendment scholar says that might be best - WHRO - May 10th, 2025 [May 10th, 2025]
- Baxter County facing $102,757 payment after losing eight-year First Amendment lawsuit - Mountain Home Observer - May 10th, 2025 [May 10th, 2025]
- DOJ to investigate this new Washington law for first amendment violations - KGW - May 10th, 2025 [May 10th, 2025]
- Judge orders Tufts scholar Rumeysa Ozturk released from ICE detention after serious First Amendment and due process questions - MSN - May 10th, 2025 [May 10th, 2025]
- The First Amendment and the Trump Administration's Anti-DEI Executive Orders - Reason Magazine - May 10th, 2025 [May 10th, 2025]
- Here Is Why Harvard Argues That Trump's Funding Freeze Violates the First Amendment - Reason Magazine - April 25th, 2025 [April 25th, 2025]
- Thankfully, Larry David mocks Bill Maher First Amendment News 467 - FIRE | Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression - April 25th, 2025 [April 25th, 2025]
- No, Gov. Lombardo, nobody was being paid to exercise First Amendment rights - Reno Gazette Journal - April 25th, 2025 [April 25th, 2025]
- Letter from the Editor: The First Amendment shaped my time on the Hill - WKUHerald.com - April 25th, 2025 [April 25th, 2025]
- Analysis: Pro-Hamas speech is protected by the First Amendment - Free Speech Center - April 25th, 2025 [April 25th, 2025]
- Who Will Fight for the First Amendment? Protecting Free Expression at a Critical Time - - Center for Democracy and Technology - April 25th, 2025 [April 25th, 2025]
- What the Doxxing of Student Activists Means For the First Amendment - The Progressive - April 25th, 2025 [April 25th, 2025]
- Does Gov. Landrys bid to restrict attorney advertising violate the First Amendment? - Baton Rouge Business Report - April 25th, 2025 [April 25th, 2025]
- Harvard invokes First Amendment in US lawsuit over academic control - Times of India - April 25th, 2025 [April 25th, 2025]
- Fun with the First Amendment: Why Sarah Palins lawyers are happy, and why Deborah Lipstadt isnt - Media Nation - April 25th, 2025 [April 25th, 2025]
- The First Amendment Is Being Rewritten in Real Time - Rewire News Group - April 25th, 2025 [April 25th, 2025]
- Criminalizing the Assertion of First Amendment Rights - Law.com - April 25th, 2025 [April 25th, 2025]
- Massachusetts First Amendment case: Harmony Montgomerys custody hearing audio to be released - Boston Herald - April 25th, 2025 [April 25th, 2025]
- Harvard, Trump and the First Amendment: Will Others Follow Suit? - Law.com - April 25th, 2025 [April 25th, 2025]
- Executive Watch: The breadth and depth of the Trump administrations threat to the First Amendment First Amendment News 465 - FIRE | Foundation for... - April 12th, 2025 [April 12th, 2025]
- Rising Wave of Funders and PSOs Stand Up for the First Amendment Freedom to Give - Inside Philanthropy - April 12th, 2025 [April 12th, 2025]
- Clear commands of First Amendment precedent: Trump-appointed judge rejects government motion to stay court order allowing Associated Press back into... - April 12th, 2025 [April 12th, 2025]
- Distinguished lecture series on First Amendment at URI adds Visiting Professors of Practice Rhody Today - The University of Rhode Island - April 12th, 2025 [April 12th, 2025]
- Everything starts with a voice: Understanding the First Amendment - The Tack Online - April 12th, 2025 [April 12th, 2025]
- This is an all-out war on the First Amendment - mronline.org - April 12th, 2025 [April 12th, 2025]