In the latest instance of a conservative looking to crack down on First Amendment-protected speech, Rep. Ryan Mackenzie, R-Pa., is suggesting that those who burn flags might deserve time behind bars.
In a new digital ad running on X, Mackenzie, who won his race in Pennsylvania’s 7th Congressional District by just 1% in 2024, asked his followers: “Do you support PRISON sentences for BURNING the American flag?”
“Radical Leftists who hate our country are taking torches to the stars & stripes. Add your name to HOLD USA FLAG BURNERS ACCOUNTABLE,” Mackenzie said of the rare form of protest.
In another version of Mackenzie’s ad, Mackenzie clarified that he was referring to Democrats when talking about his hypothetical flag-burning scenario. He wrote, “Democrats are BURNING American flags to ashes. It couldn’t be clearer: The Radical Left HATES America.”
Flag burning has been upheld as a protected form of expression at the Supreme Court in Texas V. Johnson, a landmark 1989 case that established flag burning as an act of symbolic speech. President Donald Trump nonetheless demanded the prosecution of flag burning in an executive order he issued in late August.
“Yes, if I were king, I would not allow people to go about burning the American flag,” conservative Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia, who died in 2016, once told CNN. “However, we have a First Amendment, which says that the right of free speech shall not be abridged. And it is addressed, in particular, to speech critical of the government. I mean, that was the main kind of speech that tyrants would seek to suppress.”
Mackenzie served in the Pennsylvania state legislature, representing the Lehigh Valley area, for 12 years before running for Congress in 2024, with Trump’s endorsement.
During the 2024 campaign, Mackenzie, who is now married, gained infamy for lying about his age on the dating app Tinder in 2020. At the time, Mackenzie said he was 29 years old when he was actually 37.
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During his 2024 campaign, Mackenzie pitched himself as running in order to “break away from the hateful rhetoric and get things done.”
Arnaud Armstrong, a spokesman for Mackenzie’s campaign, told Salon that “Congressman Mackenzie is very opposed to the hate-filled and inflammatory act of burning an American flag. The campaign asked a question gauge public sentiment on this topic and the response has been overwhelming that the general public is opposed to this act as well.”
Mackenzie is expected to be on the front lines of the 2026 midterms, as Republicans pull out all the stops to attempt to hold onto power. In 2024, he defeated the Democratic nominee, Susan Wild, 50.5% to 49.5%. It’s not yet clear who McKenzie will face in 2026. Wild said earlier this year that she will not run next year.
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