Throughout his career, former Congressman Justin Amash
has been a strong advocate for freedom of speech, writing that “The
value of free speech comes from encountering views that are
unorthodox, uncommon, or unaccepted…Free speech is a barren
concept if people are limited to expressing views already widely
held.”
In this special live episode, filmed in front of 200+
high schoolers attending FIRE’s Free Speech Forum at American
University in Washington, D.C., Amash takes questions from the
audience and discusses his upbringing, his political career, the
state of American politics, and how the Constitution guided his
work in Congress.
Earlier this year, Congressman Amash
joined FIRE’s Advisory Council.
Timestamps:
00:00 Intro
03:30 Upbringing
06:21 Law school
13:15 Time in Congress
15:59 Why Amash publicly explained each of his
votes
26:30 On being the first libertarian in Congress
30:57 Connection between his principles and free
speech
33:10 Trump’s first impeachment
42:48 Dealing with pushback from constituents
46:03 Term limits for members of Congress?
55:25 How high schoolers can pursue a career in
politics
59:45 Has there been a regression in First Amendment
protections?
01:07:32 What Amash is up to now
01:08:06 Outro
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