The United States vs. Hansen Decision Is Not “Encouraging” for Speech Rights

The U.S. Supreme Court's recent ruling in United States v. Hansen upholds a law that makes it a crime to “encourage” a person to remain in the country without authorization. The Court had two choices in this case: instruct Congress and all legislatures to use the words they actually mean (and normal people use) when they write laws; or force the public to accept—and try to comply with—criminal laws written in specialized language unknowable to most non-lawyers. Regrettably, the Court …