(File photo by AFP/Getty Images)
A number of US Republican Senate candidates hold stocks in the same Big Tech companies they are vowing to hold accountable if elected, according to a report.
Former state Republican Chair Jane Timken in Ohio is campaigning on anti-Big Tech platforms. She has called Big Tech "an arm of the Democrat Party" and said, "their immunity privileges must be stripped."
Timken said in May the "censorship of conservatives must end," after Facebook said it would keep former Republican President Donald Trumps account suspended until at least 2023. She is running in a GOP primary to succeed retiring Sen. Rob Portman (R-Ohio).
Timken, according to The Hill, holds stock valued at between $800,000 and $1.6 million in Google, Facebook and Apple through herself and her family, her financial disclosure reports have revealed.
In Pennsylvania, Republican businessman Jeff Bartos is running to fill retiring Sen. Pat Toomeys (R) seat. Bartos has insisted upon the need to "fight back against Big Techs aggressive silencing of conservatives" and that "Big Tech must be reined in."
His spouse holds stock valued at between $200,000 and $500,000 in Google, according to a financial disclosure report. Meanwhile, he holds stock in Apple valued between $300,000 and $600,000, through a spouse and in a joint account.
Former Ohio state Treasurer Josh Mandel is also running for Portmans seat. He censured Republicans for holding stock in companies theyre vowing to hold accountable if elected.
"I do not believe that United State senators should be able to secretly obtain information in the halls of the United States Senate and then personally put money in their pockets because of it," Mandel said at a debate this week with Democratic candidate Morgan Harper.
"Republicans are just as guilty as Democrats in stuffing money in their pockets," added Mandel, an outspoken Big Tech critic.
Mandel previously owned stocks in tech giants. According to his campaign, he sold off all of his tech stock shortly after joining the race. Hehad earned thousands of dollars in capital gains income from Apple and Google.
Another candidate in the Ohio primary is conservative author and venture capitalist JD Vance. He doesnt have stock holdings in Facebook, Amazon, Google and Apple.
PayPal co-founder Peter Thiel however donated $10 million into a super PAC backing Vances campaign.
"If youve spent any time actually looking at the issue, youll see that Peter Thiel is one of the leading voices arguing against the dangers of Big Tech. We wear his support with a badge of honor," said Taylor Van Kirk, a spokesperson for the Vance campaign.
A US Senate panel endorsed legislation last week that would block tech giants from prioritizing their
The American Innovation and Choice Online Act was advanced with bi-partisan support, setting it on a path to be considered by the full Senate.
If the bill got passed, platforms like Amazon or Google would be barred from discriminating against other companies that rely on their services to do business. For example, Amazon would not be allowed to list its brand of products higher than a competitor that also uses the platform to sell to consumers.
Meanwhile, Democratic Senator Elizabeth Warren has vowed to break up Amazon, Google and Facebook to promote competition in the technology sector.
US Senator Rand Paul has recently quit YouTube in response to Big Tech censorship of opposing views.
Other Republican lawmakers have also accused technology giants, such as Facebook, YouTube, Twitter, and Instagram, of censoring their content.
LINK: https://www.ansarpress.com/english/26570
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