In a March 2023 press release explaining why the lawsuit requesting an injunction against federal government officials was important, Missouri Attorney General Andrew Bailey stated:

by Carolyn Hendler

Freedom of speech in the United States was delivered a blow on July 14, 2023 when a U.S. Federal Appeals Court issued a temporary stay blocking a preliminary injunction which limited the U.S. Justice Department's communication with social media companies seeking to remove "content containing protected free speech." The Appellate Court panel of Judges, Judge Carl Stewart (appointed by President Bill Clinton), Judge James Graves (appointed by President Barack Obama) and Judge Andrew Oldham (appointed by President Donald Trump) did not issue an explanation for their decision in the government's favor.1 2

The original lawsuit was brought by Former Missouri Attorney General Eric Schmitt and Louisiana Attorney General Jeff Landry against 67 U.S. federal agencies. The lawsuit accused government officials of engaging in a widespread campaign of pressuring and colluding with social media platforms to censor users' free speech in violation of the First Amendment of the U.S. Constitution. Plaintiffs submitted more than 1,400 pieces of information taken from internal government documents to support their request for a preliminary injunction, which was granted on July 4 by US District Judge Terry Doughty in Louisiana.3 4