Ron DeSantis, Vivek Ramaswamy SLAM Nikki Haley For Comments On Anonymous Social Media Posting

On Tuesday, 2024 Republican presidential contender and Florida Governor Ron DeSantis (R-FL) called out fellow 2024 presidential candidate Nikki Haley (R-SC) for her remarks on the national security "threat" that is anonymous social media posting. He argued anonymity has a long history in our nation and is often necessary to move the conversation forward. Patriotic Republicans also concurred, slamming Haley for her unnuanced remarks. 

"You know who were anonymous writers back in the day? Alexander Hamilton, John Jay, and James Madison when they wrote the Federalist Papers," DeSantis wrote on Twitter. "They were not 'national security threats,' nor are the many conservative Americans across the country who exercise their Constitutional right to voice their opinions without fear of being harassed or canceled by the school they go to or the company they work for."

DeSantis was replying to Nikki Haley, who said during a Tuesday Fox News appearance, "Every person on social media should be verified by their name. It's a national security threat. When you do that, people have to stand by what they say. It gets rid of the Russian bots and China and Iranian bots," These remarks are truly bizarre and unfitting of someone who is attempting to run for President of the United States. DeSantis continued, adding, "Haley's proposal to ban anonymous speech online — similar to what China recently did — is dangerous and unconstitutional. It will be dead on arrival in my administration."

You know who were anonymous writers back in the day? Alexander Hamilton, John Jay, and James Madison when they wrote the Federalist Papers.

They were not "national security threats," nor are the many conservative Americans across the country who exercise their Constitutional… https://t.co/YkAGMhUVCX

— Ron DeSantis (@RonDeSantis) November 15, 2023

DeSantis was not the only Republican who called out Haley. Vivek Ramaswamy, who has had his fair share of heated interactions with Haley, also replied, ".@NikkiHaley is *openly* pushing for the government to use private tech companies to censor speech. This is a flagrant violation of the Constitution and straight out of the Democrats' playbook. Any politician who thinks it's OK for the government to use the private sector as its censorship bureau shouldn't be allowed anywhere near the White House." In turn, X Owner and Tesla Co-Founder Elon Musk also weighed in, tweeting, "Super messed up. She can stop pretending to run for president now."

.@NikkiHaley is *openly* pushing for the government to use private tech companies to censor speech. This is a flagrant violation of the Constitution and straight out of the Democrats’ playbook. Any politician who thinks it’s OK for the government to use the private sector as its… pic.twitter.com/Cb1847r6CA

— Vivek Ramaswamy (@VivekGRamaswamy) November 14, 2023

Super messed up. She can stop pretending to run for president now.

— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) November 15, 2023

Former Arizona Senate Candidate Blake Masters also replied, adding, "You'd expect to hear this kind of garbage from Biden or Newsom after meeting with Xi, not from a Republican presidential candidate talking about their top priorities. Twitter trolls are not a national security threat. 'Anonymity is a shield from the tyranny of the majority.'" These remarks are serious, and Republicans all over the nation have to address the primacy of free speech in public discourse. Our nation depends on it. 

You’d expect to hear this kind of garbage from Biden or Newsom after meeting with Xi, not from a Republican presidential candidate talking about their top priorities.

Twitter trolls are not a national security threat. “Anonymity is a shield from the tyranny of the majority.” https://t.co/SO1iFRTBmY

— Blake Masters (@bgmasters) November 15, 2023