Dances with Authoritarians: Elizabeth Warren vows to 'push for new laws that impose tough civil and criminal penalties for' spreading 'disinformation'

As Twitchy told you, Elizabeth Warren has announced that she “will not tolerate” her campaign staffers using “false information or false accounts to attack [her] opponents”:

So today, I’m making a pledge: I will not knowingly use or spread disinformation to benefit my own candidacy or damage others. And I will fight disinformation aimed at my campaign, my opponents, and voters.

— Elizabeth Warren (@ewarren) January 29, 2020

I’m sending a clear message to anyone associated with the Warren campaign: I will not tolerate the use of false information or false accounts to attack my opponents, promote my campaign, or undermine our elections. And I urge my fellow candidates to do the same.

— Elizabeth Warren (@ewarren) January 29, 2020

So, just how far is she willing to take this crusade?

Elizabeth Warren proposes criminal penalties for spreading disinformation online https://t.co/7tUD3dvDxq

— CNBC (@CNBC) January 29, 2020

Oh really?

I'm also calling on tech companies like Facebook, Twitter, and Google to take real steps right now to fight disinformation spread on their platforms. The safety of our democracy is more important than shareholder dividends and CEO salaries.

— Elizabeth Warren (@ewarren) January 29, 2020

Campaigns and tech companies can take a number of steps to slow the spread of misinformation right now. And as president, I'll take a series of actions to further address the spread of disinformation.

— Elizabeth Warren (@ewarren) January 29, 2020

The stakes of this election are too high. We need to fight the spread of false information that disempowers voters and undermines democracy. I’ll do my part—and I’m calling on my fellow candidates and big tech companies to do their part, too.

— Elizabeth Warren (@ewarren) January 29, 2020

“I will push for new laws that impose tough civil and criminal penalties for knowingly disseminating this kind of information, which has the explicit purpose of undermining the basic right to vote,” Warren said in a press release.

…

As president, she said she would reinstate the position of cybersecurity coordinator at the National Security Council, a position crucial to protecting the U.S. She added she will also open up data for research so that academics and organizations can provide the public with knowledge on disinformation.

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— Siraj Hashmi (@SirajAHashmi) January 29, 2020

Er, pardon?

— Vengeful Disembodied Pig Brain (@MsSmartyPanda) January 29, 2020

#ImWithHer but not to this point. Freedom of speech?

— Good Rockin' Daddy (@ttkern) January 29, 2020

“I will push for new laws that impose tough civil and criminal penalties for knowingly disseminating this kind of information, which has the explicit purpose of undermining the basic right to vote." So your bad Facebook post is just like a poll tax. https://t.co/g3SYKl9H69

— Noah Rothman (@NoahCRothman) January 29, 2020

A lot of things about Elizabeth Warren already convinced me to never vote for her, but this is disqualifying.

If she wants to become president, she should run for a different country. https://t.co/6lYdsaJbwT

— Miguel de León (@xchixm) January 29, 2020

At this point, given the preponderance of evidence, we must reluctantly conclude the senator has never actually read the Constitution. https://t.co/IYis31J5Ws

— Noah Rothman (@NoahCRothman) January 29, 2020

Seems like a safe conclusion to draw.

This is an awful, authoritarian, unworkable, and censorious proposal from Warren, no matter what her intentions are.

Having the government regulate and criminalize the internet – by deciding what "misinformation" is – is exactly the worst solution to all of these problems. https://t.co/qANK80m4y6

— Glenn Greenwald (@ggreenwald) January 29, 2020

Yes, well, what else would we expect from Elizabeth Warren?

She's an authoritarian. https://t.co/ifsTsc8Z9P

— David Harsanyi (@davidharsanyi) January 29, 2020

Yep.

You can imagine how important this is to her, given the many lies told to her ancestors by the white man https://t.co/fA2mP3eZYB

— It's still 2016 apparently (@jtLOL) January 29, 2020

Speaking of which …

She can start by throwing herself in jail. https://t.co/g05WQRvE4K

— Doug Powers (@ThePowersThatBe) January 29, 2020

does she know that she'd be charged too https://t.co/5EjeDBgFrn

— RBe (@RBPundit) January 29, 2020

What if I claimed that Medicare for All would cost only $19 trillion over the next decade and that an unconstitutional wealth tax would take care of it? Prosecutable or no? https://t.co/QFtEpwJvk9

— Ben Shapiro (@benshapiro) January 29, 2020

Elizabeth Warren is an American Indian.

Go ahead Liz, charge me. https://t.co/r5OChmOCHu

— Esoteric Jeff (@EsotericCD) January 29, 2020

C’mon, Liz. We dare you.

Will never pass constitutional muster. Also, it's the sort of thing we rightly criticize China, Russia, and Turkey for doing.

Warren is desperate. https://t.co/7DTexKGe6b

— Gabriel Malor (@gabrielmalor) January 29, 2020

More seriously though, this sort of naked pandering nonsense (which would never pass constitutional muster) is why she's declining in the polls. People *see* desperation.

— Esoteric Jeff (@EsotericCD) January 29, 2020

That’s really what this all boils down to. She’s desperate. Her chances of getting the nomination are dwindling with each passing day, and she’s throwing whatever she can against the wall in the hopes that it’ll stick.

Thank the Lord that she’ll never be president. And: