For Americans, the words are practically sacred: the First Amendment to the US Constitution guarantees freedom of speech.

But that right is now the subject of bitter debate, following the assassination of right-wing activist Charlie Kirk.

On Thursday, several high-ranking Democrats accused President Donald Trump of waging war on free speech, after he celebrated ABC’s suspension of talk show host Jimmy Kimmel, who accused the political right of using Kirk’s death to score points.

The American Civil Liberties Union, a rights advocacy group, accused the Trump administration of operating outside constitutional safeguards to target its opponents, likening it to the Red Scare of the late 1940 and 1950s under senator Joseph McCarthy.

“This is beyond McCarthyism. Trump officials are repeatedly abusing their power to stop ideas they don’t like, deciding who can speak, write, and even joke,” said Christopher Anders, director of the ACLU’s democracy and technology division.

So what does the First Amendment say? And why is it up for debate?

‘How we identify ourselves’

Ratified in 1791, the Bill of Rights comprises the first 10 amendments to the US Constitution, protecting the fundamental rights of Americans.

“Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble,” the First Amendment says.

For David Super, a professor at Georgetown University’s law school, the amendment is “really how we identify ourselves as a nation.”

Beyond the varied ethnicities and background of the nation’s 340 million people, “we are thought to be drawn together by a belief in open discussion and a belief that the government can’t shut any of us up,” Super told AFP.

The First Amendment even protects speech that is “morally repulsive,” explained Eugene Volokh, a professor of law at the University of California, Los Angeles.

Volokh however emphasised that the history of the United States has been marked by attempts to stifle dissident voices.

‘Malicious writings’

In 1798, America’s second president John Adams signed into law the Sedition Act, which forbade “any false, scandalous and malicious writing or writings against the government of the United States.”

Then during World War I, the expression of pacifist ideology was banned.

From the 1920s to the 1950s, anyone expressing support for communist ideals risked serious repercussions. And in the 1960s, officials in several southern US states battled to silence the civil rights movement.

One of the key pillars of Trump’s political movement has been to eviscerate “cancel culture” — the process of criticising someone for voicing an opinion seen as unacceptable, to the point of that person being ostracised or fired.

Trump has often called “cancel culture” a scourge of leftist progressives, claiming that it has been used to silence conservative pundits and politicians.

But Democrats have turned the tables on Trump, accusing him of doing the same to US media organisations, major universities and, now, Kimmel — a frequent target of Trump’s ire.

“After years of complaining about cancel culture, the current administration has taken it to a new and dangerous level,” Democratic former president Barack Obama wrote Thursday on X.

Conservative push-back

US Attorney General Pam Bondi sparked controversy among conservatives by saying earlier this week that the Justice Department would pursue anyone guilty of “hate speech” linked to the slain influencer.

Republican Senator Ted Cruz quickly countered that the Constitution “absolutely protects hate speech.” Bondi then said she meant to refer to “threats of violence that individuals incite against others.”

Conservative commentator Tucker Carlson called for “civil disobedience” should Kirk’s murder result in an uptick in laws limiting free speech.

And some voices on the far right have criticised a decree signed by Trump in August that makes burning the American flag punishable by up to a year in prison.

The US Supreme Court ruled in 1989 that burning the Stars and Stripes indeed amounted to free speech, and was protected by the First Amendment.

“I would never in a million years harm the American flag,” conservative radio host Jesse Kelly wrote on X.

“But a president telling me I can’t has me as close as I’ll ever be to lighting one on fire. I am a free American citizen. And if I ever feel like torching one, I will.”

US President Donald Trump has reignited his feud with London Mayor Sadiq Khan, revealing he personally requested the latter be excluded from the state banquet during his second state visit to Britain, according to British media.

Speaking to reporters aboard Air Force One on his return to Washington, Trump branded Khan “among the worst mayors in the world,” accusing him of presiding over spiralling crime and failing immigration policies. “I didn’t want him there,” said Trump. 

Trump linked his decision to what he described as rising stabbings, dirt and filth in London, claiming the capital had changed under Khan’s leadership. 

“I have a certain pride in London and the UK. My mother was born in Scotland. And when I see Mayor Khan do a bad job, the stabbings and the dirt and the filth, it’s not the same. I didn’t want him there,” he added.

The exclusion followed sharp criticism from Sadiq Khan ahead of Trump’s visit. Writing in the Guardian, the mayor accused the president of “fanning the flames of divisive, far-right politics” and warned of “a toxic form of politics spilling out onto our streets.” 

On Wednesday, the London mayor renewed his attack, saying Trump had emboldened extremists and “those who seek to divide us will not win.”

The pair’s feud stretches back to 2015, when Sadiq Khan condemned Trump’s proposed Muslim travel ban during his first presidential campaign. 

Since then, Trump has repeatedly criticised Khan, at one point calling him a “stone cold loser,” while Khan’s office famously authorised the inflatable “Trump baby” balloon during the president’s 2018 UK visit.

The president’s rhetoric was not limited to Britain. Trump turned his fire on Democratic Congresswoman Ilhan Omar, according to the Indian daily The Tribune, renewing long-running attacks over her Somali heritage.

In a post on Truth Social, Trump derided Somalia as “plagued by poverty, hunger, terrorism, piracy, decades of civil war, corruption, and pervasive violence,” before adding: “All of this, and Ilhan Omar tells us how to run America! P.S. Wasn’t she the one that married her brother in order to gain Citizenship???”

Trump doubled down when speaking to reporters on Air Force One, calling Omar “terrible” and suggesting she should be impeached. “They come from a place with nothing … and then they tell us how to run our country,” he said.

The remarks came after the House of Representatives narrowly voted down a Republican-led resolution to censure Omar over a retweeted video referencing the killing of Charlie Kirk. 

The resolution failed 214–213, with four Republicans joining Democrats. Responding on social media, Omar thanked colleagues “for having my back and not furthering lies on the House floor,” praising the outcome as “finally some sanity in the House.”

LONDON: A helicopter carrying US President Donald Trump was forced to divert to the Luton Airport on Thursday evening after developing what officials described as a “minor hydraulic issue” after his state visit to the United Kingdom came to a close.

White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said the aircraft landed at a “local airfield” as part of precautionary measure before later continuing to Stansted, arriving around 20 minutes behind schedule.

Both the president and first lady safely boarded the support helicopter, she said.

Emergency services were seen on the tarmac at Luton following the precautionary landing. Photographs showed Marine One and Marine Two – the two presidential helicopters parked close to the runway.

The helicopters nicknamed “White Tops” because of their paintwork, are specially fitted with missile defence systems, radar jammers and nuclear-blast-resistant electronics.

For security reasons, Marine One often flies alongside identical decoys and is usually accompanied by MV-22 Ospreys, or “green tops”, carrying Secret Service personnel, support staff and special forces.

President Trump has relied heavily on the helicopter fleet during his unprecedented second state visit to the UK. He arrived at Stansted late on Tuesday before travelling to Winfield House, the US ambassador’s residence in London.

On Wednesday, he and the first lady visited Windsor Castle for an audience with the King and Queen. The following day, Trump flew to Chequers, where he held bilateral talks with Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer.

At a joint news conference, the two leaders discussed a wide range of issues, including Ukraine, Gaza and illegal migration. Trump suggested Britain could consider deploying the military to address migration – a remark that underscored differences with Starmer.

The US president also voiced his opposition to the UK’s plan to recognise Palestinian statehood ahead of next week’s United Nations General Assembly in New York.