Rep. Jim Jordan plans to take on Big Tech after Republicans regain control of the House in 2022 midterms
By isabelle // 2022-01-09
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Will 2022 be the year that Big Tech is finally held accountable for their rampant censorship? Representative Jim Jordan (R-Ohio), a House Judiciary Committee ranking member, recently told Breitbart News that he has a plan in place to rectify this untenable situation and it will be put in motion if Republicans retake the majority in the upcoming midterm elections. Speaking to the publication’s editor in chief, Alex Marlow, he explained that the judiciary committee is considering three approaches. First, he wants to put an end to the liability protection afforded them by Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act of 1996. This gives online platforms legal immunity when it comes to third-party content. Then, he would like to get antitrust actions escalated to the Supreme Court quickly to avoid leaving decisions about this to Biden bureaucrats in the FTC. Finally, he wants to introduce a private right of action to protect people at the individual level when they believe that Big Tech is censoring their posts and content. He also blamed the lack of strength being projected from the Biden Oval Office for many of the problems we’re seeing right now, saying: “When you project weakness from the Oval Office, bad people around the planet will do bad things, and I think we’re starting to see that play out.” He cited the example of Secretary Anthony Blinken’s meeting with his Chinese counterpart in Alaska. “And the lecture, the dress down that the equivalent of the Chinese Secretary of State gave to our Secretary of State, on our soil, was just so wrong,” he said. “And you’ve got to ask yourself the question, would that ever happen to Mike Pompeo in a Trump administration? And the answer is no. And if they tried, Mike Pompeo would’ve gotten up and flipped the table over, and sais, ‘You don’t talk to the United States that way.’”

Jordan calls for greater transparency when it comes to Big Tech content moderation

In July, Rep. Jordan unveiled a strategy for taking on Big Tech after voting against bipartisan proposals on the matter. Among other things, the strategy called for the FTC to be stripped of antitrust enforcement authority. Senate Judiciary Antitrust Subcommittee ranking member Mike Lee (R-Utah) introduced a similar proposal. Rep. Jordan also called for Big Tech to be more transparent when it comes to their content moderation policies, with a proposal that would require major social media platforms like Twitter and Facebook to make their censorship and content moderation actions publicly available and fine them for failing to do so. Speaking recently on the online show Firebrand with Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-Florida), Rep. Jordan said it was time to go after Big Tech’s censorship of conservatives. He stated: "What Big Tech in collusion with Big Government is doing in this cancel-culture world we live in is so wrong. Bari Weiss called it the 'digital thunderdome' — you take on the woke mob, and they will put you in the thunderdome." Some of those who have been on the receiving end of Big Tech’s conservative bias include former President Donald Trump, who was banned by several social media platforms despite being the nation’s leader. The social media platform Parler was banned by Google, Apple and Amazon, and a New York Post story exposing the misdeeds of Joe Biden’s son, Hunter, right before the 2020 election was heavily suppressed across Big Tech. The GOP is optimistic about its chances of retaking control of the House in the midterm elections after Republican Glenn Youngkin won the Virginia governorship in November, so there is a good chance that Jordan will make progress in his fight against Big Tech this year. Sources for this article include: Breitbart.com WashingtonExaminer.com
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