Florida Governor Ron DeSantis launched an offensive against “Big Tech” on Tuesday, warning that the social media platforms are targeting politicians like former President Donald Trump now but will soon be coming for regular American citizens, vowing to combat the threat.
In an effort to keep Big Tech out of Florida’s political sphere, DeSantis proposed a number of measures including a $100,000 daily fine for companies that deplatform political candidates.
DeSantis also went after Amazon for effectively forcing free speech app Parler – favored by conservatives and Trump supporters, as well as some right-wing extremists – offline over its decision not to moderate content related to the Jan. 6 siege in the same manner as Facebook and Twitter.
“I’m committed to addressing what may be one of the most pervasive threats to American self-government in the 21st century,” he said.
He singled out Twitter for suspending Trump’s account “due to the risk of further incitement of violence” after Jan. 6’s Capitol riots and Amazon closing its servers to the social media alternative Parler.