Two Republicans are seeking to propose legislation to strip Twitter of its federal liability protections, while the White House weighs an executive order response on social media.
Sen. Josh Hawley, R-Mo., tweeted:
"If @Twitter wants to editorialize & comment on users' posts, it should be divested of its special status under federal law (Section 230) & forced to play by same rules as all other publishers. Fair is fair."
Hawley and Rep. Matt Gaetz, R-Fla., both announced a proposal to strip Twitter of federal protections which prevent it from being liable for what is posted on the social media platform.
Also, the White House has said President Donald Trump is preparing an executive order, Fox News' "Special Report" reported, responding to Twitter's recent actions, if not long-condemned bias against conservatives.
Trump had teased "big action" via Twitter on Wednesday morning:
"Twitter has now shown that everything we have been saying about them (and their other compatriots) is correct. Big action to follow!"
The news comes after Twitter had added warning to President Donald Trump's tweets that railed against California's mail-in voting expansion. Twitter called it a fact check, but former House Speaker Newt Gingrich claimed the Silicon Vally tech company only referenced left-wing news media in its "fact check," calling it a political opinion.
The flagging of the president warrants revoking liability protections from Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act, which protects social media platforms from facing lawsuits over what users post, according to The Hill.
Hawley sent a letter to Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey, calling for an end to "government giveaways," which he shared via Twitter:
".@jack a few questions for you below. Bottom line: Why should @twitter continue to get special treatment from government as a mere distributor of other people's content if you are going to editorialize and comment like a publisher? Shouldn't you be treated like publisher?"
Gaetz also tweeted, with a link to his "Hot Takes" podcast:
"#BREAKING: I'm working on legislation to revise Section 230 so we don't have election interference from companies like Twitter. LISTEN for more details and my hot takes on Big Tech:"
"I am currently working with my Republican colleagues on the [House] Judiciary Committee to draft legislation to say that if you are going to opine to the truth or falsity of that which is put on your platform for the sake of its viewers, you do not get the protections of Section 230," Gaetz said. "You are not a platform. You are doing something else. You are editorializing."
Eric Mack ✉
Eric Mack has been a writer and editor at Newsmax since 2016. He is a 1998 Syracuse University journalism graduate and a New York Press Association award-winning writer.
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