Florida Rep. Matt Gaetz said in a speech Thursday that conservatives have an “obligation” to use the Second Amendment against Big Tech firms, The New York Post reports.
Gaetz, who is reportedly under a federal investigation for alleged child sex trafficking, spoke at a rally in Dalton, Georgia alongside Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene.
“The internet’s hall monitors out in Silicon Valley, they think they can suppress us, discourage us — maybe if you’re just a little less patriotic, maybe if you just conform to their way of thinking a little more, you’ll be allowed to participate in the digital world,” he said. “Well, you know what? Silicon Valley can’t cancel this movement or this rally or this congressman. We have the Second Amendment in this country and I think we have an obligation to use it.”
The government, too:
Gaetz also argued that the Second Amendment is about protecting the right to take up arms against the government.
“The Second Amendment – this is a little history lesson for all the fake news media. The Second Amendment is not about, it’s not about hunting, it’s not about recreation, it’s not about sports,” the 39-year-old went on. “The Second Amendment is about maintaining, within the citizenry, the ability to maintain an armed rebellion against the government if that becomes necessary. I hope it never does, but it sure is important to recognize the founding principles of this nation, and to make sure that they are fully understood.”
Republican critics slam comment:
“This is not speech protected by the first amendment. This is beyond yelling fire in a theater,” Rep. Adam Kinzinger, an anti-Trump Illinois Republican, said on Twitter.
Former Rep. Denver Riggleman also called out Greene, who accused Biden of helping Mexican drug cartels.
“A Gaetz-Greene presidential ticket might be in the works. This is great for fundraising. She knows that ignorance, hyperbole, racism, bigotry & conspiracies are money makers,” he said. “Hate and crazy is a recipe for a lot of votes.”
