Ben & Jerry’s co-founder: Joe Biden stood up for press freedom as a candidate — but backtracked in the White House
by Ben Cohen, Salon
It is time for President Biden to live up to his rhetoric on press freedom.
As a candidate in 2020, Biden released a powerful statement on the importance of press freedom, writing:
Reporters Without Borders tells us that at least 360 people worldwide are currently imprisoned for their work in journalism. We all stand in solidarity with these journalists for, as Thomas Jefferson wrote in 1786, “Our liberty depends on the freedom of the press, and that cannot be limited without being lost.”
Biden left out the fact that one of those imprisoned people is WikiLeaks publisher Julian Assange, and that he is languishing in solitary confinement in a maximum-security prison in London because the U.S. government wants to make an example of him.
Assange was indicted by the Trump administration in an aggressive, precedent-shattering move that was widely condemned by journalists and human rights groups. President Biden and Attorney General Merrick Garland have had almost two years to do the right thing and drop this dangerous prosecution.
They have failed to deliver.
Recent Posts
Democrats Should Give Peace A Chance In Ukraine
Take Action Now Most Democrats in Congress seem content with continuation of a war that has no end in sight.By Norman Solomon, The Hill After…
The GOP’s New Civil War Against America Isn’t With Bullets — It’s With Ballots
Take Action Now Why 51 Texas lawmakers fled the State to stop a power grab, and what it means for us all…By Thom Hartmann, The Hartmann Report The…
As Americans Ration Care, Health Insurers Rake In Record $71.3 Billion In Profits
Take Action Now Despite rising out-of-pocket costs and millions losing coverage, U.S. health insurance giants posted record profits in 2024 while…
We’re Making Musk The World’s First Trillionaire With Public Money And Public Assets
Take Action Now We gave him our dollars, our knowledge, our launchpads, our tech. While people ration insulin, he’s on track to be the first…