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Watch: Grammy-winning musician’s free speech question catches White House press secretary off guard

Former Mumford & Sons musician kicked up a storm by suggesting that a future Trump administration consider granting asylum to UK citizens allegedly facing jail time for exercising free speech.

Winston Marshall was the former banjoist of Mumford & Sons. (Image: @MrWinMarshall/X)

In an unexpected twist at a routine White House press briefing, Grammy-winning musician Winston Marshall stunned reporters — and visibly caught press secretary Karoline Leavitt off guard — by suggesting that a future Trump administration consider granting asylum to UK citizens allegedly facing jail time for exercising free speech.

Marshall, once the banjoist for British folk-rock band Mumford & Sons, directly addressed Leavitt during the Monday briefing, claiming that citizens in the United Kingdom were being subjected to “extensive prison sentences for tweets, social media posts and general free speech issues.” He pressed further: “Would the Trump administration consider asylum for British citizens in such a situation?”

Now a political commentator and host of ‘The Winston Marshall Show’, the musician-turned-podcaster appeared to be referencing rising concerns among UK conservatives and free-speech advocates about growing censorship and what they see as the criminalisation of online expression.

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The moment left Leavitt momentarily speechless. After a pause, she responded: “I have not heard that proposed to the president nor have I spoken to him about that idea, but I certainly can talk to our national security team and see if it’s something the administration would entertain.”

Will the Trump administration consider political asylum for British Citizens prosecuted for speech? I asked @PressSec Karoline Leavitt and this was her response: pic.twitter.com/UDZcc6OB4A

— Winston Marshall (@MrWinMarshall) April 28, 2025

The exchange quickly went viral on social media, triggering a flurry of reactions ranging from support for Marshall’s stand to ridicule over what some called a political stunt.

Marshall, who exited Mumford & Sons in 2021 after facing backlash for tweeting support for a controversial conservative author, has since become an outspoken critic of what he describes as growing intolerance towards dissenting views in liberal democracies.

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