Court filings just exposed that US Secretary of State Marco Rubio personally approved the deportation of students because they dared to support Palestinian human rights. Apparently, in Rubio’s version of America, holding a protest sign is now a national security crisis, especially if it irritates Washington’s favorite geopolitical butt buddy, the Israeli government.

The documents make it painfully clear. These students marched, chanted, and advocated peacefully, and that alone was enough for authorities to decide they should be kicked out. A federal judge who released the records basically waved a giant red flag, pointing out that the whole thing reeks of constitutional violations. Legal experts are already calling it what it is: a blatant middle finger to freedom of expression.

And here’s the punchline. There is zero evidence that these students supported any banned groups. None. Their so-called offense was political speech. Peaceful political speech. Human rights organizations and legal scholars are now ripping into the administration for weaponizing immigration law to punish dissent. It is a hell of a look for a country that never shuts up about being the global champion of free speech.