Politics
Sen. Rubio blasts Biden for establishing federal 'speech police'
DHS Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas announced that his department launched a “Disinformation Governance Board” to focus on “misinformation related to homeland security"
April 28, 2022 2:23pm
Updated: April 29, 2022 6:46am
Just two days after tech billionaire Elon Musk reached a $44 billion deal to purchase Twitter, the Biden administration announced that it would be launching what many conservatives have warned amounts to a type of federal “speech police.”
On Wednesday, Department of Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas told Congress that his agency created a “Disinformation Governance Board,” a federal body which will focus on “misinformation related to homeland security, focused specifically on irregular migration and Russia," Politico reported.
The new office will reportedly also work to combat "disinformation" in the 2022 midterms, according to a Fox News report.
The board will be led by Nina Jankowicz, who previously served as a disinformation fellow at the Wilson Center in Washington, D.C., and Undersecretary for Policy Rob Silvers and Principal Deputy General Counsel Jennifer Gaskill are set to serve as cochairs.
"The goal is to bring the resources of the department together to address this threat," Mayorkas said.
After the announcement, Republican Sen. Marco Rubio took to twitter to blast the new board as a form of “speech police,” warning that the office will “basically focus on misinformation.”
If you didn’t believe these people on the marxist left are coming after your most basic constitutional rights, you better believe it now pic.twitter.com/AsB2Jn3aXj
— Marco Rubio (@marcorubio) April 28, 2022
“Instead of the department of homeland security focusing on stopping drugs from coming into America, securing the border or stopping illegal immigration," officials will “focus on policing speech, on making sure that people can't share information or share things that they decide is misinformation,” he said.
“Guys, it's time to wake up,” he added. "If you don’t think these people are coming after free speech and our freedom, you better believe it now.”
Republican Sen. Josh Hawley called the new board a “disgrace” and penned a letter to Mayorkas demanding to know how the board will operate.
The Administration that activated the FBI against parents at school board meetings now has created a government Disinformation Board to monitor all Americans’ speech. It’s a disgrace. Joe Biden & Secretary Mayorkas: dissolve this monstrosity immediately pic.twitter.com/hSnMpREizI
— Josh Hawley (@HawleyMO) April 28, 2022
“The Administration that activated the FBI against parents at school board meetings now has created a government Disinformation Board to monitor all Americans’ speech. It’s a disgrace. Joe Biden & Secretary Mayorkas: dissolve this monstrosity immediately,” he tweeted.
Texas Republican Rep. Troy Nehls also took to Twitter to blast the new board, writing, “they didn't need a 'Disinformation Governance Board' until @elonmusk threatened their control over the narrative.”
They didn't need a 'Disinformation Governance Board' until @elonmusk threatened their control over the narrative.
— Congressman Troy Nehls (@RepTroyNehls) April 27, 2022
"The libs spent the last weeks planting the seeds for the back-up plan in case the Twitter deal actually happened," Republican Rep. Lauren Boebert tweeted. "Today's news of a Biden backed ‘Disinformation Governance Board’ is dystopian. They can't afford to let the truth be anything but what they say."
The libs spent the last weeks planting the seeds for the back-up plan in case the Twitter deal actually happened.
— Lauren Boebert (@laurenboebert) April 27, 2022
Today's news of a Biden backed "Disinformation Governance Board” is dystopian.
They can't afford to let the truth be anything but what they say.
