Attorney General Pam Bondy said the goal of prosecuting people for burning flags could be achieved without violating the First Amendment.
Trump: People who burn American flags should go to prison for a year
President Trump has proposed a year in prison for those who burn the American flag. This is an act of protest subject to the First Amendment.
USA TODAY, WOCHIT
WASHINGTON – President Donald Trump has signed an August 25th executive order, calling for people who burn flags to be fined, but courts have long upheld the practice as a legitimate expression under the First Amendment.
The order aims to prosecute people who burn flags related to other violence, such as inciting riots, Trump said.
“If you burn the flag, you’re in prison for a year,” Trump said. “You can see the flag burning quickly stop.”
The First Amendment protects speech and peaceful protests. The Supreme Court in 1989 ruled in a 5-4 decision that burning the flag itself was a form of political expression and not illegal.
Attorney General Pam Bondy said Trump’s goal of prosecuting flags without violating the High Court’s decision could be achieved.
“We do that without violating the First Amendment,” Bondy said.
Trump’s order comes in the nation’s 250 year celebrationth My birthday is July 4th, 2026. Trump mentioned that he is seeking a penalty for burning the flag while visiting Fort Bragg, North Carolina on June 10th as part of the 250th anniversary of the US Army.
“People who burn the American flag should go to prison for a year. That’s what they should do, a year,” Trump said after occasional violent protests in Los Angeles over immigration enforcement.
Trump has previously sought a one-year fine for the flag ceremony, including a rally in Tulsa, Oklahoma, during the June 2020 presidential election. He was photographed holding the flag at a conservative political action meeting in March 2019.
Flags may be burned during protests in front of the White House, including in 2019.
