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| AP Photo/Stephanie Scarbrough |
A federal appeals court Friday temporarily paused a lower court’s order limiting executive branch officials’ communications with social media companies about controversial online posts.
Biden administration lawyers had asked the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in New Orleans to stay the preliminary injunction issued on July 4 by U.S. District Judge Terry Doughty. Doughty himself had rejected a request to put his order on hold pending appeal.
Friday’s brief 5th Circuit order put Doughty’s order on hold “until further orders of the court.” It called for arguments in the case to be scheduled on an expedited basis.
Filed last year, the lawsuit claimed the administration, in effect, censored free speech by discussing possible regulatory action the government could take while pressuring companies to remove what it deemed misinformation. COVID-19 vaccines, legal issues involving President Joe Biden’s son Hunter and election fraud allegations were among the topics spotlighted in the lawsuit.
Doughty, nominated to the federal bench by former President Donald Trump, issued an Independence Day order and accompanying reasons that covered more than 160 pages. He said the plaintiffs were likely to win their ongoing lawsuit. His injunction blocked the Department of Health and Human Services, the FBI and multiple other government agencies and administration officials from “encouraging, pressuring, or inducing in any manner the removal, deletion, suppression, or reduction of content containing protected free speech.” --->READ MORE HERE
A federal appeals court on Friday temporarily stayed a lower court order restricting Biden administration officials from contacting social media companies because of concerns over suppressing free speech.
The New Orleans-based 5th US Circuit Court of Appeals ruled in favor of the Justice Department and blocked US District Judge Terry Doughty’s preliminary injunction while the White House appeals the lower court’s order.
The three-judge panel also agreed to expedite the administration’s appeal.
Doughty ruled on July 4 that the White House likely violated the First Amendment by flagging content for Big Tech companies to scrub during the COVID-19 pandemic.
The lawsuit against the Biden administration was brought by attorneys general of Louisiana and Missouri last year.
Doughty, a Trump appointee, denied the Justice Department’s prior request for a stay last week, arguing that his preliminary injunction only prohibited officials from contacting social media companies for the purposes of restricting free speech.
“Although this Preliminary Injunction involves numerous agencies, it is not as broad as it appears,” Doughty wrote. “It only prohibits something the Defendants have no legal right to do — contacting social media companies for the purpose of urging, encouraging, pressuring, or inducing in any manner, the removal, deletion, suppression, or reduction of content containing protected free speech posted on social-media platforms.” --->READ MORE HEREFollow links below to relevant/related stories and resources:
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