The Uniparty Swamp Tried To Ruin Douglass Mackey’s Life Over A Meme — And Lost
Though his arrest came just days after Joe Biden’s inauguration in 2021, the investigation and groundwork for the case were carried out by Trump appointees.Though his arrest came just days after Joe Biden’s inauguration in 2021, the investigation and groundwork for the case were carried out by Trump appointees.'Great victory' for free speech: Pro-Trump influencer convicted over memes talks vindication with Glenn Beck
An appeals court on Wednesday overturned the felony conviction of a pro-Trump social media influencer who was facing prison time for posting satirical memes on Twitter.
Douglass Mackey, also previously known online as Ricky Vaughn, joined "The Glenn Beck Program" on Thursday to share his reaction to the recent decision from the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit.
'Unfortunately, it's not part of the sweeping constitutional ruling that we wanted, but nevertheless, it's a great victory.'
After battling the charges for four and a half years and facing a seven-month prison sentence, Mackey told Blaze Media co-founder Glenn Beck, "Only faith can get you through it."
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During the 2016 election, Mackey posted memes on his Twitter account, which he told Beck had about 10,000 followers. He noted that he previously had an account with over 60,000 followers, but it was suspended before he made the posts referenced in the Biden Department of Justice's case against him.
"Save time," the posts read. "Avoid the line."
It included instructions on how to "vote from home" for then-Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton via text message.
The posts received only about 100 likes, according to Mackey.
Beck stated, "You have to be a nincompoop to believe this [meme is real]."
RELATED: Appeals court tosses out Biden-era conviction of social media troll for election interference
Despite what some would argue was a clear satirical post, Mackey was convicted in 2023 of conspiracy against rights for attempting to interfere with Americans' right to vote in the 2016 election.
Mackey shared the details of his arrest with Beck.
"Four FBI agents knocked on my door at 7 a.m., and that was seven days after Joe Biden was inaugurated," he said. "They said, 'Are you Douglass Mackey? We have a warrant for your arrest.' The first words out of my mouth were, 'For what?'"
"At the time, I wasn't even on Twitter. But back in the 2016 election cycle, I tweeted thousands of times. So I had no idea. But I did know that once they make you an enemy that it's like, 'Show me the man, and I'll show you the crime,'" Mackey continued. "I was very curious to see what they had cooked up."
Chief Judge Debra Ann Livingston, one of the three judges on the appeals court panel, found that prosecutors' evidence was "inadequate to show his knowing participation in a conspiracy."
While prosecutors claimed that 4,900 unique phone numbers texted the number provided in Mackey's meme, 98% received an automated reply informing them that Clinton's campaign was not affiliated with the post, Livingston noted.
"The government presented no evidence at trial that Mackey's tweets tricked anyone into failing properly to vote," the judge wrote.
Mackey called the case "a total humiliation" for the Biden DOJ.
He expressed some disappointment that the appeals court's decision was not a "sweeping" constitutional victory.
"These appellate courts, once they come to a conclusion on, let's say, one of the grounds, they don't rule on all the other grounds," Mackey explained. "Unfortunately, it's not part of the sweeping constitutional ruling that we wanted, but nevertheless, it's a great victory."
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$1 Million And 9 Years Later, Court Tosses Conviction Of Man Who Tweeted Hillary Meme
If President Joe Biden's administration was really worried about election integrity, silly memes were not the place to look.Trump-supporting social media figure convicted of election interference, conspiracy over 2016 tweets
Douglass Mackey was convicted of election interference in a New York federal court Friday in a case involving 2016 social media posts inaccurately claiming people could cast votes via texting.
"Mackey has been found guilty by a jury of his peers of attempting to deprive individuals from exercising their sacred right to vote for the candidate of their choice in the 2016 Presidential Election," stated Breon Peace, United States Attorney for the Eastern District of New York.
"Today’s verdict proves that the defendant’s fraudulent actions crossed a line into criminality and flatly rejects his cynical attempt to use the constitutional right of free speech as a shield for his scheme to subvert the ballot box and suppress the vote," Peace also said.
Mackey, age 33, is also known as "Ricky Vaughn." He faces up to 10 years in prison after a federal jury agreed Mackey's rights to freedom of speech did not extend to attempts to deprive others of their right to vote.
"We are optimistic about our chances on appeal," Mackey's attorney, Andrew Frisch said in an email to Politico.
Mackey, who testified in his own defense, called the posts hyperbole, according to the Wall Street Journal. Prosecutors confronted him about the "racist and misogynist posts," saying they showed he "intended to target black and women voters."
In September and November prior to the 2016 election, Mackey and other "influential Twitter users ... use[d] social media platforms, including Twitter, to disseminate fraudulent messages that encouraged supporters of candidate Hillary Clinton to 'vote' via text message or social media which, in reality, was legally invalid."
One post featured an image of a black woman standing in front of an "African Americas for Hillary" sign. The post also contained text stating "Avoid the line. Vote from Home," "Text 'Hillary' to 59925," and "Vote for Hillary and be a part of history."
The inaccurate posts' text also included "#ImWithHer," a hashtag associated with the Clinton campaign. An additional tweet in Spanish featured an image of a person typing into her cellphone. That image used a font similar to that used by the Clinton campaign and included the campaign's logo.
At least 4,900 unique telephone numbers texted "Hillary" or something similar to the number in Mackey's post, the Washington Post reported.
At the time, Mackey's Twitter profile, had about 58,000 followers. The MIT Media Lab ranked the account as the 107th most important influencer of the then-upcoming presidential race between former President Donald Trump and then-presidential candidate Hillary Clinton.
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