First Amendment

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Man Spent a Month in Jail for Sharing Trump Meme
Man Jailed for
Anti-Trump
Meme Is Suing
UPDATED
Dec 18, 2025 12:20 PM CST

Man Jailed for Anti-Trump Meme Is Suing

Larry Bushart says meme cited Trump's remarks after high school shooting, are his right to air

(Newser) - A retired Tennessee law enforcement officer who spent more than a month behind bars for an anti-Trump post on social media is now suing a local sheriff and investigator, as well as Perry County. Per the Washington Post , 61-year-old Larry Bushart's suit filed Wednesday in federal court claims that...

FCC Abandons Claim to Being Independent

Edit follows Brendan Carr's revised characterization to Senate panel

(Newser) - Chair Brendan Carr said in congressional testimony Wednesday that the Federal Communications Commission is "not formally an independent agency"—a characterization that was news to lawmakers. Soon afterward, the phrase "an independent U.S. government agency" became "a U.S. government agency" in the FCC's...

US May Bar H-1B Visas for Fact-Checkers, Moderators

Such applicants face new scrutiny, per leaked State Department memo

(Newser) - A newly revealed State Department memo directs US officials to deny visas to foreign workers involved in fact-checking or content moderation activities that the Trump administration deems to be "censorship." The guidance, sent to consular officers on Tuesday, zeroes in on H-1B visa applicants—often used by tech...

NYT Sues Pete Hegseth Over 'Press-Restrictive Scheme'

Pentagon has banned reporting without official approval; press corps revolts

(Newser) - The New York Times has filed a lawsuit against the Department of Defense and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, challenging a controversial Pentagon policy that bars journalists from reporting any information—even unclassified material—unless it has been formally cleared by defense officials. The newspaper says the rule, put in place...

Prof Suspended After Giving Student a Zero on Gender Paper

U of Oklahoma instructor failed student's essay that called idea of multiple genders 'demonic'

(Newser) - A University of Oklahoma instructor has been placed on leave after giving a student a zero on an essay that cited the Bible and called the idea of multiple genders "demonic," reports the New York Times . The controversy began when psychology major Samantha Fulnecky, 20, submitted a reaction...

SCOTUS Won't Revisit Ruling in Favor of Gay Marriage

Supreme Court rejects the bid of former Kentucky county clerk Kim Davis

(Newser) - The Supreme Court's 2015 landmark ruling in favor of same-sex marriages will stand: The justices on Monday rejected the request of a former county clerk in Kentucky to revisit the decision, reports the Hill . The clerk, Kim Davis, rose to national attention a decade ago when she refused to...

Attempt to Scrap Gay Marriage Heads to Supreme Court

SCOTUS to consider hearing case from clerk Kim Davis, who refused gay marriage licenses

(Newser) - The Supreme Court is set to consider whether to hear an appeal from Kim Davis, the former Kentucky clerk who refused to issue marriage licenses to same-sex couples in 2015. Davis, who was briefly jailed for defying the landmark Obergefell v. Hodges decision, is asking the justices to overturn that...

Suit: ICE Is Creating 'Black Box' Around Chicago-Area Site

Advocates allege 'inhumane' conditions at immigration facility in Broadview, Illinois

(Newser) - Illinois advocates sued federal authorities Friday over alleged "inhumane" conditions at a Chicago-area immigration facility. Attorneys with the ACLU of Illinois and the MacArthur Justice Center say Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents have denied people being held at the Broadview facility private calls with attorneys and have blocked members of...

DC Man Sues After Detention for Playing Darth Vader Theme

ACLU claims First Amendment violation after a protest with Star Wars music

(Newser) - A Washington, DC, resident is suing after a protest in which he followed National Guard troops around and played "The Imperial March" from Star Wars resulted in his detention. Sam O'Hara, 35, filed a federal lawsuit on Thursday, claiming his First and Fourth Amendment rights were violated when...

Hegseth's Response to Outlets Upset With New Policy: an Emoji

Secretary of defense issues a simple 'goodbye'

(Newser) - When leading news organizations refused to sign the Pentagon's new press policy , Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth had a pointed response—waving them off with a simple goodbye emoji on social media. After outlets including the Associated Press, Reuters, the New York Times, the Washington Post, CNN, NPR, and...

News Outlets Say They Won't Sign Pentagon Policy

Hegseth set deadline for agreeing to restrictions of 5pm Tuesday

(Newser) - A number of major media organizations—including the Atlantic, CNN, Newsmax, the New York Times, the Washington Post, the Wall Street Journal, Reuters, Breaking Defense, and NPR—have announced they will not agree to comply with a new Pentagon press policy. The rules require that all information, including unclassified...

Library Director Fired After Book Controversy to Get $700K

Library director in Wyoming reaches settlement with Campbell County

(Newser) - A Wyoming county will pay $700,000 to a former library director to settle a lawsuit after a furor over books with LGBTQ+ and sexual themes. Campbell County agreed to the payout for Terri Lesley, who claims she was fired because she refused to remove certain books deemed offensive...

Jane Fonda Puts Her Activist Hat Back On

The Committee for the First Amendment was backed by her father during the Cold War

(Newser) - Drawing upon her personal and political past, Jane Fonda has revived an activist group from the Cold War era that was backed by her father and fellow Oscar winner, Henry Fonda, the AP reports. Jane Fonda announced she had launched a 21st century incarnation of the Committee for the First...

How a Florida Mom Became the Author of a Hit-Man Manual

Gayle McCool's how-to book on murder, penned as 'Rex Feral,' changed lives, according to Vanity Fair

(Newser) - Gayle McCool spent decades haunted by a recurring dream, and even longer by the fallout from Hit Man: A Technical Manual for Independent Contractors, a book she wrote as "Rex Feral." It was a how-to guide on contract killing, written in the early 1980s after her boyfriend,...

Eisner Questions Disney After Kimmel Suspension

Former CEO criticizes former company's response to political pressure over Kimmel's Kirk remarks

(Newser) - It's been almost a year and a half since Michael Eisner posted anything on his X account, but this week the ex-Disney CEO broke his silent streak, criticizing his former company's leadership for its decision to suspend Jimmy Kimmel's late-night show on ABC, which Disney owns....

Tucker Carlson Hints at 'Civil Disobedience' in US

Ex-Fox pundit says disobedience would be justified if government uses Kirk killing to target 'hate speech'

(Newser) - Tucker Carlson's volatile relationship with President Trump may have just cycled back to being a critical one, this time centered on the killing of conservative activist Charlie Kirk and the Trump administration's reaction to it. The former Fox News host's main beef: the government's targeting of...

Democrats: It's 'War on the First Amendment'

Hakeem Jeffries calls on FCC chief Brendan Carr to step down following Jimmy Kimmel's suspension

(Newser) - Top House Democrats are demanding the immediate resignation of FCC Chair Brendan Carr over what they call a blatant abuse of power—"forcing" ABC to suspend Jimmy Kimmel Live! In a joint statement, House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries and senior Democratic colleagues described Carr's actions as a...

Trump to Reporter: 'Maybe They'll Have to Go After You'

President pushes back against question by ABC's Jonathan Karl

(Newser) - President Trump didn't like a question from a reporter Tuesday about the attorney general's threat to crack down on hate speech, and he turned his response into a not-so-veiled threat directed at ABC's Jonathan Karl and his network, reports Deadline .
  • Karl: "A lot of your allies
...

Judge: Feds Can't Use Crowd-Control Weapons on Journalists

He says agents acted with 'surprising savagery' during LA protests

(Newser) - A federal judge in Los Angeles has barred federal agents from using crowd-control weapons against journalists, citing what he called an "avalanche of evidence" that agents crossed the line during protests over the summer. US District Judge Hernán D. Vera issued a preliminary injunction this week that...

Veteran Burns Flag Near White House, Gets Arrested

Army veteran protests Trump's executive order against flag-burning

(Newser) - A retired Army veteran set an American flag ablaze in front of the White House, testing the limits of free speech just hours after a new executive order targeting flag burning was signed by President Trump, the Raleigh News & Observer reports. The dramatic protest in Lafayette Park drew...

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