The state of California has tried to make it illegal to make fun of politicians online... But Elon Musk and a federal judge just stopped them cold. Here's how they almost took away your free speech.
The government in California passed a law called the "Defending Democracy from Deepfake Deception Act." It sounded noble, but its real purpose was to force social media platforms like X to block and censor any videos that politicians decided were "materially deceptive" before and after an election.
But this was never really about stopping dangerous deepfakes. The lawsuit against the law was started by a guy who made a parody video of Kamala Harris. That's right, they wanted to ban political satire they didn't like. Elon Musk, the satire site The Babylon Bee, and Rumble all joined the fight.
And they won. A federal judge didn't just strike down the law, he obliterated it, ruling that "the whole statute is preempted" and that "No parts of A.B. 2655 can be salvaged."
Think about what that means. If this law had stood, the government would have the power to decide what's "truth" and what's "deception." If a politician didn't like a meme or a parody you made, they could have forced social media companies to delete it and silence you.
And they're not done trying. A spokesperson for Governor Newsom said that even after this loss, they're still convinced they need to regulate online content to "maintain the integrity of our elections."
They lost this battle for your right to free speech, but the progressive politicians already told you they're not giving up the war..