Trumpist neo-McCarthyism: Deportation for Disfavored Speech

I wanted to pass along a new piece from Cato Institute Senior Fellow Patrick Eddington regarding the Trump administration’s efforts to deport former Columbia graduate student and Palestinian political activist Mahmoud Khalil.

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Eddington writes that although he believes that the slogan, “From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free,” is at its core anti-Semitic and eliminationist in its character, this chant in a normal American academic or opinion piece context is First Amendment-protected speech.

Eddington then argues that “the ramifications of ICE’s arrest and rendition of Khalil go well beyond the fate of one man”:

“Trump’s attacks on his political opponents, including law firms that have represented those opponents, as well as his attacks on those engaged in speech and political advocacy he disfavors, are the clearest indications yet that America has entered a new period of federally driven political repression.”

You can read the full piece here. If you would like to speak with Eddington, please contact me to set up an interview.

Best regards,

EMILY ADAMEC
Manager of Media Relations
eadamec@​cato.​org
O: (202) 216‑1410