Donald Trump Missing ‘Compelling Argument’ Against Biden: Legal Analyst

According to legal analyst Jonathan Turley, former President Donald Trump is missing a “compelling argument” against President Joe Biden amid the 2024 election.

Biden and Trump became the presumptive 2024 Democratic and Republican presidential nominees respectively in March as both continue to campaign ahead of November’s election. Both are set to have their first debate on June 27 hosted by CNN at the network’s studio in Georgia, a critical battleground state. A second debate between the two is planned for September. Polls have shown that the results will be tight, as the pair are statistically tied in most surveys or have only marginal leads.

In an opinion piece published by USA Today on Tuesday titled, “Biden is a threat to free speech. Trump should call him on it.” Turley, a professor at George Washington University Law School who has been supportive of Trump in his legal cases, discussed the upcoming election, adding that one “compelling argument” Trump and other presidential candidates are missing amid the election against Biden is free speech.

Turley’s comments come as some conservatives have long argued their views are being censored by major social media companies, as well as in academia and the media. However, liberals in turn have accused Republicans of undermining free speech. They point to the removal of some books concerning race and LGBTQ+ issues from school libraries in a number of GOP-controlled states and bans on the teaching of critical race theory.

Newsweek has reached out to Biden, the White House and Trump’s campaign via email for comment.

“Donald Trump and other presidential candidates are missing a far more compelling argument going into this election. While democracy is not on the ballot this election, free speech is,” Turley wrote.

In his opinion piece, the attorney took aim at Biden calling him the “most anti-free speech president” as he pointed toward an anti-free speech movement occurring under the Biden administration.

“We are now seeing what is arguably the most dangerous anti-free speech movement in our history. President Joe Biden is, in my view, the most anti-free speech president since Adams. Under his administration, we have seen a massive censorship system funded and directed by the government,” Turley added.

According to Turley, who goes on to explain the history and struggle of free speech in the country, there are specific examples that show Biden’s anti-free speech citing Biden’s previous comments in 2021 that social media companies are “killing people” by failing to police misinformation on their platforms about COVID-19 vaccines.

“Biden has repeatedly called for greater censorship and accused social media companies of “killing people” by not silencing more dissenting voices. Other Democrats such as Sen. Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts have pushed for restrictions on ‘unacceptable’ speech,” Turley wrote.

Turley’s comments come after in September 2023, a federal appeals court ruled the Biden administration likely violated the First Amendment by putting pressure on social media companies to remove content that it regarded as misinformation. The ruling was issued by the Fifth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in New Orleans, Louisiana. It came in response to a case brought by the states of Missouri and Louisiana, along with a conservative website owner and several individuals who opposed President Biden’s COVID-19 policies.

However, a White House spokesperson defended their views previously telling Newsweek regarding the case: “The DOJ [Department of Justice] is reviewing the court’s decision and will evaluate its options in this case. This Administration has promoted responsible actions to protect public health, safety, and security when confronted by challenges like a deadly pandemic and foreign attacks on our elections.

“Our consistent view remains that social-media platforms have a critical responsibility to take account of the effects their platforms are having on the American people, but make independent choices about the information they present,” the spokesperson added.

Meanwhile, Turley continued by urging Trump and other presidential candidates to seize on the topic of free speech and talk about it at “every debate and stump speech.”

“In this election, Robert F. Kennedy Jr., Jill Stein, Donald Trump and Cornel West should talk about the threats against free speech at every debate and stump speech. They will have to overcome a news media that has been complicit in the attacks on free speech, but these candidates can break through by raising it as a key issue dividing Biden from the rest of the field,” Turley wrote.

He added: Attacks on free speech have returned with a vengeance before another presidential election. After fighting in the courts and in the public to expand censorship, Biden should now have to defend it with the voters.”