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An Iowa State senator is being sued tonight -- over her use, of Twitter Senator Claire Celsi is being sued by the Libertarian Party of Iowa. KCCI's Beau Bowman joins us now. And Beau -- the lawsuit is centered, around freedom of speech. Max -- the Libertarian Party says it's not unlike the lawsuit President Trump faced -- for blocking followers, on Twitter. <Joseph Howe Chairman 8965 52:19-26"Our lawyer said she's out of control we can take a look at this, this might be a case where you have an opportunity to hold an Iowa official accountable."> It started with a discussion on Twitter about an local gun ordinance. But after it was over, Senator Claire Celsi blocked those who held opposing viewpoints. <Joseph Howe Chairman 8965 49:11-19"We're folks that represent a different point of view, and that point of view is that we should have an open and honest conversation and we should hold everybody under the first amendment."> Now, the Libertarian Party of Iowa is suing Senator Celsi for violating the first and 14th amendment. <Joseph Howe Chairman 8965 48:31-46"It comes down to respect for your constituents and Iowa voters and if you have your positions out there but you're not willing to share them with all sides of the aisle and have an open discussion, I think that's a violation of the first amendment when you're treating twitter or facebook as a public forum."> Senator Celsi sent a statement to KCCI that reads in part "I have two public social media pages that I use to get information out to my constituents and those are public. Anyone is welcome to follow me there. Also, I answer my own email and phone calls - my direct contact information is published and people can get directly in touch with me about Legislative or community issues." <Joseph Howe Chairman 8965 57:46-50"Well what's to stop her from blocking you on her phone, or just not reading her emails."> This lawsuit draws parallels to the one President Trump faced after HE blocked constituents. The Libertarian Party says Senator Celsi needs to be held to a HIGHER standard. <Joseph Howe Chairman 8965 57:16-28"She supposed to represent 50,000 people here in Iowa, that's the size of some communities, and I think our communities need to be involved with our state senators or state representatives, so I think it's a bit more closer to home and a little bit more personal due to that."> The Libertarian Party says iSenator Celsi has since created a new Twitter account. She also made her old account private, which means only people she approves can view her posts

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The Libertarian Party of Iowa is suing an Iowa state senator over her use of Twitter.The lawsuit claims that Sen. Claire Celsi, of Des Moines, violated the First and 14th amendments when she blocked users on Twitter."Our lawyer said she's out of control... This might be a case where you have an opportunity to hold an Iowa official accountable," said Joseph Howe, the chairman of the Libertarian Party of Iowa.The Libertarian Party of Iowa is pointing to parallels in a recent lawsuit President Donald Trump faced after he blocked users on Twitter.A federal judge ruled earlier this month that it was unconstitutional for the president to block users on Twitter."She's supposed to represent 50,000 people here in Iowa. That's the size of some communities, and I think our communities need to be involved with our state senators or state representatives, so I think it's a bit more closer to home and a little bit more personal due to that," said Howe.The issue began when Celsi posted on Twitter about a local gun ordinance. After some tweets were exchanged, the Libertarian Party of Iowa said Senator Claire Celsi blocked those who held opposing viewpoints."We're folks that represent a different point of view, and that point of view is that we should have an open and honest conversation and we should hold everybody under the First Amendment,” said Howe.The lawsuit is arguing that Celsi blocking accounts is an issue with freedom of speech."It comes down to respect for your constituents and Iowa voters and if you have your positions out there but you're not willing to share them with all sides of the aisle and have an open discussion, I think that's a violation of the First Amendment when you're treating Twitter or Facebook as a public forum," said Howe.Celsi responded to KCCI with a statement that reads in part: "I have two public social media pages that I use to get information out to my constituents and those are public. Anyone is welcome to follow me there. Also, I answer my own email and phone calls - my direct contact information is published and people can get directly in touch with me about Legislative or community issues.""Well, what's to stop her from blocking you on her phone, or just not reading her emails?” said Howe.