Press Releases
Senator Hawley Sends Bipartisan Warning to FTC Not to Weaken Children’s Online Privacy Rules
“But the FTC’s failure now and in recent years to fully enforce COPPA compliance has us concerned that an update at this time could diminish children and parents’ control of their data or otherwise weaken existing privacy protections. Now is not the time to pull back,” write the Senators in the letter to all five FTC Commissioners. “As children’s use of technology continues to increase, so too does the appetite by tech giants for children’s personal information. Your agency’s obligation is to put consumers’ interests first and enforce the law.”
Senator Hawley Statement on the 70th Anniversary of the People’s Republic of China
“Seventy years ago, the Chinese Communist Party seized power from the Chinese people. Since then, its ruthless rule has resulted in the deaths of millions of its own citizens. Concentration camps in Xinjiang and a rush toward digital authoritarianism are the latest examples of the Party’s totalitarian nature, which dates back to the Great Leap Forward and the Tiananmen Square Massacre.
“The Party’s transgressions are not limited to inflicting horrific atrocities against the Chinese people. The Party has stolen American jobs and ideas through trickery and deceit. It regularly engages in economic warfare against Missourians through currency manipulation and tariffs targeting our farmers. The Party is eager to use military force, economic sanctions, and information warfare to impose its influence on its neighbors in the Indo-Pacific and others around the world.
“I hope that Beijing will one day forgo its imperial agenda. Until then, the world must continue to shine a bright light on the Chinese Communist Party’s misdeeds.”
ICYMI: Senator Hawley’s Speech on Declining Life Expectancy in Missouri
Yesterday U.S. Senator Josh Hawley (R-Mo.) gave a speech on the Senate floor about a recent Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services report on Missourians’ life expectancy. The report shows that life expectancy in Missouri declined last year, continuing a trend that has been going on in the state since 2012.
Senator Hawley Calls on FTC to Release Full 2012 Report on Google’s Anticompetitive Business Practices
Today Senator Josh Hawley (R-Mo.) sent a letter to the Federal Trade Commission’s five commissioners asking them to release the agency’s 2012 report on Google’s anticompetitive tactics and abuse of monopoly power. Half of the 2012 report was inadvertently disclosed in 2015 and revealed that Google rigged search results to bias its own services over competitors’. In the letter Senator Hawley writes, “I believe the remaining pages likely contain information critical to the public interest because they may reveal that Google has long been deceiving consumers.” Senator Hawley concludes his letter by noting that 15 U.S.C. § 46(f) gives the FTC authority to publicly release information obtained from investigations when it is in the public interest. Read the full...
Senator Hawley Leads Bipartisan Resolution Condemning North Korean Labor Camps
“The crimes against humanity the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea are committing are unparalleled in the world today. It has been estimated that more than 400,000 people out of 500,000 imprisoned were killed over a 30-year span. That these conditions exist in the 21st century, after the horrors the world witnessed in the last, is unconscionable. Just as then, we cannot remain silent. We should consider sanctions against those responsible and send a clear message to Pyongyang that the global community is not going to rest until these camps are abolished.”
Senator Hawley Statement on WOTUS Repeal
“Farmers take much better care of their own land than the bureaucrats in Washington ever could. As Attorney General of Missouri, I helped lead the effort to fight against the burdensome WOTUS rule. Now as a Senator, I’m proud to support President Trump in rolling it back and restoring the original intent of the Clean Water Act. With this step, we can create a more uniform system for local farmers and communities to move forward.”
Senators Hawley, Cruz, Cramer, and Braun Blast Facebook for Censoring Pro-Life Content
Today Senator Josh Hawley (R-Mo.), along with Senators Ted Cruz (R-Texas), Kevin Cramer (R-N.D.), and Mike Braun (R-Ind.), sent a letter to Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg criticizing the social media company’s recent "independent fact check," false rating, and subsequent censorship of pro-life organization Live Action. In the letter, the Senators note that Facebook’s "independent fact check" was conducted by abortion rights activists who no reasonable person could consider neutral or objective on the issue of abortion. The Senators close the letter by asking Facebook to immediately issue a correction, remove any restrictions placed on the pages of Live Action, and submit to a real external audit of its content moderation protocols. Full text of the letter can be found here or below: --...
Senator Hawley Statement on State Attorneys General Investigation of Google and Facebook
”I was proud to launch the first antitrust and privacy investigation of Big Tech by an attorney general two years ago. I’m heartened to see a new group of attorneys general with the courage to stand up to these powerful companies and fight for citizens. Big Tech companies should be held accountable if they are violating our privacy or harming our children or killing innovation.”
President Trump Signs Hawley-Hartzler Bill to Support First Responders
“This law makes it clear that federal employees who are willing and able to volunteer in US&R disaster relief efforts should be allowed to help. My hope is that it will save lives in Missouri and around the country by allowing more first responders to act when disaster strikes.”
Senator Josh Hawley Statement on Facebook’s Conservative Bias Audit
Senator Josh Hawley (R-Mo.) released the following statement in response to Facebook’s conservative bias audit: “Merely asking somebody to listen to conservatives’ concerns isn’t an ‘audit,’ it’s a smokescreen disguised as a solution. Facebook should conduct an actual audit by giving a trusted third party access to its algorithm, its key documents, and its content moderation protocols. Then Facebook should release the results to the public.”