Winston Marshall, former Mumford & Sons banjo player turned political podcaster, joined the White House press briefing on Monday as the first Brit to ever fill the independent media seat — and his questions surprised press secretary Karoline Leavitt.
Both questions centered on free speech issues in his own country; how British speech policing might influence trade deals between the U.K. and the U.S. and whether or not the U.S. would consider offering political asylum to Brits arrested for non-crime hate incidents.
Is free speech a requirement for trade between the U.K. and the U.S.?
First, Marshall asked Leavitt to clarify whether free speech in the U.K. would be a material requirement for trade deals between the two countries, as Vice President JD Vance indicated during his Munich Security Conference Speech in February.
“The British Business Secretary, Jonathan Reynolds, has said that in the trade talks with the commerce department, the U.S. Commerce Department, ... that free speech has not been a material factor in negotiations,” Marshall said.
He asked, “Is it the case that free speech is no longer part of negotiations?”
Reynolds had told BBC on April 4 that free speech has “not been a material factor” in negotiations.
While Leavitt did not confirm or deny whether trade deals between the country will require the U.K. to change its free speech policies, she said, “It remains a critical endeavor of ours to show the Brits and your country, which we love and admire, about the First Amendment and the importance of free speech in a sovereign nation.”
“As for the trade talks,” Leavitt continued, “I understand they are moving in a very positive way with the United Kingdom. I don’t want to get ahead of the president or our trade team, and how those negotiations are going, but I have heard they’ve been very positive and productive with the United Kingdom.”
Will the U.S. provide political asylum for British citizens arrested for hate speech violations?
“In Britain, we have had over a quarter of a million people issued non-crime hate incidents. As we speak, there are people in prison for quite literally reposting memes,” Marshall said, adding, “We have extensive prison sentences for tweets, social media posts and general free speech issues.”
He then asked, “Would the Trump administration consider political asylum for British citizens in such a situation?”
The New York Post reported that Leavitt “appeared taken aback by the question.”
She responded, “I have not heard that proposed to the president, nor have I spoken to him about that idea, but I certainly can and talk to our national security team and see if it’s something the administration would entertain.”
On his podcast on Tuesday, Marshall said “two high-ranking members of the administration have privately indicated to me that they like the idea.”
Utah Sen. Mike Lee posted on X after the press conference, “Should British citizens be eligible for asylum in the U.S. if they have faced criminal prosecution for exercising their free-speech rights?”