DOJ plans to ask court to vacate depositions in free speech case

Shana Donahue

October 28, 05:33 AM October 28, 05:33 AM

The Department of Justice plans to ask the court to vacate an order requesting depositions from members of the Biden administration, according to court documents dated Oct. 27.

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According to

court documents, the DOJ plans to file a petition asking the court of appeals to vacate an Oct. 21 order allowing depositions to be taken from Surgeon General Vivek Murthy, Director of the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency Jen Easterly, and Deputy Assistant to the President and Director of White House Digital Strategy Rob Flaherty.

Dr. Anthony Fauci, former White House press secretary Jen Psaki, and FBI supervisory special agent Elvis Chan were also included in the Oct. 21 deposition order but are not included in the request to vacate.

The depositions are related to a lawsuit filed by the attorneys general for Missouri and Louisiana that accuses officials in the Biden administration of colluding with social media companies such as Meta, Twitter, and YouTube to censor free speech in an effort to combat misinformation which led to suppression and censorship.

“I will not stand idly by while the Biden administration attempts to trample on the First Amendment rights of Missourians and Americans,” Missouri Attorney General Eric Schmitt said in a May statement.

“Big Tech has become an extension of Biden’s Big Government, and neither are protecting the freedoms of Americans; rather, they are suppressing truth and demonizing those who think differently,” said Louisiana Attorney General Jeff Landry in May. “Ripped from the playbook of Stalin and his ilk, Biden has been colluding with Big Tech to censor free speech and propagandize the masses. We are fighting back to ensure the rule of law and prevent the government from unconstitutional banning, chilling, and stifling of speech.”

The lawsuit lists the Hunter Biden laptop story, the COVID-19 lab leak theory, and the efficacy of masks were listed as examples of suppressed speech in the suit, according to a release from the Missouri attorney general’s office.