Social Media Influencer Douglass Mackey Convicted of Election
Interference in 2016 Presidential Race
...
...
"Mackey has been found guilty by a jury of his peers of attempting to
deprive individuals from exercising their sacred right to vote for the candidate of their choice in the 2016 Presidential Election," stated
United States Attorney Peace. "Today's verdict proves that the
defendant's fraudulent actions crossed a line into criminality and
flatly rejects his cynical attempt to use the constitutional right of
free speech as a shield for his scheme to subvert the ballot box and
suppress the vote."

In 2016, Mackey established an audience on Twitter with approximately
58,000 followers. A February 2016 analysis by the MIT Media Lab
ranked Mackey as the 107th most important influencer of the
then-upcoming Presidential Election.

As proven at trial, between September 2016 and November 2016, Mackey
conspired with other influential Twitter users and with members of
private online groups to use social media platforms, including
Twitter, to disseminate fraudulent messages that encouraged supporters
of presidential candidate Hillary Clinton to "vote" via text message
or social media which, in reality, was legally invalid. For example,
on November 1, 2016, in or around the same time that Mackey was
sending tweets suggesting the importance of limiting "black turnout,"
the defendant tweeted an image depicting an African American woman
standing in front of an "African Americans for Hillary" sign. The ad
stated: "Avoid the Line. Vote from Home," "Text ‘Hillary' to 59925,"
and "Vote for Hillary and be a part of history." The fine print at the
bottom of the deceptive image stated: "Must be 18 or older to vote.
One vote per person. Must be a legal citizen of the United States.
Voting by text not available in Guam, Puerto Rico, Alaska or Hawaii.
Paid for by Hillary For President 2016." The tweet included the typed
hashtag "#ImWithHer," a slogan frequently used by Hillary Clinton. On
or about and before Election Day 2016, at least 4,900 unique telephone
numbers texted "Hillary" or some derivative to the 59925 text number,
which had been used in multiple deceptive campaign images tweeted by
Mackey and his co-conspirators.

https://www.justice.gov/usao-edny/pr/social-media-influencer-douglass-mackey-convicted-election-interference-2016

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On 2023-04-01, JAB <here@is.invalid> wrote:

"Mackey has been found guilty by a jury of his peers of attempting to
deprive individuals from exercising their sacred right to vote for the candidate of their choice in the 2016 Presidential Election," stated
United States Attorney Peace. "Today's verdict proves that the
defendant's fraudulent actions crossed a line into criminality and
flatly rejects his cynical attempt to use the constitutional right of
free speech as a shield for his scheme to subvert the ballot box and
suppress the vote."

Sometimes I wonder if the "free speech" constitutional right isn't one
of the most troublesome. Mind you, I believe in free speech. But it
sure seems to be the one people hide behind after saying or advocating
some terrible things.

I've lived in countries that lack free speech guarantees, and it's not
cool. I guess I'm just wondering in the abstract if the Fathers of the
Nation should've been just a little more specific.

Then of course there's, "paying into a political campaign = free speech" malarky, which needs to be taken down like Roe vs Wade.

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On Sat, 1 Apr 2023 16:08:24 +0100, Retrograde
<fungus@amongus.com.invalid> wrote:

I guess I'm just wondering in the abstract if the Fathers of the
Nation should've been just a little more specific.

They were attempting to correct abuses in other countries.

Those Christians today have no idea how the "separation of church and
state" came about....they are clueless souls.
================================

Virginia Statute for Religious Freedom (annotated transcript)

The Virginia Statute for Religious Freedom is a statement about both
freedom of conscience and the principle of separation of church and
state. Written by Thomas Jefferson and passed by the Virginia General
Assembly on January 16, 1786, it is the forerunner of the first
amendment protections for religious freedom. Divided into three
paragraphs, the statute is rooted in Jefferson's philosophy. It could
be passed in Virginia because Dissenting sects there (particularly
Baptists, Presbyterians, and Methodists) had petitioned strongly
during the preceding decade for religious liberty, including the
separation of church and state.

Jefferson had argued in the Declaration of Independence that "the laws
of Nature and of Nature's God entitle [man]...." The first paragraph
of the religious statute proclaims one of those entitlements, freedom
of thought. To Jefferson, "Nature's God," who is undeniably visible in
the workings of the universe, gives man the freedom to choose his
religious beliefs. This is the divinity whom deists of the time
accepted--a God who created the world and is the final judge of man,
but who does not intervene in the affairs of man. This God who gives
man the freedom to believe or not to believe is also the God of the
Christian sects.

https://virginiahistory.org/learn/thomas-jefferson-and-virginia-statute-religious-freedom

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