As pro-Palestinian protests broke out on American university campuses in the wake of the Israel-Hamas conflict, President Joe Biden asserted the fundamental nature of the right to free speech and “for people to peacefully assemble and make their voices heard.”
“Peaceful protest is in the best tradition of how Americans respond to consequential issues.”
However, he insisted, “We are a civil society, and order must prevail . ... It’s against the law when violence occurs.”
Earlier this month, Director of National Intelligence Avril Haines warned in a statement of an additional danger affecting the protests: influence efforts by Iran, “seeking to stoke discord and undermine confidence in our democratic institutions ... using social media platforms and issuing threats.”
Director Haines wrote, “In recent weeks, Iranian government actors have sought to opportunistically take advantage of ongoing protests regarding the war in Gaza, using a playbook we’ve seen other actors use over the years. We have observed actors tied to Iran’s government posing as activists online, seeking to encourage protests, and even providing financial support to protesters.”
Director Haines emphasized that “Americans who participate in protests are, in good faith, expressing their views on the conflict in Gaza – this intelligence does not indicate otherwise ... [B]ut it is also important to warn of foreign actors who seek to exploit our debate for their own purposes.”
At a White House briefing, Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre had a “firm message” to convey “to Iran and any other foreign actor that seeks to conduct these types of influence activities.”
“Meddling in our politics and seeking to stoke division is unacceptable, and we will continue to expose attempts to undermine our democracy and our society,” she said. “The U.S. government will continue to vigorously support and defend Americans in their exercise of their First Amendment rights to protest and express political views peacefully. At the same time, we will continue to warn against, [and] expose foreign efforts to meddle in our internal affairs and attempt to amplify conflict.”
“The former is an essential part of a robust, functioning democracy,” said Ms. Jean-Pierre. “The latter is a threat, and it will not - it will not - will not be tolerated.”
