Gov. Greg Abbott backs bill to stop social media companies from banning Texans for political views

[BlueTex]

Our governor just keeps piling on the stupid... I sincerely hopes he keeps this up all the way into 2022.... This proposed law is so clearly unconstitutional one has to wonder about their sincerity...

Decrying “a dangerous movement” to “silence conservative ideas [and] religious beliefs,” Gov. Greg Abbott touted a bill Friday that aims to crack down on the perceived censorship of conservative voices by social media companies.

“They are controlling the flow of information — and sometimes denying the flow of information,” the Republican governor said at a press conference in Tyler. “And they are being in the position where they're choosing which viewpoints are going to be allowed to be presented. Texas is taking a stand against big tech political censorship. We're not going to allow it in the Lone Star State.”

Abbott was joined by state Sen. Bryan Hughes, R-Mineola, who is sponsoring the measure and who chairs the powerful Senate State Affairs Committee. Hughes said the bill would give Texans the right to restore their accounts when they’re “mistreated.”

Gov. Greg Abbott backs bill to stop social media companies from banning Texans for political views

Senate Bill 12 would prohibit social media companies — including Facebook, Twitter and YouTube — from blocking, banning, demonetizing or otherwise discriminating against a user based on their viewpoint or their location within Texas.

www.texastribune.org

 

[Jay59]

Abbott is a lawyer. He would know if something was unConstitutional.

Censorship in social media is getting ridiculous. Either it's an open platform or it should not claim to be one.

 

[Unitedwestand13]

The only way such a Bill would be considered constitutional is if it protected the rights of both liberals and conservatives.

 

[Juks]

Our governor just keeps piling on the stupid... I sincerely hopes he keeps this up all the way into 2022.... This proposed law is so clearly unconstitutional one has to wonder about their sincerity...

Decrying “a dangerous movement” to “silence conservative ideas [and] religious beliefs,” Gov. Greg Abbott touted a bill Friday that aims to crack down on the perceived censorship of conservative voices by social media companies.

“They are controlling the flow of information — and sometimes denying the flow of information,” the Republican governor said at a press conference in Tyler. “And they are being in the position where they're choosing which viewpoints are going to be allowed to be presented. Texas is taking a stand against big tech political censorship. We're not going to allow it in the Lone Star State.”

Abbott was joined by state Sen. Bryan Hughes, R-Mineola, who is sponsoring the measure and who chairs the powerful Senate State Affairs Committee. Hughes said the bill would give Texans the right to restore their accounts when they’re “mistreated.”

Gov. Greg Abbott backs bill to stop social media companies from banning Texans for political views

Senate Bill 12 would prohibit social media companies — including Facebook, Twitter and YouTube — from blocking, banning, demonetizing or otherwise discriminating against a user based on their viewpoint or their location within Texas.

www.texastribune.org

Feels like he is assuming that conservative ideas is the same thing as extremists ideas. Strange take to make unless off course you are one yourself.

 

[BlueTex]

Abbott is a lawyer. He would know if something was unConstitutional.

Censorship in social media is getting ridiculous. Either it's an open platform or it should not claim to be one.

Abbott is an IDIOT and also a lawyer... There is NO court in this country who is going to order a PRIVATE business to host content to which they disagree...

 

[Razoo]

a lot of conservatives should know a lot of things except they appear not to know much about the constitution and choose to do whatever they want.

Take Abbott for example who agrees with removing the mask mandate too soon demonstrates his who gives a damn attitude. COVID 19 is high risk .....Abbott should review whether or not he can keep his personal beliefs out of what's best for the overall situation.

Texas is in big trouble .........

 

[j brown's body]

The only way such a Bill would be considered constitutional is if it protected the rights of both liberals and conservatives.

The terms of use does not take sides. A lot of people enjoy using social media without violating them. They are apt to be unhappy if the Republicans ban it simply because they cant follow them.

 

[US&THEM]

Abbott is a lawyer. He would know if something was unConstitutional.

Censorship in social media is getting ridiculous. Either it's an open platform or it should not claim to be one.

You want to bet this will be thrown out by the Supreme Court. Will bounce out because it is absolutely Unconstitutional.

 

[RaleBulgarian]

Our governor just keeps piling on the stupid... I sincerely hopes he keeps this up all the way into 2022.... This proposed law is so clearly unconstitutional one has to wonder about their sincerity...

Decrying “a dangerous movement” to “silence conservative ideas [and] religious beliefs,” Gov. Greg Abbott touted a bill Friday that aims to crack down on the perceived censorship of conservative voices by social media companies.

“They are controlling the flow of information — and sometimes denying the flow of information,” the Republican governor said at a press conference in Tyler. “And they are being in the position where they're choosing which viewpoints are going to be allowed to be presented. Texas is taking a stand against big tech political censorship. We're not going to allow it in the Lone Star State.”

Abbott was joined by state Sen. Bryan Hughes, R-Mineola, who is sponsoring the measure and who chairs the powerful Senate State Affairs Committee. Hughes said the bill would give Texans the right to restore their accounts when they’re “mistreated.”

Gov. Greg Abbott backs bill to stop social media companies from banning Texans for political views

Senate Bill 12 would prohibit social media companies — including Facebook, Twitter and YouTube — from blocking, banning, demonetizing or otherwise discriminating against a user based on their viewpoint or their location within Texas.

www.texastribune.org

Stupid stunt. Might as well throw in a requirement for Twitter and Facebook to restore Trump and crazy ass My Pillow guy’s accounts.

Guaranteed fail.

 

[BlueTex]

You want to bet this will be thrown out by the Supreme Court. Will bounce out because it is absolutely Unconstitutional.

It will never make it past the 5th circuit....

 

[RaleBulgarian]

Abbott is a lawyer. He would know if something was unConstitutional.

What Abbott might know is irrelevant to the fact that he supports unconstitutional measures.

Censorship in social media is getting ridiculous. Either it's an open platform or it should not claim to be one.

Clearly, you know nothing about Section 230 or the 1st amendment.

 

[RaleBulgarian]

You want to bet this will be thrown out by the Supreme Court. Will bounce out because it is absolutely Unconstitutional.

SCOTUS probably wouldn’t give the stupid, very clearly unconstitutional publicity stunt, any of it’s valuable time.

If the bill becomes law it will be challenged immediately and squashed by a lower court, and that will be the end of it.

 

[US&THEM]

It will never make it past the 5th circuit....

Florida is going to have a similar law pass and it will be bounced. How do Republicans think it is now ok for the big bad government to the rescue!!

 

[Jay59]

Feels like he is assuming that conservative ideas is the same thing as extremists ideas. Strange take to make unless off course you are one yourself.

Abbott leans conservative, but he is more centrist than most and considerably more approachable. The hard core conservatives get very impatient with him.

The point of mentioning conservative views is not to promote them, but to illustrate unequal treatment. It is telling that the OP portrays an appeal for equal treatment as an appeal for preferential treatment.

Abbott is an IDIOT and also a lawyer.

Pure partisan spin. As Texas Republicans go, Abbott is more reasonable than most, and much more willing to negotiate.

There is NO court in this country who is going to order a PRIVATE business to host content to which they disagree...

That is the question which must be addressed.

You raise the question, why not? This is an appeal for equal treatment, however you spin the argument.

The terms of use does not take sides. A lot of people enjoy using social media without violating them. They are apt to be unhappy if the Republicans ban it simply because they cant follow them.

If the terms of use don't take sides, then why are sides taken? If the terms are not equally applied--exactly what is proposed--then who is responsible for correcting that problem?

Censorship is ugly and you are defending it.

You want to bet this will be thrown out by the Supreme Court. Will bounce out because it is absolutely Unconstitutional.

I am not the one making the wager.

What Abbott might know is irrelevant to the fact that he supports unconstitutional measures.

We will see.

Clearly, you know nothing about Section 230 or the 1st amendment.

The 1st Amendment supports Abbott's position. He is using that to challenge your reading of section 230, specifically subsection (c).

Florida is going to have a similar law pass and it will be bounced. How do Republicans think it is now ok for the big bad government to the rescue!!

Republicans think of Congress as big, bad government, not the courts. Courts are to protect you from the Big, Bad.

 

[BlueTex]

That is the question which must be addressed.

You raise the question, why not? This is an appeal for equal treatment, however you spin the argument.

Those corporations have FIRST AMENDMENT rights as well.... good lord.

 

[SheWolf]

Our governor just keeps piling on the stupid... I sincerely hopes he keeps this up all the way into 2022.... This proposed law is so clearly unconstitutional one has to wonder about their sincerity...

Decrying “a dangerous movement” to “silence conservative ideas [and] religious beliefs,” Gov. Greg Abbott touted a bill Friday that aims to crack down on the perceived censorship of conservative voices by social media companies.

“They are controlling the flow of information — and sometimes denying the flow of information,” the Republican governor said at a press conference in Tyler. “And they are being in the position where they're choosing which viewpoints are going to be allowed to be presented. Texas is taking a stand against big tech political censorship. We're not going to allow it in the Lone Star State.”

Abbott was joined by state Sen. Bryan Hughes, R-Mineola, who is sponsoring the measure and who chairs the powerful Senate State Affairs Committee. Hughes said the bill would give Texans the right to restore their accounts when they’re “mistreated.”

Gov. Greg Abbott backs bill to stop social media companies from banning Texans for political views

Senate Bill 12 would prohibit social media companies — including Facebook, Twitter and YouTube — from blocking, banning, demonetizing or otherwise discriminating against a user based on their viewpoint or their location within Texas.

www.texastribune.org

Is this is unicorn politics or what? Who is blocking everybody and everything in Texas? Unlike Abbott, people who live in the real world know that not all Texans have the same political opinions.

 

[gdgyva]

Abbott is an IDIOT and also a lawyer... There is NO court in this country who is going to order a PRIVATE business to host content to which they disagree...

that's fine....then they LOSE the section 230 benefits

in this case, they cant have it both ways

either they are just a platform such as this board....or they arent

when they change and start EXPRESSING POLITICAL beliefs, they lose their shield

 

[SheWolf]

Feels like he is assuming that conservative ideas is the same thing as extremists ideas. Strange take to make unless off course you are one yourself.

I agree. He seems to think all Texans have the same political opinions, and it’s all right wing.

 

[Aunt Antifa]

Abbott is a lawyer. He would know if something was unConstitutional.

Censorship in social media is getting ridiculous. Either it's an open platform or it should not claim to be one.

So you no longer believe in the free market and wish the government to intervene?

If this is how conservatives now feel about things, probably time for Biden’s admin to look into Fox, OANN, and other right wing outlets. Just might be time.

 

[ElChupacabra]

Abbott is an IDIOT and also a lawyer... There is NO court in this country who is going to order a PRIVATE business to host content to which they disagree...

I would argue it's less about agreement with the content and more about terms of service violations. So if you have posters of a political lean who happen to violate those terms (death threats, advocating violence etc.) then its a clearer case than about whether a company agrees with the content. The latter opens up a big can of worms that will further polarize social media and impact the bottom line of some of these companies if people start creating more echo chambers.

 

[BlueTex]

that's fine....then they LOSE the section 230 benefits

in this case, they cant have it both ways

either they are just a platform such as this board....or they arent

when they change and start EXPRESSING POLITICAL beliefs, they lose their shield

They are not losing section 230 protections... They certainly can have it both ways... They haven't lost a thing and won't if this bill actually passes. It will be thrown out by the first court to see it...

 

[bullseyelqcs]

that's fine....then they LOSE the section 230 benefits

in this case, they cant have it both ways

either they are just a platform such as this board....or they arent

when they change and start EXPRESSING POLITICAL beliefs, they lose their shield

What political belief did Facebook or Twitter express?

 

[gdgyva]

What political belief did Facebook or Twitter express?

when they start "picking sides" in a political battle and deciding which posts are allowed and which ones arent, they are expressing beliefs

and i am not talking about the TOS violations

 

[US&THEM]

Abbott leans conservative, but he is more centrist than most and considerably more approachable. The hard core conservatives get very impatient with him.

The point of mentioning conservative views is not to promote them, but to illustrate unequal treatment. It is telling that the OP portrays an appeal for equal treatment as an appeal for preferential treatment.


Pure partisan spin. As Texas Republicans go, Abbott is more reasonable than most, and much more willing to negotiate.


That is the question which must be addressed.

You raise the question, why not? This is an appeal for equal treatment, however you spin the argument.


If the terms of use don't take sides, then why are sides taken? If the terms are not equally applied--exactly what is proposed--then who is responsible for correcting that problem?

Censorship is ugly and you are defending it.


I am not the one making the wager.


We will see.


The 1st Amendment supports Abbott's position. He is using that to challenge your reading of section 230, specifically subsection (c).


Republicans think of Congress as big, bad government, not the courts. Courts are to protect you from the Big, Bad.

Republican Governors and their Republican state reps are legislating against freedom of speech.

 

[lwf]

Abbott is a lawyer. He would know if something was unConstitutional.

Censorship in social media is getting ridiculous. Either it's an open platform or it should not claim to be one.

More likely it is political theater. A bill he knows will fail, but can then base a fear campaign on as an example of "liberals censoring conservatives," when, in reality, it is a case of the constitution of the United States denying Republicans the right to force a political stance onto a private company. <- A notion that used to strike terror into the hearts of conservatives, by the way. I guess it's hard to be truly conservative when your political party is in the minority.