In a Monday appearance on The Katie Miller (wife of White House advisor Stephen Miller) Podcast, MAGA Republican President Donald Trump's Attorney General, former Florida AG Pam Bondi, declared her plan to use the First Amendment's hate speech exception to target purveyors of bigoted rhetoric.
Countries with laws that criminalize or restrict hate speech—which include most developed democracies, especially in Europe—define it as "communications that incite hatred, violence, or discrimination" against specific groups based on protected characteristics such as race, religion, gender, or sexual orientation.
The exact legal definition of hate speech, required severity of the prohibited expression, and targeted group characteristics vary by country.
Bondi stated:
"There's free speech and then there's hate speech, and there is no place, especially now, especially after what happened to Charlie, in our society."
Miller followed up, by asking:
"Do you see more law enforcement going after these groups who are using hate speech and putting cuffs on people so we show them some action is better than no action?"
To which Bondi replied:
"We will absolutely target you, go after you, if you are targeting anyone with hate speech—and that's across the aisle."
"We are going to fight every step of the way to show that you will face the most severe consequences if you come after someone and you target someone for their political views or for any reason at all."
You can hear her remarks below:
Based on her comments, Bondi should get the cuffs ready and head to the Oval Office.
Trump's AG referred to Charlie Kirk in her comments about hate speech, but the deceased Turning Point USA founder was adamant throughout his public life that hate speech didn't legally exist under United States' federal law.
Journalist Mehdi Hasan shared one of Kirk's own posts in response to Bondi's declaration.
@charliekirk11/X
In 2024, Kirk wrote:
"Hate speech does not exist legally in America. There's ugly speech. There's gross speech. There's evil speech."
"And ALL of it is protected by the First Amendment."
"Keep America free."
Turning Point USA contributor Savanah Hernandez wrote on X:
"'There's free speech and then there's hate speech' is the most destructive phrase that has ever been uttered. And Pam Bondi just said it. She needs to be removed as attorney general now."
On Tuesday in a clarification of her Monday remarks, Bondi wrote on X:
"Hate speech that crosses the line into threats of violence is NOT protected by the First Amendment."
Fortunately for her boss—whose MAGA rallies, social media posts, and close associates rarely don't include hate speech targeting one or more marginalized communities...
...Bondi hasn't a clue what's she's talking about.
There is no First Amendment hate speech exception, and the matter has been addressed by the United States Supreme Court more than once.
SCOTUS Justice Sonia Sotomayor, commenting on Bondi's qualifications and her latest legal misinformation, stated:
"Every time I listen to a lawyer-trained representative saying we should criminalize free speech in some way, I think to myself, that law school failed."
Conservatives took great exception to Bondi's vow to target the core messaging of the MAGA movement.
@CorinneInTX/X
MAGA has called on Bondi to resign.
Whether she'll be the first major casualty of Trump administration 2.0 remains to be seen.
