--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: First Amendment speech and press rights…" description: "\"First Amendment speech and press rights may also be subordinated to the overriding need to wage war successfully.\" — John Yoo" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2a8/john-yoo-14735_amendments_first-amendment-speech-and-press-rights_2335032.png" --- # First Amendment speech and press rights may also be… ![“First Amendment speech and press rights may also be subordinated to the overriding need to wage war successfully.” quote by John Yoo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2a8/john-yoo-14735_amendments_first-amendment-speech-and-press-rights_2335032.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2a8/john-yoo-14735_amendments_first-amendment-speech-and-press-rights_2335032.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2a8/john-yoo-14735_amendments_first-amendment-speech-and-press-rights_2335032.png) > “First Amendment speech and press rights may also be subordinated to the overriding need to wage war successfully.” [John Yoo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-yoo/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. First Amendment rights can be limited when war demands override civil liberties. **In simple terms:** Free speech may be curtailed for wartime success. Key Takeaway Balance security with liberty. Themes law war civil liberties Mood cautious critical Type legal ethical When to use this quote - military policy - judicial review - media regulation Key Concepts constitutional law national security ethical trade‑offs Questions to Reflect On - When should rights be restricted? - Who decides the balance? A Different Perspective Security concerns can be misused. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Amendments](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/amendments/) [Communication](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/communication/) [First amendment](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/first-amendment/) [Rights](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/rights/) [Speech](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/speech/) [War](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/war/) ## Related quotes > [The power to wage war is the power to wage war successfully.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-evans-hughes/the-power-to-wage-war-is-the-power-to-wage-war-successfully/) [Charles Evans Hughes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-evans-hughes/) > [Those who would wage war, should first eliminate all domestic enemies before proceeding to attack the external foe.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sun-tzu/those-who-would-wage-war-should-first-eliminate-all-domestic-enemies/) [Sun Tzu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sun-tzu/) > [The tragedy is that, as modern viewers, we've completely lost touch with what it physically takes to wage a war.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dario-robleto/the-tragedy-is-that-as-modern-viewers-we-ve-completely-lost-touch/) [Dario Robleto](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dario-robleto/) > [“I'm hip to their game, hip to the science of war Propoganda makes me fight but what am I fightin for? My way of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/saul-williams/i-m-hip-to-their-game-hip-to-the-science-of-war-propoganda-makes-me/) [Saul Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/saul-williams/) > [The world cannot continue to wage war like physical giants and to seek peace like intellectual pygmies](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/basil-o-connor/the-world-cannot-continue-to-wage-war-like-physical-giants-and-to/) Basil O'Connor > [We are unnecessarily wasting our precious resources in wars... if we must wage war, we have to do it on unemployment, disease, poverty, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/atal-bihari-vajpayee/we-are-unnecessarily-wasting-our-precious-resources-in-wars-if-we/) [Atal Bihari Vajpayee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/atal-bihari-vajpayee/) > [When adults wage war, children perish.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elie-wiesel/when-adults-wage-war-children-perish/) [Elie Wiesel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elie-wiesel/) > [My home policy: I wage war; my foreign policy: I wage war. All the time I wage war.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/georges-clemenceau/my-home-policy-i-wage-war-my-foreign-policy-i-wage-war-all-the-time-i/) [Georges Clemenceau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/georges-clemenceau/) > [There was a time when I didn’t at any minute have the slightest idea how I could reach the next one. Yes, one can…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-camus/there-was-a-time-when-i-didn-t-at-any-minute-have-the-slightest-idea/) [Albert Camus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-camus/) > [We need to wage this war against ISIS from the air, on the ground, and online, in cyberspace.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hillary-clinton/we-need-to-wage-this-war-against-isis-from-the-air-on-the-ground-and/) [Hillary Clinton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hillary-clinton/) > [“Those with inner peace do not battle themselves. Nor do they wage war with others”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rasheed-ogunlaru/those-with-inner-peace-do-not-battle-themselves-nor-do-they-wage-war/) [Rasheed Ogunlaru](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rasheed-ogunlaru/) > [“It is not enough to say, 'We must not wage war.' It is necessary to love peace and sacrifice for it. We must concentrate…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-luther-king-jr-2/it-is-not-enough-to-say-we-must-not-wage-war-it-is-necessary-to-love/) [Martin Luther King Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-luther-king-jr-2/) > [When the rich wage war, it's the poor who die.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-paul-sartre/when-the-rich-wage-war-it-s-the-poor-who-die/) [Jean-Paul Sartre](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-paul-sartre/) > [The reality is no one knows how much it will cost us to wage war with Iraq.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kent-conrad/the-reality-is-no-one-knows-how-much-it-will-cost-us-to-wage-war-with/) [Kent Conrad](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kent-conrad/) > [Art isn't done to decorate apartments, but to wage war against the enemy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pablo-picasso/art-isn-t-done-to-decorate-apartments-but-to-wage-war-against-the/) [Pablo Picasso](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pablo-picasso/) ## More by John Yoo > [American soldiers had to guard prisoners on the inside while receiving mortar and weapons fire from the outside. Guantanamo is distant from any battlefield,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-yoo/american-soldiers-had-to-guard-prisoners-on-the-inside-while/) [John Yoo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-yoo/) > [That is because the conflict with al Qaeda is not governed by the Geneva Conventions, which applies only to international conflicts between states that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-yoo/that-is-because-the-conflict-with-al-qaeda-is-not-governed-by-the/) [John Yoo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-yoo/) > [A decision by the Supreme Court to subject Guantanamo to judicial review would eliminate these advantages.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-yoo/a-decision-by-the-supreme-court-to-subject-guantanamo-to-judicial/) [John Yoo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-yoo/) > [This is not to condone torture, which is still prohibited by the Torture Convention and federal criminal law.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-yoo/this-is-not-to-condone-torture-which-is-still-prohibited-by-the/) [John Yoo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-yoo/) > [We can guess that the unacceptable conduct of the soldiers at Abu Ghraib resulted in part from the dangerous state of affairs on the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-yoo/we-can-guess-that-the-unacceptable-conduct-of-the-soldiers-at-abu/) [John Yoo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-yoo/) > [Nonetheless, Article 5 makes clear that if an Iraqi civilian who is not a member of the armed forces, has engaged in attacks on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-yoo/nonetheless-article-5-makes-clear-that-if-an-iraqi-civilian-who-is/) [John Yoo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-yoo/) > [I believe that the power to declare war is most important in limiting the powers of the national government in regard to the rights…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-yoo/i-believe-that-the-power-to-declare-war-is-most-important-in-limiting/) [John Yoo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-yoo/) > [In light of the Abu Ghraib prison scandal, critics are arguing that abuses of Iraqi prisoners are being produced by a climate of disregard…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-yoo/in-light-of-the-abu-ghraib-prison-scandal-critics-are-arguing-that/) [John Yoo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-yoo/) > [There was nothing wrong - and everything right - with analyzing a law that establishes boundaries on interrogation in the war on terrorism.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-yoo/there-was-nothing-wrong-and-everything-right-with-analyzing-a-law/) [John Yoo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-yoo/) > [President Bush and his commanders announced early in the conflict that the Conventions applied.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-yoo/president-bush-and-his-commanders-announced-early-in-the-conflict/) [John Yoo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-yoo/) > [Congress has created and funded a huge peacetime military that has substantial abilities to wage offensive operations, and it has not placed restrictions on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-yoo/congress-has-created-and-funded-a-huge-peacetime-military-that-has/) [John Yoo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-yoo/) > [It is also worth asking whether the strict limitations of Geneva make sense in a war against terrorists.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-yoo/it-is-also-worth-asking-whether-the-strict-limitations-of-geneva-make/) [John Yoo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-yoo/) > [The Justices are currently considering a case, argued last month, which seeks to extend the writ of habeas corpus to al Qaeda and Taliban…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-yoo/the-justices-are-currently-considering-a-case-argued-last-month-which/) [John Yoo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-yoo/) > [I believe that the power to declare war is most important in limiting the powers of the national government in regard to the rights…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-yoo/i-believe-that-the-power-to-declare-war-is-most-important-in-limiting-2/) [John Yoo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-yoo/) > [Without territory, it does not even have the resources to provide detention facilities for prisoners, even if it were interested in holding captured POWs.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-yoo/without-territory-it-does-not-even-have-the-resources-to-provide/) [John Yoo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-yoo/) [Explore all 45 John Yoo quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-yoo/) ## More Amendments quotes > [This separation was absolute in our original Republic. But the sky-godders do not give up easily. In the 1950s they actually got the phrase…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gore-vidal/this-separation-was-absolute-in-our-original-republic-but-the-sky/) [Gore Vidal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gore-vidal/) > [The First Amendment makes confidence in the common sense of our people and in the maturity of their judgement the great postulate of our…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-o-douglas/the-first-amendment-makes-confidence-in-the-common-sense-of-our/) [William O. Douglas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-o-douglas/) > [Anybody who pretends that how you read the 10th and 11th Amendment doesn't have a fundamental impact on the things we care about is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joe-biden/anybody-who-pretends-that-how-you-read-the-10th-and-11th-amendment/) [Joe Biden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joe-biden/) > [I have a lot of guns on my ranch. I don't use them for hunting. I'm not a hunter. It's for protection. The Second…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chuck-norris/i-have-a-lot-of-guns-on-my-ranch-i-don-t-use-them-for-hunting-i-m-not/) [Chuck Norris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chuck-norris/) > [All human situations have their inconveniences. We feel those of the present but neither see nor feel those of the future; and hence we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-franklin/all-human-situations-have-their-inconveniences-we-feel-those-of-the/) [Benjamin Franklin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-franklin/) > [If, in the opinion of the people, the distribution or modification of the constitutional powers be in any particular wrong, let it be corrected…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-washington/if-in-the-opinion-of-the-people-the-distribution-or-modification-of/) [George Washington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-washington/) > [The First Amendment exists to protect our religious liberty--to ensure that all Americans are able to seek out worship God with all our hearts,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ted-cruz/the-first-amendment-exists-to-protect-our-religious-liberty-to-ensure/) [Ted Cruz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ted-cruz/) > [Laws that forbid the carrying of arms . . . disarm only those who are neither inclined nor determined to commit crimes . .…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-jefferson/laws-that-forbid-the-carrying-of-arms-disarm-only-those-who-are/) [Thomas Jefferson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-jefferson/) > [As civil rulers, not having their duty to the people duly before them, may attempt to tyrannize,... The people are confirmed by the next…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tench-coxe/as-civil-rulers-not-having-their-duty-to-the-people-duly-before-them/) [Tench Coxe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tench-coxe/) > [The lessons of the First Amendment are as urgent in the modern world as the 18th Century when it was written. One timeless lesson…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-kennedy/the-lessons-of-the-first-amendment-are-as-urgent-in-the-modern-world/) [Anthony Kennedy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-kennedy/) > [The American people intuitively understand this, which is why the majority of Catholics practice birth control and some of those opposed to gay marriage…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barack-obama/the-american-people-intuitively-understand-this-which-is-why-the/) [Barack Obama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barack-obama/) > [I think the reality is that copyright law has for a very long time been a tiny little part of American jurisprudence, far removed…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lawrence-lessig/i-think-the-reality-is-that-copyright-law-has-for-a-very-long-time/) [Lawrence Lessig](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lawrence-lessig/) > [What country can preserve its liberties if its rulers are not warned from time to time that their people preserve the spirit of resistance?…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-jefferson/what-country-can-preserve-its-liberties-if-its-rulers-are-not-warned/) [Thomas Jefferson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-jefferson/) > [The First Amendment defends all forms of speech including hate speech, which is why groups like Ku Klux Klan are allowed to utter their…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/salman-rushdie/the-first-amendment-defends-all-forms-of-speech-including-hate-speech/) [Salman Rushdie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/salman-rushdie/) > [The Second Amendment has no place in modern society.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-dershowitz/the-second-amendment-has-no-place-in-modern-society/) [Alan Dershowitz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-dershowitz/) [Browse all 709 Amendments quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/amendments/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "First Amendment speech and press rights may also be subordinated to the overriding need to wage war successfully.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "John Yoo" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-yoo/first-amendment-speech-and-press-rights-may-also-be-subordinated-to/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Amendments" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-yoo/first-amendment-speech-and-press-rights-may-also-be-subordinated-to/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2a8/john-yoo-14735_amendments_first-amendment-speech-and-press-rights_2335032.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2a8/john-yoo-14735_amendments_first-amendment-speech-and-press-rights_2335032.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2a8/john-yoo-14735_amendments_first-amendment-speech-and-press-rights_2335032.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“First Amendment speech and press rights may also be subordinated to the overriding need to wage war…” — John Yoo", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "John Yoo", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-yoo/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "First Amendment speech and press rights...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-yoo/first-amendment-speech-and-press-rights-may-also-be-subordinated-to/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-yoo/first-amendment-speech-and-press-rights-may-also-be-subordinated-to/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```