During a Supreme Court debate on Monday, which centered on allegations of the Biden administration’s collaboration with Big Tech to censor specific messages, one justice made remarks that drew attention regarding the government’s stance on the First Amendment.

The case originated from a lawsuit filed by Republican-led states Missouri and Louisiana, accusing senior government officials of collaborating with major social media platforms purportedly to combat misinformation.

The lawsuit alleges that this collaboration led to the censorship of speech on various topics, including Hunter Biden’s laptop, the origins of COVID-19, and the effectiveness of face masks—contention which the states assert constitutes a violation of the First Amendment.

In a session spanning nearly two hours, the justices deliberated on whether the Biden administration had overstepped constitutional bounds and whether its interactions with private companies amounted to permissible persuasion or encouragement, as opposed to illegal coercion or threats of retaliation.

“It’s got these big clubs available to it, and so it’s treating Facebook and these other platforms like their subordinates,” Justice Samuel Alito said, Fox News reported.

“Your view has the First Amendment hamstringing the federal government in significant ways in the most important time periods,” Justice Jackson said in response.

“The government actually has a duty to take steps to protect the citizens of this country… by encouraging or even pressuring platforms to take down harmful information,” she said.

According to the lawsuit filed by the states, 67 federal agencies and officials purportedly pressured platforms such as Facebook and Twitter to censor individual posts.

These posts primarily pertained to COVID-19 restrictions enforced by the preceding two administrations and the outcome of the 2020 presidential election.

Written by B.C. Begley