When the government blocked our client from J.D. Vance’s official events because of her online cat jokes, we sued.
In a victory for the First Amendment, the government declared that our client, Amanda McGonigle, will be allowed to attend official vice-presidential events on the same terms as anyone else. The government also confirmed that it won’t deny entry to anyone else over their protected speech.
Amanda, who created and runs the social media accounts @CatsOnACouch, sued after she was barred from entering a vice-presidential event in Bangor simply because she uses her accounts to make fun of Vice President Vance to her millions of followers. After the government told the court that Amanda – and other members of the public – will not be excluded from official vice-presidential events based on their protected speech, Amanda voluntarily asked the court to dismiss the case.
A senior official in the Office of the Vice President said in court documents that “[a]ttendees will not be prevented from attending official events based on protected expression or speech.”
Because of Amanda’s courage in filing this lawsuit, we have the government on the record loud and clear: They will not exclude people from public, taxpayer-funded events simply for making fun of public officials online.
When Amanda was denied entry to the Vice President’s event in Bangor, an armed Secret Service agent and other officials called her out by name and told her she was not allowed to enter, saying, “We know where you stand.” This was a clear example of retaliation and viewpoint-based discrimination because of her online criticism. Elected officials cannot penalize Amanda, or anyone else, simply because they cannot take a joke.
Regardless of who is in power, we all have the right to speak our minds without fear of government retaliation. Humor, mockery, and political satire have been important ways for people to express themselves, challenge those in power, and participate in democracy since our nation’s founding. The First Amendment protects that right for all of us.
