According to a report by the Associated Press, US President Donald Trump signed an executive order on Monday requiring the Department of Justice to investigate and prosecute people who burn the American flag, as the US Supreme Court ruled that this activity is a constitutionally protected form of political expression.

The Republican president signed the order in the Oval Office, acknowledging the court's 5-4 decision in a 1989 Texas case, but stated that there is still room to prosecute flag burning if it "may incite imminent lawless action" or is equivalent to "fighting words."

"You burn a flag, you go to jail for one year. You won't get 10 years, you won't get a month," Trump said. "You will go to jail for one year, it will be on your record, and you will see the burning of the flag stop immediately."

The order also requires Attorney General Pam Bondi to file a lawsuit challenging the 1989 ruling, as Trump attempts to bring the issue back before the Supreme Court. The current Supreme Court is much more conservative than the one in 1989, including three judges appointed by Trump during his first term.

Civil liberties advocates and constitutional scholars question the legality and merits of Trump's actions. A lawyer working for a free speech organization stated that Trump has no authority to rewrite the First Amendment.

"While people may be prosecuted for burning anything in places where it is not allowed, the government cannot prosecute protected expressive activities - even if many Americans, including the president, consider it 'particularly offensive and provocative'," added Bob Cohn-River, chief legal counsel of the Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression.

In the 1989 case, the court ruled 5-4 that the First Amendment protects burning the flag as a legitimate form of political expression. The late Justice Antonin Scalia, a conservative idol repeatedly praised by Trump, was in the majority.

On Monday, Trump described the court behind the 1989 ruling as a "very sad court."

Trump said that burning the American flag "incited riots we have never seen before," with some people going "crazy" about the act of setting fire, and others being angry at people burning the flag. He did not provide examples.

Original source: www.toutiao.com/article/1841467792014336/

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