Staff Reports
In a shocking turn of events, emails obtained by the House Judiciary Committee have exposed the White House and Biden administration’s campaign to stifle Americans’ First Amendment rights through Facebook. Led by chairman Rep. Jim Jordan, the Judiciary Committee demanded internal communications from the tech giant regarding White House pressure. Initially resistant, Facebook was faced with the threat of Mark Zuckerberg being held in contempt of Congress if they didn’t comply. Suddenly, Facebook had a change of heart and handed over the documents, revealing the Biden administration’s relentless efforts to suppress important discussions affecting Americans.
Never before seen emails from within Facebook have shed further light on how the White House and Biden appointed government officials pressured the tech giant to infringe on the First Amendment rights of Americans. https://t.co/VqOLmr1wCh
— Breitbart News (@BreitbartNews) July 27, 2023
According to the material posted by Rep. Jordan, these emails exposed how the White House pressured Facebook to remove certain posts. In one instance, a Facebook employee circulated an email from CEO Mark Zuckerberg and COO Sheryl Sandberg, acknowledging the “continued pressure from external stakeholders, including the [Biden] White House.” Another email revealed how Nick Clegg, Facebook’s president for global affairs, informed his team about Andy Slavitt’s outrage that Facebook didn’t take down a specific post. When concerns were raised about the infringement of free expression, Slavitt brushed them off, ignoring the First Amendment.
But it wasn't just the White House.
Facebook also changed its policies in direct response to pressure from Biden's Surgeon General, censoring members of the “disinformation dozen.” pic.twitter.com/FvGuoqUlns
— Rep. Jim Jordan (@Jim_Jordan) July 27, 2023
Only after the Committee announced its intention to hold Mark Zuckerberg in contempt did Facebook produce ANY internal documents to the Committee, including these documents, which PROVE that government pressure was directly responsible for censorship on Facebook.
— Rep. Jim Jordan (@Jim_Jordan) July 27, 2023
Panicking, Facebook expressed worry about their fragile relationship with the White House. Brian Rice, Facebook’s VP of public policy, noted that Slavitt’s challenge felt like a “crossroads” for them. Facebook wanted to mend fences and proposed taking stock of their relationship with the White House. Shockingly, Jordan also revealed that the White House demanded Facebook to justify why a clip from Tucker Carlson’s show on Fox News hadn’t been censored. In response, Facebook claimed it had demoted the video in compliance with the White House’s demands, even though the post didn’t violate any policies.
Furthermore, Jordan disclosed that the U.S. Surgeon General got involved, questioning why Facebook hadn’t censored accounts in the so-called “disinformation dozen,” a group that raised concerns about official COVID-19 policies. The process of obtaining this information from Facebook was no easy task, as the company only handed over internal documents after the Committee threatened contempt charges against Zuckerberg. Jordan emphasized the significance of these documents, as they prove that government pressure directly influenced Facebook’s censorship practices.
This revelation is deeply troubling as it unveils the Biden administration’s attempts to control the narrative and suppress dissenting voices. Our First Amendment rights should never be compromised, regardless of political pressure. It is crucial for conservatives and all Americans who value free speech to hold these tech giants accountable and fight for the preservation of our democratic values.
