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The comments were the latest in a string of threats the president has made against the press in the last 24 hours.
— The Daily Beast (@thedailybeast.bsky.social) 2025-09-16T18:00:12.209669Z
In the wake of Charlie Kirk’s murder, Pam Bondi promised that the U.S. Justice Department would target “hate speech” attributed, according to Trump and his allies, to the left.
Bondi’s statements provoked an outcry, with many fearing they would threaten freedom of expression. It was against this backdrop that Donald Trump threatened a journalist who asked him about these concerns, which are shared even in his own political camp.
“Many of your allies say that hate speech is free speech,” the ABC News reporter challenged Trump, echoing criticism of the administration on this point and recalling Charlie Kirk’s own comments that even hate speech should be protected “by the First Amendment”.
“She’d probably go after people like you, because you treat me unfairly. That’s hate. You have a lot of hate in your heart.”
Boasting that ABC had paid him “$16 million”, Trump added:
“Then maybe they’ll come after you.”
Protected by the First Amendment
“Hate speech doesn’t legally exist in America. There is ugly speech. There is rude speech. There is malicious speech. And all are protected by the First Amendment. Let’s keep America free.”
Recall that, during a recent podcast, Pam Bondi had declared that Department of Justice “will target you and come after you, if you come after anyone with hate speech.”
