Hello, Mr. Orwell. How are you? Is it 1984 yet?
Sen. Mike DeWine (R-OH) is the chief author behind a bill that could make people who report presidential crimes do some jail time and pay hefty fines.
"The bill would make it a crime to tell the American people that the president is breaking the law, and the bill could make it a crime for the newspapers to publish that fact," said Martin, a civil liberties advocate.
Lucy Dalglish, executive director of the Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press, said the language would allow anyone__"if you read a story in the paper and pass it along to your brother-in-law"__to be prosecuted.
"As a practical matter, would they use this to try to punish any newspaper or any broadcast? It essentially makes coverage of any of these surveillance programs illegal," she said. "I'm sorry, that's just not constitutional."
Mike DeWine's advisor, Mike Dawson, wants you to know that it "does not apply to reporters in any way, shape, or form," and "if it does, it will be fixed". However, this doesn't seem possible.
David Tomlin, the AP's assistant general counsel, said government officials with security clearances would be potential targets under DeWine's bill.
"But so would anyone else who received an illegal disclosure under the proposed act, knew what it was and deliberately disclosed it to others. That's what some reporters do, often to great public benefit," he said.
Wow. Soon we'll be thrown in federal prison just for telling the truth about the government's crimes. Just like China! Hooray!
Tags: [Mike DeWine], [sneaky bills], [unconstitutional], [1984], [tell the truth and go to jail]
No comments:
Post a Comment