Watch: Sean Spicer Says Trump’s Tweets Are ‘Official Statements’ (Here’s Why This Is a Big Deal)

Spicer Hands Attorneys Opposing Trump a Gift

It’s a shocking statement.

White House Press Secretary Sean Spicer has declared all of President Donald Trump’s tweets are “official statements by the President of the United States.”

In the past few days many journalists have argued that Trump’s tweets should be treated as any other communication by the President of the United States, to have no less weight just because his platform of choice happens to be Twitter.

As the Boston Globe’s Deputy Washington Bureau Chief notes, there’s even a bot that does:

And asked Tuesday afternoon during the White House daily press briefing, Spicer agreed.

What does that mean?

It means that Trump, or his attorneys, can not argue in a court of law his tweets are just “things he says,” and are not meant to be taken literally. They are. In the cases the Trump administration’s Solicitor General has argued defending his Muslim travel ban, attorneys for the White House attempted to have Trump’s tweets, albeit from the campaign, dismissed as not relevant.

Now they are.

The ease and immediacy with which Spicer agreed to this is also stunning. 

No consultation with White House attorneys, just: “The President is the President of the United States so they are considered official statements by the President of the United States,” as Spicer stated.

Just one day ago White House Counselor to the President Kellyanne Conway blasted the press for reporting on Trump’s tweets, saying she “won’t allow” his to be blamed for them. Will she now retract her remarks?

Spicer did not stop to think for one second, what if Trump is impaired, or, say, half-asleep as he tweets. Is “covfefe” now official White House policy? What if Trump’s Twitter account is hacked or compromised. Could a tweet from an activist hacker start World War III? Does Trump even use two-step authorization? Does he change his password regularly? Tweet from secure devices? 

Now we are told to treat the President of the United States of America calling the Mayor of London’s remarks “pathetic” an official White House statement. 

Coincidentally, I have argued that Trump blocking American citizens from accessing his tweets might be unconstitutional. WIRED magazine today reports “the Knight First Amendment Institute, an offshoot of the larger Knight Foundation that focuses on protecting First Amendment rights in the digital age, argued that when Trump blocks people on Twitter, he’s violating their right to free speech.”

Spicer just handed attorneys who may argue that case a win.

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