Rep. Jim Jordan, R-Ohio, attends a press conference with members of the GOP Doctors Caucus after a meeting of the House Republican Conference at the U.S. Capitol on Wednesday, Jan. 19, 2022.
Tom Williams | CQ-Roll Call, Inc. | Getty Images
A group of 18 House Republicans is asking Twitter’s board to withhold all records related to Elon Musk’s bid to buy the company, setting up a possible congressional investigation if the party wins a majority this fall.
In letters shared exclusively with CNBC, Republicans on the House Judiciary Committee asked Twitter Chairman Bret Taylor and other board members to secure any messages from official or personal accounts, including through encryption software, that related to Twitter’s review of Musk’s offer.
“As Congress continues to examine Big Tech and how best to protect Americans’ free speech rights, this letter serves as a formal request that you preserve all records and materials related to Musk’s bid to buy Twitter , including Twitter’s review and response to this offer. and Twitter’s assessment of its shareholders’ interests in relation to Musk’s offer,” said the letter, led by ranking member Jim Jordan, R-Ohio.
“You must interpret this retention notice as an instruction to take all reasonable steps to prevent the destruction or alteration, intentionally or negligently, of all documents, communications and other information, including electronic information and metadata, that are or may be potentially liable to this congressional investigation,” the letter continued.
The request signals that if Republicans regain the majority in the House of Representatives in the 2022 midterm elections, they could launch an investigation into Twitter, especially if the company refuses to take up the offer from Musk, who is the CEO of Tesla and SpaceX. Under Republican control, the House Judiciary Committee can decide to subpoena records related to the board’s internal deliberations.
It’s not the first time Twitter has drawn the attention of Republican lawmakers.
The platform has become a focal point for some conservative members who have charged that Twitter unfairly removes or moderates posts on ideological grounds. Twitter has denied doing so and says it enforces standards based on its own community guidelines.
In Friday’s letter to Taylor, the lawmakers wrote: “Decisions regarding the future governance of Twitter will undoubtedly have ramifications for public discourse in the United States and could prompt new efforts to legislate to promote the preservation of free speech.” free online. Among other things, the Board’s reactions to Elon Musk’s bid to buy Twitter and outside opposition to Musk’s role in Twitter’s future are troubling.”
Twitter also became the focus of Republican criticism in October 2020 when it blocked links to a New York Post story alleging that Joe Biden’s son Hunter, while his father was vice president, tried to introduce his father to a top executive from a Ukrainian company. worked for. A spokesman for the Biden presidential campaign at the time the story was published said no such meeting ever took place and that the Post “never asked the Biden campaign about critical elements of this story.”
I tweet said at the time it blocked links to the story because it violated its hacked content policy and included personal information like email addresses, also violating its rules. Then-CEO Jack Dorsey later said it was “wrong” to block links in stories and said Twitter updated its policy to reflect that. The ordeal escalated criticism from the right on Twitter, many of whom felt the company unfairly blocked the story on ideological grounds.
A Twitter spokesman declined to comment.
Here are the letters to Twitter’s board members.
