War in Europe shouldn't be an excuse to trample free speech in the U.S.
![Tucker Carlson](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/EaWakGZgzqAd5FqrANzTKW-415-80.jpg)
Wars have never been very good for free expression in America. That might be true even when America isn't fighting the war.
On Monday morning, with Russia apparently on the brink of invading Ukraine, Harvard Law professor Laurence Tribe tweeted that it might be time for American officials to start up treason prosecutions.
An uproar ensued, and Tribe deleted his tweet. Still, both because of his prominence and the recent tendency toward red-baiting by U.S. officials, it's worth considering why his proposal was so awful.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
![https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/flexiimages/jacafc5zvs1692883516.jpg](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/flexiimages/jacafc5zvs1692883516-320-80.jpg)
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
As a factual matter, it was incorrect. Even if the United States gives a lot of weaponry and support to Ukraine, that country is not our ally — we have no treaty or other formal agreement to come to their defense in case of attack. Indeed, one of the hot debates during the last few months has been about whether the United States and other NATO countries will ever allow Ukraine to join the alliance and become an ally in a real, legal sense. Regardless of which side of that argument you take, it's a crucial distinction you would expect an Ivy League law professor to understand and acknowledge.
But Tribe's proposal was also terrible because the United States has a longtime habit of elbowing aside First Amendment rights during wartime. Those of us of a certain age remember when Bill Maher lost his job at ABC several months after 9/11, shortly after a White House spokesman warned that "all Americans … need to watch what they say, watch what they do." (The spokesman later protested that he was misunderstood, but that's not how his remarks were understood in the moment.) During World War I, Eugene Debs — who had been a Socialist candidate for president — was imprisoned after declaring "I will never go to war for a capitalist government." Similarly, Abraham Lincoln's administration had a Democratic congressman arrested for giving an anti-war speech during the Civil War. This country has a long history of ignoring its guaranteed rights during times of conflict. Those aren't our best moments.
If Tribe's tweet is bad on the merits, it's also terrible politics. Conservatives have convinced themselves and their voters that Democrats are the totalitarian, liberty-hating party. Most of the time that's nonsense — but when a prominent liberal like Tribe makes the case that Fox News personalities should be arrested, it gets a lot easier to make the case. Tucker Carlson's not leaving the air anytime soon, but he has another bullet in his rhetorical arsenal to use against liberals. Not great.
While I don't like Carlson's xenophobic reasoning, I agree it's a bad idea for the United States to go to war in Europe. (The same is true of most Americans — another reason Tribe's tweet fails the political smell test.) But even if I disagreed, I still think he should get the chance to make a case. Questions of war and peace are among the most critical a government can make. It's in such moments that America's commitment to free expression is needed most.
Create an account with the same email registered to your subscription to unlock access.
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Joel Mathis is a writer with 30 years of newspaper and online journalism experience. His work also regularly appears in National Geographic and The Kansas City Star. His awards include best online commentary at the Online News Association and (twice) at the City and Regional Magazine Association.
-
Magazine solutions - August 2, 2024
Puzzles and Quizzes Issue - August 2, 2024
By The Week Staff Published
-
Magazine printables - August 2, 2024
Puzzles and Quizzes Issue - August 2, 2024
By The Week Staff Published
-
'In a normal country, their activities wouldn't even be crimes'
Instant Opinion Opinion, comment and editorials of the day
By Justin Klawans, The Week US Published
-
How Biden's enablers may have delayed his bowing out
Talking Points Joe Biden's inner circle faces calls for a reckoning for allegedly shielding the president — and the public — from questions of aging and electoral viability
By Rafi Schwartz, The Week US Published
-
The Democrats 'resigned to a second Trump presidency'
Talking Points Did the assassination attempt end Biden's election chances?
By Joel Mathis, The Week US Published
-
How could J.D. Vance impact the special relationship?
Today's Big Question Trump's hawkish pick for VP said UK is the first 'truly Islamist country' with a nuclear weapon
By Harriet Marsden, The Week UK Published
-
Are down-ticket Democrats doomed?
Talking Points President Joe Biden's refusal to step back from his reelection campaign has some local Democrats wondering if their own races are in trouble — but not everyone is worried
By Rafi Schwartz, The Week US Published
-
Biden, Trump urge calm after assassination attempt
Speed Reads A 20-year-old gunman grazed Trump's ear and fatally shot a rally attendee on Saturday
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Why Project 2025 is creating headaches for the Trump campaign
Talking Points Democrats want to make Trump 'own' the controversial plan
By Joel Mathis, The Week US Published
-
Biden flopped, but did Trump really 'win' the debate?
Talking Points The president struggled to articulate a clear vision for the country, but Trump's cavalcade of aggressive falsehoods might not do the Republican candidate any favors in the long run
By Rafi Schwartz, The Week US Published
-
Why the Hunter Biden verdict isn't the slam dunk Republicans have been calling for
Talking Points After years of targeting the President's family amidst claims of a rigged justice system, some conservatives still aren't satisfied with the younger Biden's three felony convictions.
By Rafi Schwartz, The Week US Published