Conservative humor site sues California over laws banning election-related deception

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CONSERVATIVE HUMOR SITE SUES CALIFORNIA OVER ELECTION DECEPTION LAWS

Conservative parody humor site the Babylon Bee was unamused when Gov. Gavin Newsom signed AB 2839 and AB 2655 into law. Now they’re suing.

The right-leaning Alliance Defending Freedom is representing the Babylon Bee and California attorney Kelly Chang Rickert in a lawsuit challenging the two laws. The lawsuit was filed in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California.

AB 2839 bans the distribution of election-related information “that contains certain materially deceptive content, as defined, with malice.”

The ban goes into effect 120 days before an election and up to 60 days after it. The bill makes an exception for content clearly labeled as satire or parody.

AB 2655 requires online platforms to block “materially deceptive content related to elections in California.” That bill also exempts content that is satire or parody.

“Our job is hard enough when our jokes keep coming true, as if they were prophecies,” Babylon Bee CEO Seth Dillon said in a statement. “But it becomes significantly more difficult when self-serving politicians abuse their power to try and control public discourse and clamp down on comedy. Unfortunately for them, the First Amendment secures our right to tell jokes they don’t like.”

The complaint, which you can read here, states that the Babylon Bee intends to defy state law by continuing to post satirical content without a disclaimer, while Rickert, who runs a conservative blog, said that she is refraining from posting certain content to avoid running afoul of the laws.

Reached for comment, Newsom’s office said in a statement, “While we’re still reviewing the lawsuit, kudos to the Babylon Bee for their attempt with this latest joke. These new laws are no more stringent than those already passed across the country, including in deep red states like Alabama. Satire is alive and well in California — even for those who miss the punchline.”

IT WAS A GOOD WEEKEND UNDER THE SEA

Last weekend was a pretty good one, if you were of the aquatic persuasion.

First, on Friday, Newsom signed a bill into law declaring that the Dungeness crab is the official state crustacean. The governor also signed bills declaring the banana slug the state slug and the black abalone as the state seashell.

Newsom punned it up in a statement accompanying the bill signing.

“From the majestic California redwood down to the delicate California quail, every organism matters here — and it’s time we celebrated our less cuddly friends before they get too crabby. The Dungeness crab, the banana slug, and the black abalone each bring much to our state and are well deserving of this recognition,” Newsom said.

But the governor wasn’t quite finished with his nautical bills signings.

Over the weekend, he also signed AB 3162 into law, banning the practice of octopus farming in the state. California becomes the second state, behind Washington, to proactively ban the practice, and the first state to also ban the sale of farmed octopus for consumption.

““This is how lawmaking should be done: before investments of financial and human capital are made. These intelligent creatures are not suited for concentrated ocean farming environments,” said bill author Assemblyman Steve Bennett, D-Ventura, in a statement.

The bill was a priority of animal advocacy group Social Compassion in Legislation, whose founder, Judie Mancuso, said in a statement that “by signing this bill, California is taking a stand that will not allow an immeasurable amount of suffering to these magnificent animals and the environmental damage that this industry would create. We hope the rest of the country and the world will follow suit.”

IS TIM WALZ JUST ‘GAVIN NEWSOM IN A FLANNEL SHIRT?’

Via David Lightman...

“Nothing more than Gavin Newsom in a flannel shirt.”

That’s how Rep. Tom Emmer, a Minnesota Republican, described Democratic vice presidential candidate Tim Walz Monday.

Emmer joined Republican presidential campaign officials in a preview of Tuesday’s vice presidential debate between Walz and the GOP’s JD Vance, an Ohio U.S. senator.

Emmer repeated a favorite Republican theme, that Democrats will take what GOP loyalists claim are California’s radical policies and inflict them on the entire country. Newsom, California’s governor since 2019, has long been a favorite GOP target.

Democratic presidential nominee Kamala Harris, an Oakland native, has been San Francisco district attorney and California’s attorney general and U.S. senator.

She has moved away from positions from the party’s more liberal wing after embracing some of its key positions on health care, immigration and the economy during her presidential run in 2019.

During her current campaign, Harris does talk often about her time as attorney general and chief prosecutor for San Francisco fighting crime and helping consumers.

Walz, governor of Minnesota since 2019, has a reputation as a practical, liberal-leaning politician.

Don’t be fooled, said Emmer.

”By choosing Tim Walz as her running mate, Kamala Harris has doubled down on her radical agenda,” he charged.

QUOTE OF THE DAY

“If we value diversity in higher education, we must level the playing field. That means making the college application process more fair and equitable. Hard work, good grades and a well-rounded background should earn you a spot in the incoming class — not the size of the check your family can write or who you’re related to.”

- Assemblyman Phil Ting, D-San Francisco, in a statement after Gov. Gavin Newsom signed his bill aimed at ending legacy and donor admissions at private California universities.

Best of The Bee:

• No more ‘sell by’ stickers. Gavin Newsom signs bill standardizing food package labels, via Andrew Sheeler.

• Gavin Newsom signs bill to expand IVF coverage in California, an election-year swipe at GOP, via Nicole Nixon.

• VP candidates JD Vance and Tim Walz to debate on Tuesday. Here’s what to expect, how to watch, via David Lightman.

• Gavin Newsom vetoes AI regulation bill, says rules require ‘delicate balance’ in California, via Nicole Nixon.

• Gov. Gavin Newsom vetoes bill to require automatic speed warnings in California vehicles, via Nicole Nixon.

• A year after scathing CSU financial audit, CapRadio moves forward on Sacramento event space, via Ishani Desai.

• More California high-speed rail land purchases needed — 11 years after project started, via Tim Sheehan.

• Gov. Gavin Newsom signs bill removing synthetic food dye additives from California schools, via Jenavieve Hatch.

• Gov. Gavin Newsom signs California bill banning ‘captive audience,’ anti-union work meetings, via Jenavieve Hatch.

• Gov. Newsom vetoes bill to help farmworkers who are working in extreme heat. Here’s why, via Mathew Miranda.