ACLU: Spicer Comments on Media Ring of McCarthyism, Will Lead to Losing Legal Battles

NEW YORK — White House Press Secretary Sean Spicer today accused news media of falsely reporting the size of yesterday’s Inauguration Day crowd, adding that “we’re going to hold the press accountable.”

American Civil Liberties Union Executive Director Anthony D. Romero offered the following reaction:

“It is shameful that on the first full day of this administration, we have ominous suggestions of possible government censorship. Our nation was quite literally founded on the principles of a free press, and any effort by the Trump administration to curtail them will be met with vigorous defense of the First Amendment by the ACLU and others. This will be a fight the Trump administration will most certainly lose. If Trump wants to take on the First Amendment, we will see him in court.”

Yesterday, the ACLU announced its first legal action against the Trump administration, seeking documents relating to his conflicts of interest related to his businesses, as well as the organization’s plan for the first days of the Trump administration. Details of both can be found here and here.

A full legal analysis by the ACLU of then-candidate Trump’s proposed policies from July 2016 can be found here.