The suspected collusion between Big Tech and Big Government is nothing new, but now the issue is playing out in court: in May, a lawsuit filed at the US District Court for the Western District Court of Louisiana seeks to prove that such inappropriate ties in fact exist.
The plaintiffs are the states of Missouri and Louisiana while President Biden and senior figures from his White House – including Dr. Anthony Fauci – are named as defendants. The allegation is that the collusion to suppress speech happened specifically around topics like Covid and election security, and that this was done with the pretense of fighting “misinformation.”
The legal process is now in the discovery phase and those who must respond to discovery requests and present documents and information relevant to the case are Fauci and the institution he heads, the National Institute of Allergies and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), as well as the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency and its head, Jen Easterly, the US Department of Homeland Security (DHS), and the US Department of Health and Human Services (HHS).
Also on this list are White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre, Surgeon General Dr. Vivek Murthy, and discredited former Disinformation Governance Board executive director Nina Jankowicz.
Missouri and Louisiana attorneys general Eric Schmitt and Jeff Landry also sent third-party subpoenas to Meta (Facebook), Meta’s Instagram, Twitter, Google’s YouTube, and Microsoft’s LinkedIn.
They all have a month to respond. “We will fight to get to the bottom of this alleged collusion and expose the suppression of freedom of speech by social media giants at the behest of top-ranking government officials,” said Missouri Attorney General Eric Schmitt.
Previously, Judge Doughty approved expedited preliminary injunction-related discovery. This order paved the way for tech companies and Biden officials to be served with discovery requests and subpoenas. According to Schmitt, this is the first time that the inner workings of the alleged collusion will be exposed in such a way.
Fauci and others must reveal if they have communicated or held meetings with Big Tech regarding “misinformation moderation” and present these communications. Facebook and others must do the same, regarding meetings and communications with administration officials.
The discovery request for Dr. Fauci and the NIAID can be found here and here.
The discovery request for Jen Easterly and the CISA can be found here and here.
The discovery request for the CDC can be found here.
The discovery request for DHS can be found here.
The discovery request for HHS can be found here.
The discovery request for White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre can be found here.
The discovery request for Nina Jankowicz can be found here.
The discovery request for Surgeon General Vivek Murthy can be found here.
The subpoena sent to Meta can be found here.
The subpoena sent to Youtube can be found here.
The subpoena to Twitter can be found here.
The subpoena sent to Instagram can be found here.
The subpoena sent to LinkedIn can be found here.
