Illinois General Assembly - Full Text of HR0505

HR0505 LRB104 15857 MST 29073 r

HOUSE RESOLUTION

WHEREAS, Illinoisans view the rights to free speech, free expression, free assembly, and a free and independent press as building blocks of a healthy democracy and are committed to preserving these rights against unwarranted encroachment; and

WHEREAS, Despite claiming to be a champion for the First Amendment, President Donald Trump has shown complete and constant disregard for these rights in favor of prioritizing political expediency, power grabs, preservation of his fragile ego, and revenge for even the smallest imagined slight; and

WHEREAS, The Trump Administration appointee and Federal Communications Commission Chair Brendan Carr has already publicly expressed a willingness to "do this the hard way" if late-night comedian Jimmy Kimmel was not immediately silenced, per Donald Trump's wishes; and

WHEREAS, Late-night comedian Stephen Colbert, a critic of Donald Trump, had his long-running satirical program cancelled following pressure from Donald Trump and the FCC on the parent company of CBS, Paramount; and

WHEREAS, President Trump has also encouraged unwarranted crackdowns on peaceful protests when those protests express views contrary to his own or the special interests from whom he hopes to win favor; and

WHEREAS, During all three of his presidential campaigns, President Trump has publicly and repeatedly goaded his supporters to threaten, intimidate, and attack counter-protesters at his rallies and to use violence as a response to criticism; and

WHEREAS, During the 2020 Black Lives Matter protests in Portland, Oregon, at President Trump's urging, federal agents targeted non-violent protestors and specifically journalists with rubber bullets, pepper spray, flash-bang grenades, and mass arrests; and

WHEREAS, Donald Trump has similarly decried peaceful protests against Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) actions as chaotic, violent, and unlawful without any basis in reality; and

WHEREAS, Donald Trump has repeatedly revoked credentials from members of the White House Press Corps who voice viewpoints contrary to those of his administration, ask questions he does not want to answer, or act beyond the remit of his personal propaganda arm; and

WHEREAS, Affected outlets include the Associated Press, Bloomberg News, Reuters, Huffington Post, New York Times, Politico, and NPR, all of which were pushed aside in favor of near-hagiographic coverage from conservative outlets, such as Breitbart and One America News Network; and

WHEREAS, Freedom of the press has been further curtailed following extensive restrictions on membership of the Pentagon Press Association as well as a memo circulated to journalists requiring the Department of Defense approval on reporting prior to public release even in cases that do not involve classified materials; and

WHEREAS, Reporters attempting to cover important stories have faced much greater pushback from law enforcement coming on the heels of violent anti-journalism rhetoric from Donald Trump; and

WHEREAS, As recently as October 10, 2025, WGN Producer Debbie Brockman was forced to the ground and handcuffed to prevent her from covering protests against ICE enforcement operations; and

WHEREAS, These examples represent only a fragment of Donald Trump's pattern of corrupting the First Amendment, his attempts to manipulate and control all information Americans receive, and his disregard for the American people's ability to express themselves without fear of retribution; and

WHEREAS, The United States House of Representatives approved a Trump Administration plan to rescind $1.1 billion, for the first time in 60 years, to the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, which consists of organizations such as National Public Radio and Public Broadcasting Service, causing CPB to begin closing their operations; and

WHEREAS, In smaller communities in particular, the Associated Press or a local NPR affiliate is one of the primary resources for national news, state news, and emergency notifications; and

WHEREAS, Undermining free speech and the free press undermines democracy; therefore, be it

RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE ONE HUNDRED FOURTH GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we affirm our support for the freedom of the press and the freedom of speech as outlined in the First Amendment to the United States Constitution; and be it further

RESOLVED, That we recognize the Trump Administration's efforts to exert editorial control over media companies by using the official powers of the government to punish dissent and reward acquiescence as textbook corruption; and be it further

RESOLVED, That we condemn President Trump's efforts to restrict the right to free speech as attacks on democracy itself.