A group to which Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) belongs has received substantial financial contributions from ByteDance.
This Chinese corporation owns TikTok, the widely popular social media app. Interestingly, Ocasio-Cortez, a known democratic socialist, has recently spoken against the prospect of a sweeping ban on this platform in the United States.
AOC Associated with a Group Receiving Generous Donations from ByteDance
In this association, the lawmaker from New York is a key member. Generous donations have been extended by the parent company, ByteDance, originating in China.
Its well-known subsidiary, TikTok, was lately been defended from a potential all-encompassing prohibition across the country by none other than the democratic socialist herself, Ocasio-Cortez.
Curiously, Jake Denton, an esteemed expert on technology policy at the Heritage Foundation, remarked that Ocasio-Cortez serves on the advisory council for the Congressional Hispanic Caucus Institute.
This nonprofit organization, in fact, obtained a substantial $150,000 from ByteDance at the previous year’s conclusion, as per a lobbying contribution report. “How serendipitous,” Denton expressed via social media channels.
Hmmm.. well, AOC is a staff member of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus Institute, which in late 2022. Took a 150k donation from ByteDance (the owners of TikTok/Douyin).
This makes the video she released on there all the more suspicious. https://t.co/JxCoKaQlCB
— CKS (@CKS19111) March 26, 2023
Not long ago, Ocasio-Cortez commented on TikTok, asserting that prohibiting the platform due to national security and privacy apprehensions would be an “extraordinary” event.
She argued this action wouldn’t “tackle the crux of the problem, which lies in the fact that prominent social media enterprises are permitted to amass vast quantities of highly intimate information about individuals without their knowledge.”
The congresswoman further suggested legislators should, as an alternative, enact a comprehensive data privacy bill aimed at social media corporations.
Far-Left Lawmakers’ Stance: Using TikTok is an Exercise of Free Speech
Ocasio-Cortez voiced out, “The United States stands as one of the few developed countries globally lacking substantial data or privacy protection legislation.”
She maintained that regulators should “genuinely safeguard Americans from the flagrant data collection practices companies employ without individuals having a meaningful ability to decline.”
Tucker missed the mark when praising AOC. He neglected to mention: "ByteDance donated $150,000 to both the Congressional Black Caucus Foundation and Congressional Hispanic Caucus Foundation in December"https://t.co/gwtLegjBld
— Linda (@Atlantiso1) March 28, 2023
Another defender of TikTok, Rep. Jamaal Bowman, is a member of the Congressional Black Caucus. Interestingly, his spouse, Melissa Oppenheimer, collaborated with the Congressional Black Caucus Foundation, another recipient of $150,000 in funding from ByteDance.
This article appeared in TheDailyBeat and has been published here with permission.
