A few thoughts based on what little we know about the proposed DHS Disinformation Governance Board.

First, the good news:

1) It won't be an Orwellian Ministry of Truth
2) It will be constrained by the First Amendment (i.e. it will not be able to remove legal speech). 3) The board's mandate is relatively narrow, with a focus on election integrity and border security/immigration enforcement.

That about wraps it up for the good news.

A few points to keep in mind re: tonight's Trump Twitter news.

- The First Amendment, not #Section230, allows Twitter and other interactive computer services to moderate and remove content.
- There is no distinction between "platforms" and "publishers" under 230 - Twitter is nothing like a "public forum." Not even close. Look up Marsh v. Alabama.
- Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, etc. are no "monopolies." They are competitors.
- Trump and his allies have many services to choose from when it comes to communicating on the Internet

I downloaded @Project_Veritas' whole "Google Dump" and it contains...a whole lot of nothing.

https://twitter.com/JamesOKeefeIII/status/1161636487739432961

I should admit, I haven't seen all of the documents, but this is the entirety of the folder labeled "censorship."

It's a collection of photos of emails and one pdf document.

This sort of news is shocking. Fortunately, the incompetence of whoever is sending these packages means that no one has been hurt.

The news reminds me of other bomb threats, which I sometimes discuss with students (1/12).

#bombscare

cnn.com/politics/live-… In April and June 1919 anarchists sent a string of bombs to current and former high-ranking U.S. officials. None of the intended targets were killed, but a nightwatchman outside the home of New York judge Charles Cooper Nott was killed. (2/12) medium.com/cato-institute…