Gulf of Censorship

Gulf of Bullshit

When pre-Elon Twitter removed right-wing lies and accounts of Nazis, Terrorists, and Trump, MAGAts howled, “That’s censorship!”
When the Biden administration asked Facebook to remove misinformation about COVID-19, the MAGAts along with Mark Zuckerberg screamed, “That’s censorship!”
Anytime a university would prevent Nazis, like Richard Spencer, from giving speeches on their campuses, the Nazis would scream, “That’s censorship!” But the thing is, none of that is censorship.

Twitter, X, and Facebook are NOT government platforms. Even if they kicked you off for posting something they don’t like, it still wouldn’t be censorship. It’s perfectly legal to remove Nazis from a non-government-owned platform. Asking a platform to remove misinformation, lies, and bullshit isn’t censorship, it’s a public service. And universities are free to say, “No Nazis allowed. In fact, wasn’t it Republicans demanding that university presidents be fired for allowing pro-Palestinian groups to protest, or am I confused?

For the dum-dums, I’ll dumb it down: Say you come into my home (because someone else brought you, I wouldn’t invite you) and start shouting the N-word. My kicking you out isn’t censorship. It’s me kicking a racist off my private property. Get it now? Nah, I’m sure you don’t.

Republicans, MAGAts, and goons don’t understand what censorship is. To help them understand what censorship is, I’ll present today’s cartoon which is on the Trump administration’s censorship. Funny enough, Elon Musk, the so-called champion of free speech, hasn’t commented on this one yet that I’m aware of.

The White House has banned the Associated Press from press briefings, Air Force One, and all White House events because the news organization still uses the term “Gulf of Mexico” to refer to the body of water south of the United States, which the rest of the planet calls the “Gulf of Mexico.”

Donald Trump pandered to his 4th-grade reading level base. These are the sort of people he loves, the low-educated. They love guns, Jesus, Cheesecake Factory, and pickup trucks. Books? Not so much. Trump pandered to them by changing the name of the Gulf of Mexico to the “Gulf of America” through an executive order. And while the United States government may officially recognize the gulf as the “Gulf of America,” or as many Trumpers will say, “Gulf of Murica,” the rest of the world does not. This is extremely childish of Trump.

The United States does NOT own the Gulf of Mexico. It’s international waters. No other nation recognizes it as the “Gulf of America,” but I’m pretty sure countries that want to appease Trump and patronize him, such as Russia, Israel, and Belarus, will eventually. The Gulf of Mexico has been recognized by that name since the 1500s.

White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt defended kicking out AP reporters, saying, “I was very upfront in my briefing on day one that if we feel that there are lies being pushed by outlets in this room, we are going to hold those lies accountable.” Someone needs to hold that lie accountable. The only people allowed to lie in the press room are members of the Trump administration.

Leavitt also said, “And it is a fact that the body of water off the coast of Louisiana is called the Gulf of America.” It’s also a fact that other nations do NOT call it the “Gulf of America.” Calling it “Gulf of Mexico” is not a lie any more than calling McDonald’s “Mickey Ds.”

Leavitt grew hostile toward the press asking her questions about this and justified the bullshit name by pointing out that Apple Maps and Google Maps are now listing it as the “Gulf of America.” If you check them out, you’ll notice it’s true. But, that depends on your location. If you open one of those apps in Mexico, Canada, England, France, etc, etc, it will be listed as “Gulf of Mexico.” Also, Google appeases bullying nations such as China, Russia, and even the Taliban by censoring information all the time. both corporations tend to follow instructions from fascist dictators. So, that’s a horrible example, Ms. Leavitt.

Julie Pace, AP's senior vice president and executive editor responded by saying, “It is alarming that the Trump administration would punish AP for its independent journalism. Limiting our access to the Oval Office based on the content of AP's speech not only severely impedes the public's access to independent news, it plainly violates the First Amendment.”

She is correct. While X/Twitter can remove your account for saying “Gulf of America,” or even “Elon sucks great big green donkey balls,” the government can not. Unfortunately, the presidency is part of the government. Sure, the White House can choose who has access to the briefing room and Air Force One, but they can’t make that ruling based on language. It is unconstitutional. It violates the First Amendment and it’s an attack on the free press. Also, Elon does suck Great Big Green donkey balls.

AP has been a member of the 13-member White House press pool for over a century. In case you’re a MAGAt, a century is 100 years.

Remember during the first Trump administration (sic) when they removed Jim Acosta, then with CNN, from all White House events because they didn’t like his attitude? They eventually caved. It’ll be interesting to see if they cave on this. If they don’t, there will be a lawsuit that they’ll lose.

A spokesgoon for Breitbart defended the White House and issued a stupid statement saying, “Have you asked the AP why they refuse to call the Gulf of America by its rightful name? Why choose to stand on ceremony on something like this? Especially if it means they’re going to reduce their access to the White House.” The fact is, Breitbart spokesgoon, the Associated Press is an international news organization. In case you’re a MAGAt, international means outside the United States. Breitbart is asking why an actual news outlet isn’t goosestepping along with Trump’s demands.

Dylan Housman, editor-in-chief of the Daily Caller, passed along this statement: “Having showed up to Karine Jean-Pierre’s press briefings for a year straight, only for us to get called on a whopping 3 total times in that span despite being permanent members of the WHCA, I won’t be crying crocodile tears for any corporate media covering this White House. That being said, when there are far more egregious abuses being committed by the corporate press constantly, ‘Gulf of America’ vs. ‘Gulf of Mexico’ is a weird hill to die on.”

First off, great job proving you’re a propaganda outlet instead of a news outlet by defending censorship. Mr, Housman, you probably only got called on three times because your questions are based on conspiracy theories and trolling. I’ve heard your questions that are all based on MAGAt talking points.

Also, I can’t think of any “abuses” committed by the corporate press that are “far more egregious” than a presidential administration attacking the First Amendment.

If you support the First Amendment, the Constitution, free speech, and a free press, this is a huge hill to die on. Paper straws are a weird hill to die on.

“Gulf of “America” is a weird hill to die on for the Trumpers. Willis Tower is in Chicago. It’s been there since 1973, but nobody in Chicago calls it Willis Tower even though that’s been the official name since 2009. Chicagoans still call it Sears Tower. “Gulf of America” will never catch on, no matter how many times they say it on Fox News.

Update: Since the White House is adding “new media,” which includes podcasters, social media “influencers, and “content creators” to apply to attend press briefings while kicking out traditional media like the Associated Press, I have applied to attend a press briefing. Now, I feel like I just made it easier for them to find me, but I can’t wait to be denied.

Three things: Three things in this cartoon guaranteed to upset MAGAts. One is saying there was collusion between Trump and Russia, the second is the both-sides statement, and the third is “bleach.”

Creative note: Weird cartoons like this are very hard to write. I’m mostly using my memory and then Googling (despite the Maps fuckery) to back up my memory. I drew most of the cartoon before I did the lettering because I was still thinking of stuff to add. Me head hurts and I need a burrito.

Dear Ms. Laura: I got your check for a paid subscription but lost your email. Please email me at clayjonz@gmail.com.

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