The Biden administration recently announced the establishment of a new U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) governing board to combat what it deems to be “misinformation.”
The department’s Disinformation Governance Board is led by executive director Nina Jankowicz, who has emerged as a target of Republicans due to her past comments regarding free speech.
The self-proclaimed “Mary Poppins of Disinformation” admitted in a recent interview with National Public Radio (NPR) that she “shudder[s] to think about if free speech absolutists were taking over more platforms…”
You can just call me the Mary Poppins of disinformation ??♀️ https://t.co/eGV9lpctYn pic.twitter.com/WVQFA2bPmq
— Nina Jankowicz ???? (@wiczipedia) February 17, 2021
Additionally, Jankowicz has deemed the revelations concluded from Hunter Biden’s laptop, which many say have been authenticated due to extensive reporting, to be “disinformation.”
While DHS Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas has attempted to address concerns that the Disinformation Governance Board would serve to inhibit free speech, congressional Republicans are moving to ensure the board loses its ability to operate.
Wednesday, U.S. Rep. Mike Rogers (R-Saks) introduced legislation alongside his Republican colleagues to defund the Biden administration’s Disinformation Governance Board.
In a statement announcing the bill’s introduction, Rogers referred to the board as the ruling party’s “Ministry of Truth,” which is in reference to British author George Orwell’s dystopian “1984” novel.
“The creation of a Disinformation Governance Board is violation of our First Amendment rights,” Rogers said. “I’m glad to join my colleagues in introducing a bill to immediately defund Biden’s Orwellian ‘Ministry of Truth’. The government should have no role in policing free speech.”
If passed by both chambers of Congress and signed into law, Rogers’ bill would prevent the board from receiving federal dollars.
Dylan Smith is a staff writer for Yellowhammer News. You can follow him on Twitter @DylanSmithAL
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