{"id":1836824,"date":"2023-02-06T11:49:35","date_gmt":"2023-02-06T16:49:35","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=1836824"},"modified":"2023-02-06T11:50:14","modified_gmt":"2023-02-06T16:50:14","slug":"biden-doj-trying-to-lock-up-a-pro-trump-meme-maker-for-ten-years-heres-what-you-need-to-know","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/biden-doj-trying-to-lock-up-a-pro-trump-meme-maker-for-ten-years-heres-what-you-need-to-know\/","title":{"rendered":"Biden DOJ Trying To Lock Up A Pro-Trump Meme Maker For Ten Years. Here\u2019s What You Need To Know."},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"float:left\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">38<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Fbiden-doj-trying-to-lock-up-a-pro-trump-meme-maker-for-ten-years-heres-what-you-need-to-know%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=1836824&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47-->\n<p>A popular pro-lifer of 33 years old is the creator of this website.<a href=\"https:\/\/www.dailywire.com\/topic\/donald-trump\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Trump<\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/www.dailywire.com\/topic\/twitter\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Twitter<\/a> account could spend up to 10 year behind bars for using memes <a href=\"https:\/\/www.dailywire.com\/topic\/joe-biden\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Biden<\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/www.dailywire.com\/topic\/department-of-justice\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Department of Justice<\/a> (DOJ), claims that interference occurred in the 2016 presidential elections.<\/p>\n<p>Douglass Mackey, who went by the Twitter alias Ricky Vaughn, was charged about a week after President Joe Biden took office \u2014 some four years after the memes were posted. The DOJ alleges that Mackey conspired. \u201cinjure, oppress, threaten, or intimidate\u201d people from exercising their constitutional right to vote, the accused\u2019s attorney says the memes were satire and don\u2019t fall under the statute Mackey is being charged with, which is <a href=\"https:\/\/www.law.cornell.edu\/uscode\/text\/18\/241\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">18 U.S. Code 241<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cOne\u00a0of the arguments is that the conduct of issue does not fall within the\u00a0scope of the statute as it\u2019s written,\u201d In a telephone interview, attorney James Lawrence spoke to The Daily Wire. \u201cI mean, this is a statute that\u00a0was passed after the Civil War as part of the reconstruction process in\u00a0the south to guarantee the rights of freed slaves to vote without fear of\u00a0intimidation.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Lawrence added that the memes on Twitter were satire. \u201cthe conduct doesn\u2019t fall within the scope of section 241.\u201d<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-498101\" class=\"wp-image-498101 size-full\" src=\"https:\/\/www.dailywire.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/unnamed-1.png\" alt=\"Douglass Mackey\" width=\"584\" height=\"381\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/unnamed-1.png 584w, https:\/\/dw-wp-production.imgix.net\/2023\/02\/unnamed-1-300x196.png 300w\" style=\"display:none\"><\/p>\n<p id=\"caption-attachment-498101\" class=\"wp-caption-text\"><em>James Lawrence<\/em><\/p>\n<p>According to\u00a0reporter Luke O\u2019Brien, Mackey\u2019s account had enormous reach,\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.vermontpublic.org\/programs\/2018-04-10\/trumps-most-influential-white-nationalist-troll-has-vermont-roots\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Blending<\/a> The mainstream conservatism has been accused of being more anti-Semitic. The\u00a0MIT Media Lab\u2019s quantitative analysis of social media and news influencers said Mackey\u2019s Ricky Vaughan account \u201cwas more impactful \u2026 than several major media outlets and figures such as NBC News and The Drudge Report,\u201d Vermont Public <a href=\"https:\/\/www.vermontpublic.org\/programs\/2018-04-10\/trumps-most-influential-white-nationalist-troll-has-vermont-roots\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Noted<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>One of the memes the government zeroed in on from Mackey was reportedly published on\u00a0November 1, 2016. It depicts a woman holding an \u201cAfrican Americans for <a href=\"https:\/\/www.dailywire.com\/news\/hillary-clinton-lands-professor-and-presidential-fellow-gig-at-columbia-university\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">President Hillary<\/a>\u201d Sign with overlaid text reading \u201cAvoid the line. Vote from home. Text \u2018Hillary\u2019 to 55925.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Mackey had several Twitter accounts, but his most prominent account with almost 60,000 followers was pro-Trump. The account often used an avatar of actor Charlie Sheen\u2019s character Ricky Vaughn from the movie Major League wearing a superimposed \u201cMake America Great Again\u201d hat. Trump was also featured on his Twitter banner.<\/p>\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">Douglass Mackey, aka far-right influencer &#8220;Ricky Vaughn,&#8221; Brooklyn Fed charged him with election interference in 2016, with a scheme that limited black turnout.<\/p>\n<p>This BuzzFeed story is cited in the complaint. <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/gN6AzrfSVW\">https:\/\/t.co\/gN6AzrfSVW<\/a><\/p>\n<p>Story soon <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/LambeJerry?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">@LambeJerry<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/lawcrimenews?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">@LawCrimeNews<\/a>. <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/Z7Var5tXgU\">pic.twitter.com\/Z7Var5tXgU<\/a><\/p>\n<p>\u2014 Adam Klasfeld (@KlasfeldReports) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/KlasfeldReports\/status\/1354478124348669957?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">January 27, 2021<\/a><\/p>\n<p>According to the government, some 4,900 people texted the number, but it\u2019s unclear how many people, if anyone, fell for the meme and did not cast the vote they intended to cast; or were merely participating in the joke.<\/p>\n<p>Buzzfeed on Nov 2, 2016, one day after Mackey published the meme, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.buzzfeednews.com\/article\/charliewarzel\/twitter-doesnt-think-this-attempt-to-disenfranchise-voters-v\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">posted<\/a> a screenshot of a response they received after texting the name \u201cHillary\u201d to the 55925 number. It appeared to be from the Clinton campaign informing them that the ad they saw was not associated with \u201cHillary for America,\u201d and directed them to \u201cHillary for America\u201d via text.<\/p>\n<p>On the same day, then-Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey tweeted out that he had \u201cfixed\u201d the issue. The tweets were removed and Mackey\u2019s account was suspended.<\/p>\n<p>Other memes from Mackey reportedly said, \u201cJoin Hillary to fight Russia with our greatest asset: diversity,\u201d\u00a0and, \u201cVote for her. Vote from home. Post \u2018Hillary\u2019 using #PresidentialElection.\u201d There were also reportedly memes about celebrities backing Trump, meant to mock and rile-up Hollywood.<\/p>\n<p>The charges have sparked some criticism about potential First Amendment implications going forward. Former federal prosecutor Andy McCarthy, for example, criticized the Biden DOJ for the indictment.<\/p>\n<p>It\u2019s a \u201cthree-fer,\u201d McCarthy <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nationalreview.com\/2021\/01\/the-justice-departments-ridiculous-voter-disinformation-prosecution\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">wrote<\/a>, \u201cthe prosecutorial creation of a crime Congress has not prescribed, the trivialization of civil-rights law, and the intrusion of government as a monitor of political speech.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>McCarthy told Fox News last year, \u201cIt\u2019s really like a toe in the water for the FBI, in the end, to manage communications in election campaigns. And I think we\u2019ve seen in the last few years how well the FBI\u2019s involvement in our elections and our politics has worked out.\u201d<\/p>\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">Tucker Carlson &#038; <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/AndrewCMcCarthy?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">@AndrewCMcCarthy<\/a> Discussing The DOJ&#8217;s Ridiculous Prosecution Of Doug Mackey For Making Memes Online<\/p>\n<p>Former Federal Prosecutor Andy McCarthy: &#8220;I&#8217;d like to just say it&#8217;s a ridiculous case Tucker, but actually it turns out to be a dangerous one in the end.&#8221; <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/ULROMQobm4\">pic.twitter.com\/ULROMQobm4<\/a><\/p>\n<p>\u2014 The Columbia Bugle \ud83c\uddfa\ud83c\uddf8 (@ColumbiaBugle) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/ColumbiaBugle\/status\/1357152990268846083?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">February 4, 2021<\/a><\/p>\n<p>Lawrence similarly emphasized that this could impact all Americans, regardless of their political views.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe reason\u00a0why this is such an important case for all Americans, Left, Right, and center is, do we want the state, do we want the government to be\u00a0involved in policing alleged misinformation and disinformation,\u00a0particularly around our elections?\u201d Lawrence posed.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe don\u2019t\u00a0want the government\u2019s nose in that tent,\u201d he continued. \u201cThis would arguably expand the scope of liability under section 241 in\u00a0such a way that the government could use it to target other people\u2019s speech,\u00a0regardless, really, of their<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>A 33-year-old creator of a popular pro-Trump Twitter account is facing up to 10 years behind bars over memes the Biden Department of Justice (DOJ) claims interfered with the 2016 presidential election. Douglass Mackey, who went by the Twitter alias Ricky Vaughn, was charged about a week after President Joe Biden took office \u2014 some &#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":64,"featured_media":1836827,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/cndimages.nyc3.digitaloceanspaces.com\/breaking-news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/IMG_2758-scaled-1.jpg","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[541],"tags":[3620,7076,3751,5693,9561,10457,3716,4053,4346],"class_list":["post-1836824","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-the-daily-wire","tag-biden","tag-doj","tag-heres","tag-know","tag-lock","tag-maker","tag-meme","tag-pro-trump","tag-years"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/cndimages.nyc3.digitaloceanspaces.com\/breaking-news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/IMG_2758-scaled-1.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1836824","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/64"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1836824"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1836824\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1836827"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1836824"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1836824"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1836824"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}