Man detained in flag burning incident near White House to protest Trump order
The article reports that a man was detained near the White house for burning an American flag in protest against President Donald Trump. The incident coincided with Trump signing an executive order aimed at cracking down on flag burning by imposing stricter penalties. The man,who identified himself as a military veteran,was seen in a video setting the flag on fire in Lafayette Park. He stated that his act was a protest against what he called an “illegal fascist president.”
The Secret Service detained the individual for igniting an object in a public park and handed him over to the Park Police, who cited a regulation that prohibits lighting fires in public parks. The article notes that while burning the flag is protected as free speech under a 1989 Supreme Court ruling, Trump’s executive order directs the Attorney General to vigorously prosecute flag burners and even consider litigation to clarify First Amendment exceptions. The order also includes provisions to revoke visas of international visitors who desecrate the flag. Trump justified the order by claiming that flag burning incites unprecedented levels of riots.
Man detained in flag burning incident near White House to protest Trump order
A man was arrested on Monday across the street from the White House after he set an American flag on fire the same day President Donald Trump signed an executive order to crack down on flag burning.
The man, who described himself as a 20-year veteran, was seen in a video posted on Bulwark’s social media in Lafayette Park setting the flag on fire.
“I’m burning this flag as a protest to that illegal fascist president that sits in that House,” the unidentified man said as he pointed to the White House.
In a statement to the Washington Examiner, a Secret Service spokesperson said that at 6:15 p.m., they detained an individual for “igniting an object” in the public park. They turned him over to the Park Police, as it is their jurisdiction.
The Washington Examiner contacted the Park Police for comment.
Park Police told The Hill it detained an individual for violating 36 CFR § 2.13 (a)(1), which prohibits lighting a fire in a public park.
The incident happened just hours after Trump signed an executive order that created stricter penalties for flag-burning.
In 1989, the Supreme Court ruled in a 5-4 decision that burning flags is a protected form of speech under the First Amendment.
“My Administration will act to restore respect and sanctity to the American Flag and prosecute those who incite violence or otherwise violate our laws while desecrating this symbol of our country, to the fullest extent permissible under any available authority,” Trump’s executive order reads.
The order directs Attorney General Pam Bondi to “vigorously prosecute” individuals who burn the American flag and says she “may pursue litigation to clarify the scope of the First Amendment exceptions in this area.”
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The order also directs officials to revoke or terminate visas if international visitors are found to have desecrated the flag.
“When you burn the American flag, it incites riots at levels we’ve never seen before,” Trump said when he signed the order. “People go crazy.”
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