Press Release

Common Cause is urging the U.S. House of Representatives to expel Rep. Paul Gosar (R-AZ), and as a first step vote to censure and strip him of his committee assignments after he circulated a video depicting him killing Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) and attacking President Biden. The letter, sent today to every U.S. Representative, emphasizes that removing the Arizona Republican from his committee assignments is the most lenient penalty that should be levelled against any member for such nakedly irresponsible and dangerous conduct in the charged current environment created by former President Trump’s lies and refusal to concede his resounding defeat in the 2020 presidential election. The letter also notes that Common Cause plans to key-vote this legislation in our Democracy Scorecard, which we send to our 1.5 million members.  

WASHINGTON — On Monday, 16 civil-rights, human-rights and media-justice organizations called on the top executives at AT&T and DIRECTV to cut business ties with One America News Network, the propaganda channel responsible for spreading anti-democratic disinformation, promoting COVID-19 conspiracy theories and fueling racism.

Friday night, the House voted to pass the $1.2 trillion Infrastructure, Investment and Jobs Act which includes $65 billion in broadband investments. These investments will fund the deployment of high-speed networks in unserved and underserved areas, make broadband more affordable for low-income households, and fund digital inclusion programs that ensure communities have the necessary tools and skills to effectively use broadband. The legislation also includes important protections that enhance broadband pricing transparency and takes steps that prevent providers from engaging in discriminatory deployment. The legislation passed the Senate in August, which now sits at the president’s desk awaiting signature.

With The Facebook Papers adding daily to the evidence of the inability and unwillingness of social media giants to combat disinformation and other harmful content, Common Cause today released an extensive report on election disinformation, including a comprehensive set of reforms needed to curb this huge and growing problem and protect our right to vote in elections next week, next year, and beyond. Based on more than 15,000 hours monitoring social media in the 2020 election cycle, together with legal and policy expertise, “As a Matter of Fact: The Harms Caused by Election Disinformation” details the seriousness and scale of the threat, current applicable state and federal laws, and the woefully inadequate and inconsistent civic integrity policies of the social media giants. The report concludes with a sweeping series of reform recommendations to better enable us to fight back against election disinformation.

No American is above the law, not the president, not the ex-president, nor any of their advisors. The American people expect and deserve to know the truth about the insurrection on January 6th, why it happened, and who was behind it. Today’s vote to find Steve Bannon in criminal contempt of Congress will help ensure we learn the truth about the events of that bloody attempt to overturn the legitimate results of the 2020 election. But it is disgraceful how few Republicans voted to enforce congressional subpoena power and hold Steve Bannon in contempt for refusing to comply with subpoenas about his role in, and knowledge of, the bloody attempt to topple our government. But it is disgraceful how few Republicans voted to enforce congressional subpoena power and hold Steve Bannon in contempt for refusing to comply with subpoenas about his role in, and knowledge of, the bloody attempt to topple our government.

Today, Common Cause urged every member of the U.S. House of Representatives to vote “yes” on the resolution to certify a criminal contempt citation against Stephen K. Bannon for refusing to comply with subpoenas related to his role in, and knowledge of, the January 6th insurrection at the United States Capitol - a brazen attempt to overturn the 2020 election which resulted in multiple deaths and left hundreds seriously injured. The letter emphasizes that the House Select Committee investigating the insurrection referred the criminal contempt charges to the full House in a unanimous, bipartisan vote. The letter also notes that Common Cause plans to key-vote this legislation in our Democracy Scorecard, which we send to our 1.5 million members.