CA lawmaker accuses Meta of ‘shameful bullying’ for threat to pull news from Facebook
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WICKS RESPONDS TO META’S THREAT
AB 886, which requires major social media companies like Meta and Google to pay media outlets for news content shared on their platforms, awaits assignment to a Senate committee for further consideration. But its author, Assemblywoman Buffy Wicks, D-Oakland, isn’t waiting to respond to Meta’s threat to pull news from its Facebook and Instagram platforms.
Wicks’ campaign sent an email out Friday with the subject line “Facebook’s scare tactics won’t work.”
In that email, she pointed out that AB 886 only applies to companies with a market capacity of more than $550 billion, “just the biggest and most profitable platforms,” Wicks said.
“I will never cave to shameful bullying like this. Neither will my colleagues in the Legislature,” Wicks said.
She added that Meta has made threats like this before when other countries, including Australia and Canada, have considered similar legislation.
“In every single case, they ended up backing down,” Wicks said.
The Assemblywoman added that her office invited Meta to work with her on the bill and share their concerns.
“Reasonable people can disagree about the merits of policy choices. We’d welcome their constructive debate. But we won’t be deterred by threats like these,” she said.
A spokeswoman for Meta declined to comment on the email, but referred The Bee to a Facebook statement that certain news content will no longer be viewable in Canada if a proposed law there is enacted.
“Ultimately, this legislation puts Meta in an invidious position. In order to comply, we have to either operate in a flawed and unfair regulatory environment, or we have to end the availability of news content in Canada. With a heavy heart we choose the latter,” said Meta’s Nick Clegg in prepared testimony last month.
CALIFORNIA SENATORS SLAM BIDEN ADMINISTRATION
Via Gillian Brassil...
It’s not often both California senators write that the Democratic president is “subverting the intent of Congress.”
But on Friday, Democratic Sens. Alex Padilla and Dianne Feinstein said in a statement that the Biden administration failed California and other southwestern states by underfunding them through a program that assists border communities.
The California Democrats joined Arizona and New Mexico’s senators — all Democrats apart from Independent Kyrsten Sinema — in chastising the Biden administration for neglecting them through the Shelter and Services Program.
Sens. Martin Heinrich and Ben Ray Luján of New Mexico, Mark Kelly and Sinema of Arizona, Padilla and Feinstein wrote that the program was authorized by Congress to primarily aid communities close to the U.S. border with funding for shelter, transportation and emergency services. Instead, the senators claimed, over $100 million was diverted to New York City.
“The Biden Administration shortchanged border communities when they need support the most,” they wrote. “Instead of prioritizing Shelter and Services Program funding to border communities as primarily intended by Congress, they’ve awarded New York City over $100 million without transparency or oversight of how funding levels were determined.”
The senators said that they helped secure $800 million for the Shelter and Services Program regarding immigration issues near the border. California received $44 million in the first round of funding and is expected to get $15 million in the most recent allocation.
New York City got about $30 million in the first and will receive $104.6 million in this round: That makes up about a third of the funding in the most recent allocation, the senators said.
This disregarded Congress’ intent, the senators wrote. A spokesman for the White House did not respond to a request for comment.
“This failure puts the future of this program at risk and hurts our communities’ abilities to secure the border, keep communities safe, and ensure the fair and humane treatment of migrants,” the senators wrote.
QUOTE OF THE DAY
“Job opening most likely to remain unfilled: Chief Librarian, Donald J. Trump Presidential Library.”
- Former Rep. Jackie Speier, via Twitter.
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