Rep. Stacey Plaskett (D-VI) accused House Republicans and Chairman Jim Jordan (R-OH) of pressuring social media platforms into not removing false or misleading information ahead of the 2024 election.
Republicans said Thursday's hearing was focused on censorship of the committee's witnesses, including Robert F. Kennedy Jr.
"Mr. Kennedy's and others here are claiming that they've been censored, but they actually have a huge megaphone," Plaskett said after a Judiciary Committee break.
The lawmaker said "far-right media" had attacked her for "playing the race card" when she called out Kennedy's racist statements regarding Covid-19.
"Oh, you're playing the race card by bringing up what is obvious in our lives, what is obviously happening, race," she remarked. "And so you can keep saying I'm race-baiting and try and censor me, but I'm gonna continue to tell the truth."
Plaskett continued with a theory about Republicans' true goal.
"I want to be abundantly clear about what else is happening in this room," she said. "The MAGA Republicans are trying to scare social media companies into not taking down blatantly false information in the lead-up to our 2024 presidential election."
"Chair [Jim Jordan] knows, as we do, that when conspiracy theories succeed, so does Donald Trump," Plaskett concluded.
