Conservative circles have broadly applauded the Supreme Court’s decision to assess a case concerning the scope of governmental authority in regulating free speech on social media. It is anticipated that this case will set a substantial legal precedent within this field.

The issuance of a writ of certiorari by the Supreme Court of the United States in a case pitting the Biden administration against the states of Louisiana and Missouri was disclosed on Friday. The central focus of this case pertains to the states’ endeavors to curtail the indirect pressure exerted by the federal government on social media platforms (Facebook, YouTube, and Twitter/X) to censor disfavor viewpoints, without providing explicit directives to do so. Engaging in such conduct would unequivocally infringe upon the First Amendment’s protection of the freedom of expression.

In a statement issued on Friday, Louisiana Solicitor General Liz Murrill expressed her approval of the ruling.

“We are pleased to learn that the U.S. Supreme Court will hear this case, giving us yet another opportunity to defend the people from this assault on our First Amendment rights,” Murrill exclaimed.

“It brings us one step closer to reestablishing the protections guaranteed to us in the Constitution and under the First Amendment,” she continued.

“We hope that the Supreme Court will agree that this gross abuse of power must stop and never happen again.”

The legal proceeding, which was initially instigated in May 2022 by Attorney General Jeff Landry of Louisiana and Attorney General Eric Schmitt of Missouri, concerned the implementation of governmental control over significant technology firms in order to impose limitations on particular information, with particular reference to the COVID-19 pandemic. This encompassed deliberations regarding the efficacy and possible hazards linked to the utilization of face masks, vaccinations, and additional preventive protocols.

Initiating legal proceedings on the case, U.S. District Court Judge Terry Doughty rendered a decision on July 4. The aforementioned ruling prohibited several federal agencies—the Department of Health and Human Services, the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the U.S. Census Bureau, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, and the Department of Justice—from cooperating with corporations in a way that might be perceived as “pressuring, encouraging, or inducing in any way the elimination, suppression, reduction, or removal of content contended.”

The Associated Press reports that the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in New Orleans issued a decision in September that sided with the two states involved by a significant margin. The court “vacated more expansive language in a July 4 order issued by a federal judge based in Louisiana, which effectively prohibited multiple government agencies from contacting social media platforms such as Facebook and X (previously Twitter) to request the removal of content.”

Subsequently, we reach the element that is largely well received by conservatives: the determination to issue a writ of certiorari in order to advise on the case. The injunction issued by Judge Doughty will be provisionally suspended, as reported by CBS News, during the presentation of the case to the Supreme Court.

The stay of the order was opposed by a dissenting opinion signed by three conservative justices from the bench: Justices Samuel Alito, Neil Gorsuch, and Clarence Thomas.

Alito expressed in his dissent that “Despite the Government’s conspicuous failure to establish a threat of irreparable harm, the majority stays the injunction and thus allows the defendants to persist in committing the type of First Amendment violations that the lower courts identified. The majority takes this action in the face of the lower courts’ detailed findings of fact.”

“Applying our settled test for granting a stay, I would deny the Government’s application, but I would specify in the order that in the unlikely event that a concrete occurrence presents a risk of irreparable harm, the Government can apply for relief at that time, including, if necessary, by filing an emergency application here,” he went on. “Such an order would fully protect the ability of Executive Branch officials to speak out on matters of public concern.

“At this time in the history of our country, what the Court has done, I fear, will be seen by some as giving the Government a green light to use heavy-handed tactics to skew the presentation of views on the medium that increasingly dominates the dissemination of news. That is most unfortunate.”

To freeze the freeze on fed-led speech policing via a stay, the government had to prove stopping it from censoring you by proxy did it "irreparable harm."

Justice Alito:

"Here, the Government's attempts to demonstrate irreparable harm do not come close…Instead of providing…

— Benjamin Weingarten (@bhweingarten) October 20, 2023

Nevertheless, the mere existence of this issue in the courtroom is adequate reason for jubilation.

The disclosures commonly referred to as the “Twitter files” and “Facebook files” provide clear evidence that governmental bodies explicitly and unambiguously intended to impose limitations on particular information, primarily concerning COVID-19 and the controversial issue surrounding Hunter Biden’s laptop.

Could this be considered an instance of censorship? Is there a substantial distinction between the presence of an irate, unelected government administrator operating in a swamp-like environment and threatening to become an annoyance if one does not comply with their obvious demands and a governmental directive?

The precise nature of the Supreme Court’s ruling is still unknown; therefore, a clear-cut resolution would be preferable.

It is probable that the administration will argue that its explicit intimidation of these technology companies does not constitute speech suppression under the law. Nevertheless, the action in question should be prohibited on the basis of the implicit intimidation by the government, as stated in the complaint.

Conservatives and other proponents of free speech embarked on the first stage of a potentially lengthy and arduous effort on Friday to reclaim our fundamental rights as United States citizens from fearless regulatory authorities and technology corporations. These entities are cognizant of the fact that the government is the only institution more monopolistic and dominant than themselves.