Chris Dodd: “I will submit it for the Record. My plans are to reintroduce this legislation in January when we reconvene for the 109th…”

“I will submit it for the Record. My plans are to reintroduce this legislation in January when we reconvene for the 109th Congress. I thought it might be helpful to have this legislation in the Record for my colleagues to review. It is called the Free Speech Protection Act of 2004. This bill is designed to ensure that the free speech guarantees enshrined in the First to the Constitution will be strong and effective for many generations to come. After all, it is the free flow of news and information to the public on a wide variety of concerns which makes our democracy vibrant and alive. Indeed, the very design of our democratic institutions is premised in large part upon an informed citizenry that could exercise informed judgments. As James Madison once observed: Knowledge will forever govern ignorance: And a people who mean to be their own Governor, must arm themselves with the power that knowledge gives. Madison and the other Founders of our great Republic understood full well that the best guarantee of a knowledgeable citizenry is a free press and a public free to speak to the press.”