A shouting match erupted between Rep. Mary Gay Scanlon and Rep. Jim Jordan after she dismissed Jordan’s question directed at Google CEO Sundar Pichai as a “fringe conspiracy theory.”
“I’d like to redirect your attention to antitrust law rather than fringe conspiracy theories,” Scanlon, a Pennsylvania Democrat said to Pichai after she gained control of the floor following Jordan’s line of questioning as to whether Google would pledge to forgo helping former Vice President Joe Biden’s presidential campaign while at the same time stifling conservatives.
Jordan, an Ohio Republican, objected to the comment and shouted back disagreeing with the conspiracy-theory label, and other committee members began shouting at Jordan with comments such as “be respectful of your colleagues” and “put your mask on.”
Jordan went along with the subject of masks and linked it to the “unmasking” controversy surrounding retired Lt. Gen. Michael Flynn, the former Trump national security adviser.
“If you want to talk about masks, why would the Deputy Secretary of the Treasury unmask Michael Flynn’s name?” Jordan said. “When someone comes after my motives for asking questions, I get a chance to respond!”
The Big Tech hearing erupts into yelling after @marygayscanlon accuses @Jim_Jordan of spouting “fringe conspiracy theories.” pic.twitter.com/XlZWVzeV5y
— Washington Examiner (@dcexaminer) July 29, 2020
“I’ll just cut to the chase: Big Tech is out to get conservatives,” Jordan said during the hearing. “That’s not a suspicion. That’s not a hunch. That’s a fact.”
Big tech’s out to get conservatives. It’s time they face the consequences. pic.twitter.com/jfPRPL1rZ1
— Rep. Jim Jordan (@Jim_Jordan) July 29, 2020
Pichai was testifying via video chat, along with Facebook’s Mark Zuckerberg, Apple’s Tim Cook, and Amazon’s Jeff Bezos as part of a congressional antitrust hearing.
