VA05 Dem Nominee Tom Perriello Rips Trump’s “clear attack on the First Amendment,” Warns “we should never allow it to become routine for the president to erode the pillars of a free society”

See below for a press release from VA05 Democratic nominee Tom Perriello “on the Trump Administration’s latest threats to freedom of the press and to journalists.”  I’ve got a few thoughts on this:

• Perriello’s absolutely right “we minimize actions like this at our own risk” and should never “become numb to these attacks on free speech and a free press.” He’s also right that, while Democrat rightfully are focused on the cost of living/affordability/the economy, they ALSO MUST BE FOCUSED on protecting our democracy, and as Perriello says, a “non-negotiable cmmitment” to “protecting the freedoms that generations of Americans have fought to protect.” Because without that, all else is lost…including an economy that works for anyone other than the oligarchs, powerful corporations, etc. Because yes, democracy is connected to economics…and much else in addition to economics.
• Perriello doesn’t mention his opponent (far-right-extremist and Trump bootlicker Rep. John McGuire)’s name directly, but it’s clear that’s who he’s referring to when ye says, ” We deserve leaders in Congress and across the country who put their loyalty to the people and to the Constitution above loyalty to party or any one president.” Because with the John McGuires (and Ben Clines, Rob Wittmans, Jen Kiggans, etc.) of the world, what you’re guaranteed to get is loyalty to Trump, NOT to the constitution and NOT to the people of their districts or of the country.  In the end, why would literally ANY American want people like that representing them in Congress???
• I just checked social media, and I’m disappointed that so few Virginia Democratic elected officials and candidates are commenting on Trump’s assault on the First Amendment, freedom of speech, the free press, etc.  Have these Democrats done what Tom Perriello warns everyone NOT to do, namely become “numb to these attacks on free speech and a free press?” Because that’s EXACTLY what Trump and his MAGA/fascist allies want us to do.
• Having said all that, I do think it’s important to point out that even as the “mainstream” media has been under assault by Trump for years now, they continue to coddle him, sanewash him, normalize him, pull their punches against him, act as his uncritical stenographer (e.g., “Trump says” headlines), attend celebratory dinners with him, stand by passively as Trump viciously attacks their colleages – particularly female colleagues – without doing jackshit about it, do the “both sides”/false equivalence/”neutral”/”objective” dance, etc, etc. So not to at ALL excuse Trump for being a vicious enemy of the First Amendment, but in many ways, it’s difficult to feel much if any sympathy for the “mainstream” political press in this country, because that industry is *completely and disastrously broken*. But again, that doesn’t mean it’s acceptable for the President of the United States to violate the First Amendment, trample all over freedom of speech/freedom of the press, etc. As is usually the case, multiple things can be true at once…

So with that, here’s Tom Perriello’s excellent statement – and thanks to him for issuing it, even as most Virginia Democrats so far today don’t seem to be weighing in, for whatever weird reason(s).

Perriello Statement on Threats to Freedom of the Press

CHARLOTTESVILLE, VA – Tom Perriello, Democratic nominee for Virginia’s Fifth District, today released the following statement on the Trump Administration’s latest threats to freedom of the press and to journalists:

“Democracies flourish when our freedoms are protected, and that includes the freedom of the press. In countries where those in power threaten journalists for asking tough questions, the people live in fear that their freedoms of speech and assembly and worship may be next. The recent announcement that Trump plans to ban specific news organizations from the White House because he dislikes their coverage is a clear attack on the First Amendment. All freedom-loving Americans should be united in criticizing these repressive actions of the president.

“We minimize actions like this at our own risk. While we can become numb to these attacks on free speech and a free press, we should never allow it to become routine for the president to erode the pillars of a free society. We deserve leaders in Congress and across the country who put their loyalty to the people and to the Constitution above loyalty to party or any one president. While my top priority in Congress will be to bring down costs, my non-negotiable commitment will be to protecting the freedoms that generations of Americans have fought to protect.”