Staff Reports
Judicial Watch recently revealed that the Biden administration's close association with Big Tech is more extensive than previously believed. In a lawsuit filed on Wednesday, they alleged that the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and Big Tech companies have been collaborating to suppress American citizens' speech, and now they are attempting to conceal their actions. Tom Fitton, the President of Judicial Watch, expressed concern about the abuse of censorship and the illegal attempts to keep it hidden.
Look at this news article from The Daily Caller: Biden DHS Sued For Allegedly Stonewalling Release Of Censorship Docs https://t.co/rsuWlrJScE
— Jeffrey A. Setaro (@jasetaro) April 5, 2023
Recently, in December 2022, Judicial Watch attempted to obtain communication records between Cybersecurity and Information Security Agency (CISA) officials and social media platforms through a FOIA request. However, their efforts were unsuccessful as they did not receive any response. The purpose of the request was to gather information related to the activities exposed in the Twitter files, specifically, the "industry meetings" conducted by the FBI, DHS, and other government agencies with tech companies. The absence of transparency is worrying, particularly when considering the recent revelations.
3. But Twitter was more like a partner to government.
With other tech firms it held a regular “industry meeting” with FBI and DHS, and developed a formal system for receiving thousands of content reports from every corner of government: HHS, Treasury, NSA, even local police: pic.twitter.com/DgI954lge7
— Matt Taibbi (@mtaibbi) March 9, 2023
On March 9th, journalist Matt Taibbi posted a Twitter thread reporting that officials arrived at meetings with Facebook, Twitter, and other companies armed with "spreadsheets of hundreds or thousands of account names for review." Consequently, Judicial Watch has requested communication records from CISA Director Jen Easterly, former Senior Cybersecurity Advisor Matt Masterson, former Director Christopher Krebs, and Senior Cybersecurity Advisor Brian Scully. The request was made in response to their earlier FOIA request, which DHS has failed to fulfill thus far.
Judicial Watch has sued the DHS on multiple occasions. In November and February, they filed lawsuits seeking records related to the Election Integrity Partnership and its collaboration with CISA to suppress information online during the 2020 election. Additionally, the organization has filed similar lawsuits against the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) and the Federal Trade Commission (FTC)
The Daily Caller News Foundation has obtained documents that show a CISA subcommittee, tasked with providing guidance on countering misinformation during the 2022 midterm election, sought assistance from left-wing groups and individuals. Judicial Watch is of the view that the collusion between DHS and Big Tech to silence conservative viewpoints violates the First Amendment. The organization is therefore urging the government to disclose the requested information.
The Biden administration and Big Tech should no longer conceal the nature of their association, the extent of their censorship policies, and the lengths to which they would go to suppress conservative views. The freedom of speech, which is safeguarded in the Constitution, is a fundamental right that should not be trampled on by those who intend to silence differing opinions. The DHS ought to be answerable for their inability to reveal these records and their alleged involvement in impeding the free dissemination of information.
