Sen. Ted Cruz Introduces Legislation To Prevent Tech Companies From Censoring Users Over Politics

Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas), Sen. Roger Wicker (R-Miss.), and Sen. Eric Schmitt (R-MO.) introduced legislation this week that would put a stop to politically motivated censorship by Big Tech companies.

The legislation, called The Transparency in Enforcement, Restricting, and Monitoring of Services (TERMS) Act, would require more transparency in terms of service policies enacted by online service providers, while giving consumers more accurate, thorough information on how these companies operate.

This follows the report issued by Sen. Cruz after a lengthy investigation into Eventbrite and its censorship of OutKick's Riley Gaines.  

READ: Senate Investigation Uncovers Why Eventbrite Censored Riley Gaines

Sen. Cruz issued a statement on the legislation and how tech companies are hiding behind "terms of service agreements" to target conservative viewpoints.

"As my Committee investigation revealed, Big Tech is increasingly weaponizing their broadly-worded terms of service agreements to silence and deny conservatives access to essential business technology," said Sen. Cruz. "The free flow of information through freedom of speech is the bedrock of our democratic republic, which is why online service providers should, at the very least, be required to be transparent about their political discrimination. The TERMS Act will force Big Tech to disclose its discriminatory policies upfront, allowing consumers to take their business elsewhere if they so choose."

Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas. (Photo: Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images)

New Legislation Would Protect Freedom Of Speech Online

Sen. Schmitt, who's long been one of the leading voices in the fight to protect free speech, also issued a statement in support of the legislation and protecting the First Amendment rights of conservatives.

"Freedom of speech is foundational to our republic," said Sen. Schmitt. "We’ve seen firsthand how Big Tech has encroached on Americans’ First Amendment rights, especially when it comes to censoring speech these platforms disagree with. That is why I am proud to support Senator Cruz’s TERMS Act, which would require these companies to be fully transparent about how they enforce their terms of service across their platforms."

Tech companies like Eventbrite, Slack and others, have weaponized their terms of service to deny users access to their platforms for having differing political opinions. In collaboration with the Southern Poverty Law Center and other far-left organizations, these companies have created an opaque system in which their views are the only acceptable ones. Those who speak out for fairness in women's sports, or give their opinion on other obvious common sense issues are removed for not conforming to current progressive consensus.

As has become common, those who run these companies operate with the assumption that "tolerance" should be extended only to left-wing views. And they look, usually successfully, for ways to enforce that delusional belief. 

Hopefully, this legislation is the first in a wave of similar efforts to ensure that viewpoint discrimination is not an acceptable policy.