The Sedition Act was a repressive measure used by the Federalists in the 1790s to silence political opposition and consolidate power under the guise of national security.

“The Sedition Act essentially made it a crime to criticize the president or the government. The logic of the Federalists was well we're in a time of it wasn't actually a real war. It was an almost war with France, known as the quasi war, which somehow always makes me want to laugh.”