I disagree as to the free speech point.

I disagree as to the free speech point. If we’ve learned anything from 2016, it’s that restrictions on speech are counterproductive and dangerous. If you don’t know what ugly or terrible ideas you’re dealing with or how prevalent those ideas are, you can’t beat the bad ideas in the public square. Bad ideas are still bad (and still damaging) underground.

A big reason so many people went for Trump in 2016 was that he spoke his mind. Trump thrived in an environment of political correctness, outrage culture, and “safe spaces.” Outwardly, the line between speaking freely and being a juvenile bully became blurred.

Free speech is critical so that people individually learn to think critically — to sort fact from fiction — so that they question everything a charismatic leader or news anchor might tell them.

Note — this is a separate point from bad ideas or actions (encouraging racism, causing an environment of vitriol and violence, or discouraging minorities from believing in their potential). We should still deal with bad ideas, but without safe spaces, canceling speakers, or restricting speech. That was never how we did things here prior to the last decade.