Secretary of State Marco Rubio issued a sharp warning Friday about the growing erosion of free speech across Europe, saying it could soon lead to the arrest of American citizens simply for what they post online.
Speaking at his year-end press conference, Rubio said he was “very concerned” that American speech rights may soon be “implicated” by foreign laws. “Are we going to live in a world where some American puts up a social media post and then gets to some airport somewhere and is arrested?” he asked. Rubio also pointed to increasing pressure on U.S.-based platforms like X (formerly Twitter) by European regulators.
His remarks come as several European countries ramp up enforcement of so-called “illegal content” online. In the United Kingdom, The Times reported that approximately 30 people are arrested every day over allegedly offensive online messages. In France and other parts of the EU, tech companies now face stiff fines under the Digital Services Act (DSA) for not doing enough to counter misinformation and content deemed unlawful.
Rubio’s comments follow an earlier warning from the Trump State Department, which posted on X in July: “In Europe, thousands are being convicted for the crime of criticizing their own governments. This Orwellian message won’t fool the United States. Censorship is not freedom.”
Critics of Europe’s crackdown on digital speech come from both ends of the political spectrum. Organizations such as the Alliance Defending Freedom and Amnesty International have raised alarms about creeping authoritarianism and the silencing of dissent. Last month, the European Commission admitted it did not thoroughly examine censorship risks when drafting the DSA.
Dr. Adina Portaru, senior counsel for ADF International, warned in an interview that the DSA poses a danger to everyone from influencers and journalists to preachers and political dissidents. “Any kind of content online can be regulated by the DSA through its architecture,” she said.
Rubio emphasized the need to work with European allies to uphold the principles of freedom of expression, saying that shared values must remain at the center of the U.S.-EU relationship. But he made clear that America won’t sit back while its citizens are placed at risk for simply exercising their rights.
“As you recently saw,” he added, “X is facing this massive multi-million dollar fine that they’re going to have to pay, I guess, because they want to continue to operate.” The message from Rubio and the Trump administration is clear: Free speech must remain a red line in any partnership with Europe.
The post Rubio Warns Europe’s Speech Crackdowns Could Lead to Americans Being Arrested Abroad for Social Media Posts appeared first on Real News Now.
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