Despite Trump's misstep (IMHO) over flag burning, his administration remains committed to fighting for free speech here and around the world.
And he is sending a loud and very clear message to our European allies: if you want to do business with the United States, clean up your act.
🔴 Donald Trump is considering a United States travel ban for European Union officials responsible for the bloc’s Digital Services Act and additional tariffs on countries with similar laws, which he claims discriminate against Americans
— The Telegraph (@Telegraph) August 26, 2025
Read more ⤵️https://t.co/hfN7t5cBWa pic.twitter.com/xVVsPG8zlC
Donald Trump is considering a United States travel ban for European Union officials responsible for the bloc’s Digital Services Act and additional tariffs on countries with similar laws, which he claims discriminate against Americans.
The State Department is considering placing sanctions which may come in the form of visa restrictions on those behind the legislation as the US government continues to fight against what it sees as an attempt to silence conservative voices.
US officials held a meeting on the issue last week and are yet to make a decision on whether to press ahead with the sanctions, sources told Reuters.
The Telegraph suggests that this move would be "unprecedented" because it would punish officials and countries for their domestic policies--a claim that it is patently absurd. We do that all the time; just not to our allies. But even if the claim were true, it is irrelevant. The Digital Services Act is not a "domestic" policy. It very explicitly aims to influence what people are allowed to say worldwide.
That this is true is obvious: Thierry Breton, who at the time was in charge of implementing the DSA, threatened to sanction Elon Musk and X for having a discussion online with Donald Trump. He, and the EU by extension, tried to silence the once and future president and influence the US election in a way that Russia couldn't dream of. Russia spent a few hundred thousand dollars on ineffective ads; the EU tried to shut down the speech of a nominee for president.
In a post on Truth Social, Mr Trump said: “As the President of the United States, I will stand up to Countries that attack our incredible American Tech Companies. Digital Taxes, Digital Services Legislation, and Digital Markets Regulations are all designed to harm, or discriminate against, American Technology.
“This must end, and end NOW! With this TRUTH, I put all Countries with Digital Taxes, Legislation, Rules, or Regulations, on notice that unless these discriminatory actions are removed, I, as President of the United States, will impose substantial additional Tariffs on that Country’s Exports to the U.S.A., and institute Export restrictions on our Highly Protected Technology and Chips.”
Mr Trump’s latest salvo is part of a broader push by his government to reshape the global online space, and prevent what he sees as the silencing of conservative voices and decline of free speech.
Trump is framing this as a business move, and to a certain extent, it is. The potential fines imposed can run into the many billions of dollars for violations of speech restrictions that are, to put it kindly, undefined. Bureaucrats get to arbitrarily decide what is and is not acceptable speech using arbitrary criteria.
But the attack on speech goes far deeper, and it's not limited to shaping which candidates are allowed to speak. As we saw during COVID, restricting information and shaping the "narrative" is a powerful tool to change entire societies. COVID policies didn't just impose authoritarian restrictions on people. They generated a multi-trillion-dollar transfer of wealth.
EU officials may think they can ride out the storm if the sanctions are limited to countries, but the threat to sanction individuals involved in the censorship complex will hurt them personally. It is difficult to avoid doing some level of business in the United States, and it is generally a bad idea to take on the US government--especially if you are a government official.
Will this work? Probably not to the extent we would like to see. But it will definitely shape the cost/benefit analysis of the people involved. It's one thing to take a verbal broadside from a president that most Europeans dislike. It's quite another to be sanctioned by the US government.
One probably helps the politicians and bureaucrats politically. The other makes their lives far more difficult. If Trump sticks to his guns, everybody in the world will be freer.
In the long run, pushing back on free speech is even more important than resetting trade relations. The latter matters quite a bit; the former is an existential threat to our society.
Editor’s Note: The Democrat Party has never been less popular as voters reject its globalist agenda.
Help us continue exposing Democrats' plans to lead America down a dangerous path. Join Hot Air VIP and use promo code FIGHT to get 60% off your membership.
Join the conversation as a VIP Member