Capitol Hill conservatives are playing a multi-front war against the tech industry in retaliation for the inadequacy of President Trump and others on the right, congressional sources have told Axios.
Why it’s important: When you’re in the minority, find out who you are as a party. With Republicans now looking at Democrats, they are looking for a unifying issue. This is one, at least for now.
What we are hearing: Members are once again talking about the breakdown of companies, the repeal of their legal protections and the call of their leaders for their testimony. But they have bitten their tongues to prevent further damage to their brand after the siege of the Capitol.
But, but, but: Some are starting to attack companies, at least online and in conservative media.
- Senator Roger Wicker (R-Miss.), Who will lead Republicans on the Senate Commerce Committee, asked for answers Tuesday from CEOs of Amazon, Apple, Facebook, Google and Twitter about his treatment of conservatives.
- During an appearance on Fox News last week, Wicker said, “He’s already bigger than Donald Trump. That’s a suffocation of free speech.”
What they say: Sen. Josh Hawley (R-Mo), who became the poster for Republican excess after the election, said Congress should consider breaking companies and adopting Trump’s call to repeal the section 230.
- This part of the Communications Decency Act protects platforms from liability for the content they post to their users.
- “We’ve known for a while that technology monopolies were moving to shut down conservative voices. They’ve now banned or censored several conservatives in a matter of days,” Hawley told Axios.
Other Republicans agree, although it is not clear what they can do in the minority of Congress.
- “President Trump’s censorship demonstrates the power that Big Tech has over speech in the United States,” Rep. Ken Buck (R-Colo.) Said. “The way forward to control Big Tech is to tackle blatant antitrust crimes and support state efforts to hold these companies accountable.”
Yes, but: Complaints about biases only go that far, mostly because right-angled pages work especially well on Facebook.
- Democrats and progressives, in particular, complain that Big Tech has given refuge to the worst elements of the right, including white supremacists.
Hill damage control: Apple has contacted the GOP offices trying to explain and justify their suspension from Parler. Facebook has also been in contact after banning Trump from debating conservative censorship claims, a GOP House aide said.
- Apple CEO Tim Cook told Fox News that if Parler “meets his moderation,” he will return to the App Store.
- For Facebook, Trump’s ban is a clear sign that the company is well aware of the rise of Democrats in Washington, but priority should also be given to making amendments with the Conservatives.