Republicans Form 'Freedom From Big Tech Caucus'

The new "Freedom from Big Tech Caucus" headed by a group of Republican members of the House illustrates the party's recent push towards regulating the world's largest technology companies.

Rep. Ken Buck, R-Colo., the ranking member of the House Judiciary’s antitrust subcommittee, and Rep. Lance Gooden, R-Texas, serve as the caucus' co-chairs, while Rep. Madison Cawthorn, R-N.C., is a vice chair. Reps. Burgess Owens, R-Utah, and Paul Gosar, R-Ariz., also joined the caucus as founding members.

"Big Tech has abused its market power for decades, and Congress must act to hold these companies accountable and preserve the free market, promote competition and innovation, protect the freedom of speech, and foster a thriving digital economy," Buck said in a statement.

A memo from Buck’s office distributed to legislators, and obtained by Axios, says that the mission of the caucus is to "educate Republican members about the abuses of Big Tech," and to pass antitrust reform such as the bipartisan group of legislation that the House Judiciary Committee approved. They also want to focus on claims of "political censorship" by tech companies on their platforms, those companies’ connections with China, and their ability to prevent children from seeing harmful content while on the internet.

"Big Tech has complete control of the digital public square, ensuring that Americans only see news and information that fits their narrative, which often excludes conservative viewpoints. Regulators have been asleep at the wheel while Big Tech has fleeced the American public of our personal data and our freedom of speech with their monopolistic behavior," said Gooden, in a statement.

Last June, House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., said that he and other top members of the GOP in the House, including Reps. Jim Jordan, R-Ohio, and Cathy McMorris Rodgers, R-Wash., were going to establish how the party would regulate big tech corporations.

"This framework is our jumping off point and more will need to be done," McCarthy said in a statement at the time. "We will work with our members, committees, and newly formed task forces to turn this framework into legislation, and we will fight for floor consideration. Conservatives and our ideas have been targeted by Big Tech for too long. We must step up because make no mistake, the Democrats continue to demonstrate no interest in addressing fairness when it comes to conservative viewpoints. And they’ll continue to use Big Tech to do so."

• Biden's Antitrust Legislation Starts Battle With BigTech
• White House Unveils Sweeping Antitrust Push