Washington, Bangobarta Bureau
President Donald Trump today signed an executive order that makes burning the American flag a crime punishable by one year in prison. The order, which bypasses Congress, is expected to face immediate legal challenges from civil liberties advocates who argue that flag burning is a form of protected speech.
“If you burn the American flag, you get one year in jail,” the President stated at a press conference, reiterating a long-held position that the act of flag burning is an act of disrespect that should not be legally protected.
The Supreme Court has previously ruled that flag desecration is a form of symbolic speech protected under the First Amendment of the U.S. Constitution. The executive order is likely to be met with lawsuits arguing that it oversteps the President’s authority and violates established constitutional law.
