MONTPELIER, Vt. (AP) – The American Civil Liberty Union’s Vermont chapter has asked Republican Gov. Phil Scott to stop deleting critical posts and blocking constituents on Facebook, but his office says it is simply trying to encourage civil dialogue.
ACLU of Vermont says Wednesday that blocking a constituent is unlawful prior restraint of future speech and deleting posts is “viewpoint-based censorship” in violation of the First Amendment.
Scott spokeswoman Rebecca Kelley says that it is “constitutionally permissible” for Scott’s office to encourage a civil dialogue and protect commenters from being abused, harassed or exposed to hate speech. Kelley adds they would welcome specific recommendations for changes to their social media policy.
A federal court in New York ruled last month that President Donald Trump violated the First Amendment when he blocked critics on Twitter.
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