,,iii #aaith ,,congress #ast ,session ,s4 ,,res4 #dbd ,,in ,,the ,,senate ,,of ,,the ,,united ,,states ,september #cj1 #bjbe,mr4 ,merkley 7for himself1 ,mr4 ,van ,hollen1 ,mr4 ,schiff1 ,mr4 ,sanders1 ,mr4 ,booker1 and ,mr4 ,markey7 submitted the following resolution2 which was referred to the ,committee on the ,judiciary ,,resolution ,affirming the unwavering commitment of the ,senate to the ,first ,amendment and to freedom of speech and of the press as foundations of the democratic republic of the ,united ,states4 ,whereas the ,first ,amendment to the ,constitution of the ,united ,states guarantees that ,congress shall make no law abridging the freedom of speech or of the press2 ,whereas the ,supreme ,court of the ,united ,states held in ,texas v4 ,johnson1 #dia ,u4,s4 #cig 7#aihi71;,if there is a bedrock principle underlying the ,first ,amendment1 it is that the government may not prohibit the expression of an idea simply because society finds the idea itself offensive or disagreeable42 ,whereas the ,supreme ,court has held that government restrictions on viewpoint are presumptively unconstitutional2 ,whereas1 in ,national ,rifle ,association of ,america v4 ,vullo1 #fjb ,u4,s4 #age 7#bjbd71 the ,supreme ,court unanimously held that government officials cannot use their regulatory powers to coerce individuals or entities into refraining from protected speech2 ,whereas1 in the ,united ,states1 the right to free speech is not conditioned on speech aligned with the ,federal ,government's views2 ,whereas section #cbf of the ,communications ,act of #aicd 7#dg ,u4,s4,c4 #cbf7 prohibits the ,federal ,communications ,commission from engaging in censorship1 providing that1 ,nothing in this chapter shall be understood or construed to give the ,federal ,communications ,commission the power of censorship ''' no regulation or condition shall be promulgated ''' which shall interfere with the right of free speech42 ,whereas1 in #bjbj1 the ,commission issued ,free ,press ,emergency ,petition for ,inquiry ,into ,broadcast of ,false ,information on ,,covid-#ai1 ,letter ,order1 #ce ,,fcc ,rcd4 #cjcb1 #cjcc 7,,mb ,,ogc #bjbj71 in which it stated1 8the ,commission does not--and cannot and will not--act as a self-appointed1 free-roving arbiter of truth in journalism02 ,whereas1 on ,february #bb1 #bjba1 the ,federal ,communications ,commission ,chairman ,brendan ,carr stated1 8,a newsroom's decision about what stories to cover and how to frame them should be beyond the reach of any government official1 not targeted by them402 ,whereas1 on ,december #cj1 #bjbc1 ,chairman ,carr posted on ,x1 8,free speech is the counterweight--it is the check on government control4 ,that is why censorship is the authoritarian's dream402 and ,whereas ,president ,donald ,j4 ,trump in his inaugural address for his second term stated1 8,never again will the immense power of the state be weaponized to persecute political opponents403 ,now1 therefore1 be it ,that the ,senate-- 7#a7 calls on the ,president to commit to free speech1 consistent with the ,constitution of the ,united ,states2 7#b7 reaffirms its unwavering commitment to the ,first ,amendment and to freedom of speech and of the press as foundations of the democratic republic of the ,united ,states2 7#c7 declares that media independence must be protected and licensing1 regulatory authority1 or other governmental powers must not be used to punish or intimidate media organizations for editorial content2 7#d7 condemns any threats to revoke1 suspend1 or penalize media licenses solely based on content or viewpoints2 7#e7 calls on the ,federal ,communications ,commission ,chairman1 and the head of any other relevant ,federal agency1 to uphold constitutionally protected free speech and1 as aligned with the duties of the agencies1 affirm that they will not use licensing or regulations as a tool of repression2 and 7#f7 rebukes the use of political violence against people exercising their protected free speech rights4