On Thursday, House Judiciary Committee Chairman Jim Jordan (R-OH) issued subpoenas to Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) Director Christopher Wray and Attorney General Merrick Garland of the Department of Justice (DOJ) related to the Committee’s ongoing censorship investigation. Specifically, the Committee is seeking communications between the FBI and DOJ, private companies, and other third-party groups related to content moderation and the suppression of disfavored speech online.
On April 18, 2023, the Committee wrote to the FBI and DOJ requesting voluntary cooperation with oversight, and to date, their compliance has been woefully inadequate, producing only a single document: a publicly available transcript of a civil deposition of FBI Assistant Special Agent in Charge Elvis Chan from Missouri v. Biden. Through its investigation, the Committee has uncovered evidence that contradicts several statements in Agent Chan’s deposition, particularly as they relate to his communications with social media platforms.
For the Committee to inform potential legislation, such as the possible enactment of new statutory limits on the Executive Branch’s ability to work with social media platforms and other companies to restrict the circulation of content and deplatform users, the Committee must first understand the nature of this collusion and coercion between the federal government and Big Tech companies.
Read the full cover letter to FBI Director Christopher Wray here.
Read the full cover letter to Attorney General Garland here.
