Trump's executive order cracking down on 'online censorship' has nothing to do with free speech

Get the Full StoryJabin Botsford The Washington Post via Getty Images

President Donald Trump signed an executive order on Thursday purporting to fight online censorship by empowering federal regulators to strip social media companies' broad authority to moderate speech.

Legal experts say Trump has scant authority to enforce the order, which would circumvent Congress and violate longstanding judicial precedent.

But the unprecedented move could scare social media giants away from even modest moderation of disinformation on their sites an outcome that serves Trump's political aims.

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President Donald Trump says he's battling the nation's social media companies in the name of free speech.

"Big Tech is doing everything in their very considerable power to CENSOR in advance of the 2020 Election," he tweeted on Wednesday. "If that happens, we no longer have our freedom. I will never let it happen!"See the rest of the story at Business InsiderNOW WATCH: We tested a machine that brews beer at the push of a buttonSee Also:Trump signs executive order threatening social-media companies after Twitter fact-checked his tweetsNancy Pelosi slams Mark Zuckerberg for 'pandering' to Trump by attacking Twitter's fact-check of his false claimsLegal and tech policy experts say Trump's draft executive order cracking down on social-media companies is dead on arrivalSEE ALSO: Trump signs executive order threatening social media companies after Twitter fact-checked his tweets

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