Who Gets to Talk?

For John, BLUF:  Free speech for me, but not for thee.  Nothing to see here; just move along.

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From the CATO Institute and the pen of Mr Walter Olson Share, we have "Sen. Warren:  My Opponents Keep 'Saying Whatever They Want About Washington Policy Debates'" Here is the lead:

Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.), as the business press reports, “is calling on the Securities and Exchange Commission to investigate several critics of the Department of Labor’s fiduciary rule, claiming they misled investors through duplicitous statements.” It seems several large financial businesses have decried the pending rule as unworkable and seriously harmful to the retirement industry, but have also, in conference calls with investors, said they expected continued growth and profitability even if the rules go through. In a typically aggressive move, Warren cited by name four companies she wanted investigated for these statements, and wrote: “Corporate interests have become accustomed to saying whatever they want about Washington policy debates, with little accountability when their predictions prove to be inaccurate.”

At a time when German Prosecutors are going after a humorist for going after Turkish President Erdogan, on German TV, an when various US Attorneys General are going after businesses for "denying" Climate Change♠ we ought to ask if we want to shut down the free speech of individuals and entities.

While some are clamoring for the end of free speech for corporations under the SCOTUS ruling in Citizens United v FEC, I wonder if we might not go too far, thus hurting free speech for all of us.

Hat tip to the InstaPundit.

Regards  —  Cliff

♠  Remember when it was global cooling, rather than global warming?