Pence Testifies Before Senate Judiciary Committee

PENCE TESTIFIES BEFORE SENATE JUDICIARY COMMITTEE

Washington, Jul 20 -

U.S. Congressman Mike Pence testified before the Senate Judiciary Committee today about the need to pass the Free Flow of Information Act, or federal Media Shield bill. The bill would set national standards that must be met before a federal entity may subpoena a member of the news media in any government criminal or civil case.

Excerpts of Pence's testimony are found below. For the full text of his testimony, click here. For pictures from the hearing, click here.

- "The Freedom of speech and the press are two of the most important rights we Americans possess under our Constitution. They form the bedrock of our democracy by ensuring the free flow of information to the public."

- "Although Thomas Jefferson warned that, 'Our liberty cannot be guarded but by the freedom of the press, nor that limited without danger of losing it,' today these rights are under attack."

- "As politicians engage in a very familiar clash along the fault lines of the politics of personal destruction, a much greater scandal languishes in a quiet prison cell in suburban Washington, D.C. in the sad image of an American journalist behind bars, who's only crime was standing up for the public's right to know."

- "As a conservative who believes in limited government, I believe that the only check on government power in real time is a free and independent press."

- "Now is the time for Congress to proclaim liberty and reaffirm our commitment to the ideal of a free and independent press. Now is the time for the Free Flow of Information Act. Nothing less than the public's right to know is at stake."

http://mikepence.house.gov/News/DocumentSingle.aspx?DocumentID=30750