NEW YORK — A federal judge in New York says President Donald Trump violates the First Amendment by blocking critics on Twitter for political speech.
Judge Naomi Reice Buchwald (rees BUHK'-wahld) in Manhattan issued the written decision Wednesday.
In ruling, she said no government official — including the president — is above the law.
The case was brought last July by the Knight First Amendment Institute at Columbia University and seven individuals blocked by Trump after criticizing the Republican president.
After a hearing this year, the judge had suggested that Trump mute rather than block some of his critics. At the time, a Justice Department attorney agreed that muting would enable Trump to avoid a tweet he doesn't want to read.
