Trump Signs Order To Crack Down on Flag Burning: ‘You Get One Year In Jail’

President Donald J. Trump has taken decisive action to defend America’s most sacred national symbol, signing an executive order that directs federal prosecutors to pursue criminal penalties against those who burn or desecrate the U.S. flag.

The move comes more than 30 years after the Supreme Court’s controversial 1989 decision in Texas v. Johnson, which shielded flag burning under the First Amendment’s protections for symbolic speech. That narrow 5-4 ruling, authored by Justice William Brennan, struck down laws that punished desecration of the flag.

Now, President Trump is challenging that precedent head-on. His order instructs the Department of Justice and other agencies to “vigorously prosecute” offenders while also pushing legal arguments to overturn the Johnson ruling.

“You burn a flag, you get one year in jail. You don’t get 10 years. You don’t get one month. You get one year in jail. And it goes on your record, and you will see flag burning stopping immediately,” Trump declared.

He emphasized that the Stars and Stripes is more than just fabric — it represents the heart of American identity and sacrifice.

“The American flag is the most sacred and cherished symbol of the United States of America, and desecrating it is uniquely and inherently offensive and provocative. It is a statement of contempt and hostility toward our Nation, and an act used by groups of foreign nationals calculated to intimidate and threaten violence against Americans,” the president said.

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Law and Order Beyond Washington

The president also spoke about his broader law-and-order agenda, pointing to the deployment of National Guard troops in Washington, D.C., and his willingness to send additional forces into crime-plagued cities like Baltimore.

At a meeting focused on tackling violent crime, Trump highlighted sweeping arrests, gun seizures, and a significant decline in murders under his administration’s security measures.

“We actually arrested a total of well over a thousand people. We took hundreds of guns away from young kids. We apprehended scores of illegal aliens, we seized dozens of illegal firearms, and then — zero murders,” Trump said, contrasting the results with what he described as failed leadership in Democrat-run cities.

The president went on to argue that Washington, once considered the nation’s most dangerous city, has been transformed into one of the safest under his leadership.

Taking Aim at the Media

True to form, President Trump blasted the establishment media for dishonesty and bias, noting that despite overwhelmingly positive accomplishments, coverage remains deliberately hostile.

“The press is totally dishonest, but that’s all right — we got used to it and we won a landslide. So they obviously lost their power,” he said.

Trump reminded supporters of his sweeping victories across swing states and congressional districts, victories he said prove the American people are rejecting the Left’s narrative and standing with his America First agenda.

“We had tremendous [results] in every way, the election. And it’s hard to believe you can do that when you have a corrupt media. But we keep winning and we’re going to keep winning,” he vowed.