Sen. Cruz Applauds Senate Passage of USMCA
Continues call to stop providing Big Tech special privileges in trade agreements: ‘enshrining 230 provisions in our trade agreements is a mistake’
WASHINGTON, D.C. - U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) today issued the following statement regarding his vote in support of the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA):
"Texans know firsthand the importance of international trade, especially with Mexico and Canada. That's because no state in the union has more invested in trade with our neighbors than the Lone Star State. As a fierce competitor on the international stage, Texas is home to more than 2.2 million jobs dependent on trade.
"I am proud to have voted to pass USMCA, which is anticipated to create 180,000 more jobs and provide a $70 billion boost to U.S. GDP. This deal is a win for Texas farmers, ranchers, businesses, and manufacturers, and will ensure greater economic opportunity for every American.
"While I support USMCA, I am disappointed Big Tech's special immunity from liability - often referred to by Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act - was included in the final agreement. More and more Americans are concerned about Big Tech's pattern of political bias and censorship, and enshrining 230 provisions in our trade agreements is a mistake.
"I will continue working with my colleagues in the Senate and President Trump and his administration to ensure our trade agreements going forward reflect settled American law, values, and customs."
As chairman of the Senate Committee on the Judiciary's Subcommittee on The Constitution, Sen. Cruz has led the fight in the Senate to hold Big Tech accountable for its pattern of political bias and censorship. In those efforts, Sen. Cruz has:
• Sent a letter to U.S. Trade Representative, Ambassador Robert Lighthizer, urging him to remove language in U.S. trade agreements similar to Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act, which provides "near -blanket legal immunity" to technology companies.
o The Dallas Morning News editorial board recently called Sen. Cruz ‘clear-eyed about the power American law has given Big Tech' in an editorial where they raise their concerns regarding the inclusion of language similar to Section 230 in American trade agreements.
• Chaired multiple hearings with representatives from Twitter, Facebook, and Google, where he raised his concerns about the technology companies engaging in a disturbing pattern of political censorship.
• Heard testimony from Dennis Prager of PragerU, whose videos are routinely censored on YouTube, and Dr. Robert Epstein, a psychologist who testified that Google's biased search results swung a minimum of 2.6 million votes to Hillary Clinton in 2016.
• Wrote an op-ed in The Hill in response to Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey's announcement last week banning all political ads from the platform, calling the move "profoundly harmful."
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