A federal judge has made a ruling allowing Representatives Matt Gaetz of Florida and Marjorie Taylor Greene of Georgia to proceed with their lawsuit against two California cities over the cancellation of their political rallies. However, the judge criticized the two lawmakers for their attempt to blame civil rights organizations for the cancellations.
In a recent opinion, U.S. District Judge Hernán Vera acknowledged that Gaetz and Greene had legitimate grounds to claim that the cancellation of their events in Riverside and Anaheim in 2021 was based on viewpoint discrimination. This ruling permits their lawsuit against the cities to advance.
Nevertheless, Judge Vera sharply rebuked the lawmakers for their assertion that the two California cities colluded with several civil rights groups to halt their rallies. He described this claim as a “conspiracy theory” lacking any plausible specifics and relying solely on conjecture.
Vera emphasized the deficiency in their pleading, noting that dragging nine civil rights groups into federal court merely for expressing opposition to an event is unprecedented and alarming across the political spectrum.
Gaetz and Greene, known as staunch allies of former President Donald Trump and more recently for causing discord in the U.S. House, organized a series of “America First” rallies in 2021. These events featured false claims about the 2020 election results and Covid vaccine conspiracy theories.
Their rally in Southern California faced relocation from Laguna Hills to Riverside and then Anaheim due to protests by residents and civil rights groups, leading to venue withdrawals. Ultimately, they staged a protest outside Riverside City Hall against communism.
The organizations named as co-defendants in the lawsuit, alongside the cities, include the League of Women Voters, the NAACP, the League of United Latin American Citizens, Unidos for La Causa, Women’s March Action, the Riverside County Democratic Party, Antiracist Riverside, and Occupy Democrats.
In their complaint, Gaetz and Greene alleged that these organizations infringed on their First Amendment rights by mobilizing supporters against their event. However, Judge Vera clarified that the groups were exercising their own First Amendment rights to lobby for the event’s cancellation, which is protected by law.