By: Jamie Joseph
FIRST ON FOX: Rep. Andy Ogles is introducing the “Let Trump Speak Act” on Thursday to prohibit judges from issuing gag orders to defendants, like former President Trump, in any criminal or civil proceeding.
“We have watched for years as a politically-weaponized Department of Justice and Democrat activist judges have gone after President Donald J. Trump,” the Tennessee Republican told Fox News Digital. “There is no right more sacred to Americans than the right to speak freely, as guaranteed in the First Amendment.”
Ogles, a strong Trump ally, added that “activists within the justice system are attempting to strip President Trump of this right for the sake of their own political agenda.”
If the bill passes, it would grant the right to file a civil lawsuit in a U.S. district court to seek injunctive relief if it is violated. Ten Republicans in the GOP-led House are sponsoring the bill.
“This continued weaponization of justice and harassment of President Trump must end,” Rep. Bob Good, R-Va., one of the co-sponsors, said in a statement.
Rep. Anna Paulina Luna, R-Fla., another co-sponsor, said, “We have seen how our institutions have gone after President Trump to try and forcibly silence him.”
“This vital American value must not be corrupted, especially by those driven by political rivalries,” she said.
Other cosponsors include Reps. Jeff Duncan, R-S.C.; Matt Rosendale, R-Mont.; Byron Donalds, R-Fla.; Mary Miller, R-Ill.; Diana Harshbarger, R-Tenn.; Eric Burlison, R-Mo.; and Eli Crane, R-Ariz.
The bill comes as the Appellate Division of the New York Supreme Court on Tuesday rejected Trump’s attempt to end a gag order that has prevented him from speaking publicly about many aspects of the case. Trump’s legal team now has the opportunity to appeal the gag order to the New York Court of Appeals.