I have previously criticized the new law, enforced by the U.K.’s Advertising Standards Authority (ASA), that bans gender stereotypes in advertising. It is the ultimate expression of the “nanny state” phenomenon in the United Kingdom where speech is increasingly regulated and sanctioned by the state along a best values agenda. Commercials for Philadelphia Cream Cheese and Volkswagen were banned. To understand how these laws are really speech controls, one needs only to watch the commercials and the vacuous response of one of the chief regulators in a recent interview.

It appears that the power of Kim Kardashian moves no limits . . . at least when it comes to President Donald Trump. Kardashian reportedly called Trump to intervene after the arrest of American rapper A$AP Rocky for assault in Stockholm. As discussed earlier, Trump not only asked for bail (which is not an option in Sweden) but raised the diplomatic relations between the countries if Sweden were to continue its prosecution. Sweden understandably stuck with the rule of law and refused to simply release the rapper. Now Trump has now sent an Ambassador as an envoy to sit on a simply assault case. Ambassador Robert O’Brien “leads the U.S. government’s diplomatic efforts on overseas hostage-related matters.” The over-top-response to the case is an embarrassment for this country. Sweden is simply enforcing its laws and refusing to grant waivers for powerfully connected celebrities. We have responded by making it look like the trial of A$AP Rocky is the new Nuremberg trials.