New emails show Department of Homeland Security officials created a Stanford University “disinformation” group that censored Americans’ speech ahead of the 2020 election, according to a House Judiciary Committee report obtained exclusively by ThePost.
The House panel’s 103-page interim staff report says never-before-seen emails and internal communications were obtained from the group, known as the Election Integrity Partnership (EIP), and shows how it worked with the Infrastructure Security Agency. and DHS Cybersecurity (CISA). ) to target, repress and eliminate online expression in coordination with Big Tech companies.
One of EIP’s founding partners, the Atlantic Council’s Digital Forensic Research Laboratory, described CISA’s central role in the alleged censorship effort in a July 31, 2020, email.
“I know the Council has a number of general policy efforts around elections, but we just established an election integrity partnership at the request of DHS/CISA and we are in weekly communications to report on misinformation,” said the senior director. of the laboratory, Graham Brookie. he wrote.
The staff report says: “[T]The federal government and universities pressured social media companies to censor factual information, jokes, and political opinions.
A report from the House Judiciary Committee, led by Chairman Jim Jordan (R-Ohio), says new emails show Department of Homeland Security officials created a Stanford University “disinformation” group that censored Americans’ speech ahead of the 2020 election. Getty Images Graham Brookie, director of the Atlantic Council’s Digital Forensic Research Laboratory, described the central role of a federal agency in the alleged censorship effort in a July 31 email 2020. Atlantic Council A related email from Atlantic Council DFR Laboratory Senior Director Graham Brookie.NY Post Online posts labeled “disinformation” were made by public officials such as former President Donald Trump.Getty Images
“This pressure was largely directed in a way that benefited one side of the political aisle: true information published by Republicans and conservatives was labeled ‘misinformation,’ while false information published by Democrats and liberals largely did not.” was not reported nor touched by the censors.
The “disinformation” posts were made by public officials such as former President Donald Trump, Sen. Thom Tillis (R-NC), Rep. Thomas Massie (R-Kentucky), media outlets such as Newsmax and Babylon Bee, and many conservatives. . commentators.
The Judiciary report also found that, while under the supervision of CISA’s Anti-Foreign Influence Task Force, the central focus of the feds’ effort was “to censor Americans engaged in central political speech in the run-up to the 2020 elections.”
DHS acknowledged that it could not “openly support” a centralized portal for reporting information in a May 2020 email published in the staff report, which paved the way for Stanford’s EIP to take over the effort in July of that year.
The task force used a tactic known as “switching” to address requests for removal from state and local officials to Facebook, Twitter and other social media sites, which CISA-CFITF Director Brian Scully confirmed in his testimony in the explosive Missouri v. Biden case.
Brian Scully, a figure in the controversy, testified in the explosive Missouri v. Biden case. New Civil Liberties Alliance/YouTube Emails in the interim staff report show Scully informing members of the Colorado Secretary of State’s Office that he had flagged a parody. accounts on Twitter.NY Post
Emails in the interim staff report show Scully informing members of the Colorado Secretary of State’s Office that he had flagged parody accounts on Twitter and advised Facebook to remove a post about the election that was considered misinformation.
The exchanges show that CISA acknowledged that it was on shaky legal ground in participating in the effort and chose to add a disclaimer beneath many emails to the effect that its requests were “voluntary” and that the agency “neither has nor does it seek the ability to delete information that is made available.” on social media platforms.”
However, those emails also included a line that said “information may also be shared with law enforcement or intelligence agencies,” implying that those agencies could take action if the posts are not removed.
Former CISA Director Chris Krebs, who was fired by Trump after the 2020 election, testified before the subcommittee that the “interconnection” took place before his agency was also created.
The exchanges show that the group acknowledged it was on shaky legal ground in participating in the effort and opted to add a disclaimer beneath many emails stating that its requests were “voluntary.”
Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas testified at a House Judiciary Committee hearing in July that the agency no longer engages in this practice.
The court staff report also reveals that Stanford students worked at both CISA and EIP simultaneously.
“Not only were there a number of university students involved with the EIP, but at least four of the students were employed by CISA during the EIP operation, using their government email accounts to communicate with CISA officials and other ‘interested parties’. ‘externals’ involved with the EIP. EIP,” she states.
Former CISA Director Chris Krebs, who was fired by Trump after the 2020 election, testified before the subcommittee. Jim LoScalzo / Greg Nash / Pool via CNP / SplashNews.com
In a statement given to The Post on Monday, CISA CEO Brandon Wales said the agency “does not and has never censored speech or facilitated censorship.
“Every day, the men and women of CISA execute the agency’s mission to reduce risk to America’s critical infrastructure in a way that protects Americans’ free speech, civil rights, and privacy,” he said. Wales.
“In response to concerns from election officials of all parties regarding foreign influence operations and disinformation that may impact the security of election infrastructure, CISA mitigates the risk of disinformation by sharing information on voter literacy and election security with the public and amplifying trusted voices. of electoral officials throughout the country.”
The “desinfo” organization was run by Stanford University’s Stanford Internet Observatory and founded with the help of other academics who communicated directly with Homeland Security officials and members of the State Department’s Center on Global Engagement, according to the report.
SIO was envisioned as a “one-stop shop for local election officials, DHS and voter protection organizations” to coordinate with social media platforms on the censorship effort, according to its director Alex Stamos, who previously served as director security on Facebook.
In June, Stamos testified before the House subcommittee that CISA’s coordination with the FBI seemed like a threat.
Alex Stamos, who previously served as chief security officer at Facebook, said the idea was to create a “one-stop shop for local election officials, DHS and voter protection organizations” to coordinate with social media platforms in the censorship effort.REUTERS
“[D]Dealing with a law enforcement agency that has enforcement powers is risky if you are part of a large organization and another; there could be some investigation involving the organization you don’t even know about,” he said. .
“I think every executive at every public company understands that there are many parts of the government that can punish you for activity that you thought was appropriate.”
Stamos did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Trump created CISA in 2018 to improve federal cybersecurity programs and protect government software from hackers.
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