Mitt Romney's Free Speech Hypocrisy

(By Andrew MacKie-Mason)

In recent posts, I've been very critical of those (Anthea Butler, Peter Spiro, President Obama) who have been insufficiently protective of free speech values in the wake of the Innocence of Muslims "movie." But what about Mitt Romney, who spoke out early in support of the First Amendment? As the Huffington Post reported:

Romney said he had no plans to see the video, "Innocence of Muslims." "I think it’s dispiriting sometimes to see some of the awful things people say. And the idea of using something that some people consider sacred and then parading that out a negative way is simply inappropriate and wrong. And I wish people wouldn’t do it," he said. "Of course, we have a First Amendment. And under the First Amendment, people are allowed to do what they feel they want to do." 

Romney went on, "They have the right to do that, but it’s not right to do things that are of the nature of what was done by, apparently this film."

As Jonathan Adler points out, this kind of talk reflects a deep seated hypocrisy within Mitt Romney and the entire Republican Party. The 2012 Republican platform includes the following passage:

Respect for Our Flag: Symbol of the Constitution

The symbol of our constitutional unity, to which we all pledge allegiance, is the flag of the United States of America. By whatever legislative method is most feasible, Old Glory should be given legal protection against desecration. We condemn decisions by activist judges to deny children the opportunity to say the Pledge of Allegiance in its entirety, including “Under God,” in public schools and encourage States to promote the pledge. We condemn the actions of those who deny our children the means by which to show respect for our great country and the constitutional principles represented by our flag.

That is not the platform of a party that respects free speech and the First Amendment. But it's the platform of the party that Mitt Romney has chosen to represent.