#Lawmaker mistakes Facebook for Twitter at Big Tech antitrust hearing

WASHINGTON — Retiring Wisconsin Rep. Jim Sensenbrenner on Thursday had some stern words for Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg over why Donald Trump Jr.’s account was temporarily suspended for sharing a hydroxychloroquine video.

Only problem is it happened on Twitter.

The awkward exchange came during an antitrust hearing where the CEOs of big tech companies including Facebook, Amazon, Apple and Google were hauled before lawmakers for a Congressional roasting.

Republican lawmakers like Jim Jordan (Ohio) and Sensenbrenner lashed into the CEOs over selective censorship and double-standards where postings by conservatives, including President Trump, have been silenced or restricted on social media — Jordan accusing the tech companies of being “out to get” conservatives.

Sensenbrenner, 77, was particularly aggrieved by the fact that Twitter this week temporarily suspended the account of the president’s son, Donald Trump Jr., after he shared a viral video which reportedly contained misleading information about the drug hydroxychloroquine.

“It was reported that Donald Trump Jr. got taken down for a period of time because he put something up on the efficacy of hydrochloride,” Sensenbrenner said, before ruminating on whether he would take it himself.

“Why did that happen?” he asked.

“Congressman, well first, to be clear, I think what you might be referring to happened on Twitter,” Zuckerberg replied. “So its hard for me to speak to that, but I can talk to our policies on this.”

Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey declined an invitation to testify at the hearing, Jordan said. The recent actions of his social media platform, where they have labelled the president’s tweets as misinformation or inciting violence, have drawn the ire of conservatives and free speech advocates alike.

The president himself has sought to weaken legal liability protections for social media companies, signing an executive order in May which will make the tech giants responsible for the content they publish.