The European Union continues to double down on crushing free speech, and the U.S. State Department is having none of it.

The State Department, which has made free speech a priority since Donald Trump took office, came to Ireland’s defense over the EU member’s decision to pull back on censorship of free speech. The EU is pressuring Ireland to implement harsh rules expanding the definition of “hate speech,” but the State Department’s Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor (DRL) staunchly backed Ireland.

The DRL posted on X on June 14, “The European Union is threatening legal action against Ireland if it does not adopt the speech rules designed by bureaucrats in Brussels, even after the Irish government dropped such legislation last year due to lack of democratic consensus.” DRL affirmed the Irish government’s decision to prioritize the people’s opinion: “The United States is deeply committed to supporting freedom of expression and national sovereignty. We support the Irish people and our shared commitment to fundamental freedoms.”

Read the full blog on MRC Free Speech America’s site.