Journalism vs Treason

"If this be treason, make the most of it." -- Patrick Henry

   The president tweeted on May 17 that his campaign was "spied on," and that "nothing like this has ever happened in American politics." Moreover, he insisted that "this was TREASON!" (his caps) and this means "long jail sentences."
   I guess this makes every journalist and reporter a spy, and therefore -- according to his definition -- guilty of treason. Monitoring what candidates and politicians say and do is not treason, but straight reporting, a right guaranteed by the First Amendment of the Constitution.
   Exactly 254 years ago, on May 29, 1765, Patrick Henry spoke to the Virginia legislature criticizing the king, but he was interrupted by cries of "Treason!"
  His response: "If this be treason, make the most of it."
  Today, Americans are faced with similar accusations that any criticism of the current political leader is treasonous, and those who speak such criticism should be jailed.
   More specifically, the allegation of "spying" referred to investigations by the FBI counterintelligence division into possible ties between the president's campaign team and the Russian government. Attorney General William Barr, who acts more like the president's personal lawyer than a representative for the American people, provided no evidence for the accusation, and later ordered an investigation of the investigators -- the team that looked into Russian meddling in the 2016 election.
   The bottom line to this prattle is the allegation that the FBI and the news media were committing "treason" when they investigated and reported on activities of the president before and after the election.
   America was founded on the principle that comments and criticism of government officials are an essential part of a free society. If we lose this, America will no longer be a free society.
   As Patrick Henry said more than a decade before the colonies declared their independence, "If this be treason, make the most of it."