&#x2F;u&#x2F;space_lasers from Reddit clarified this far better than the Washington Post:<p>Government employees on the clock are not protected by the First Amendment, they are bound by it. The entire purpose of the First Amendment is to protect citizens from the government. When she&#x27;s acting as an agent of the government, the Constitution protects us from her. She is not a private citizen when officially performing her duties; She is not Kim Davis, she is the Rowan County Clerk. She has no Freedom of Speech&#x2F;Religion when speaking with the voice of the government because in that act she is the entity that Freedom of Speech&#x2F;Religion protects us from.<p>So many people, most notably certain elected officials, completely misunderstand this very important distinction. This whole fiasco is nothing more than misinformed people kicking up a fuss about a very well-defined concept that they clearly don&#x27;t understand.<p>Edit: [link to thread](<a href="http:&#x2F;&#x2F;www.reddit.com&#x2F;r&#x2F;atheism&#x2F;comments&#x2F;3k5meq&#x2F;george_takei_just_nailed_it_on_kim_davis&#x2F;cuv2dr3" rel="nofollow">http:&#x2F;&#x2F;www.reddit.com&#x2F;r&#x2F;atheism&#x2F;comments&#x2F;3k5meq&#x2F;george_takei...</a>)