House Republicans expose Europe’s decade-long assault on American free speech as foreign regulations force Big Tech to censor U.S. citizens’ online content on topics from elections to COVID-19.
Story Highlights
- House Judiciary Committee holds Part II hearing examining how EU Digital Services Act and UK Online Safety Act export censorship to American platforms
- Subpoenaed documents reveal over 100 closed-door meetings where European Commission pressured tech companies to alter global content moderation rules
- Witnesses include Finnish MP prosecuted for speech and UK comedian facing enforcement under European laws targeting conservative viewpoints
- EU fined X nearly 6% of global revenue in December 2025 for protecting speech rights, demonstrating financial weapons used against American innovation
European Regulations Target American Speech Rights
The House Judiciary Committee convened February 4, 2026, for “Europe’s Threat to American Speech and Innovation: Part II,” exposing how European Union laws impose censorship on American citizens. Chairman Jim Jordan leads the investigation into the Digital Services Act, Digital Markets Act, and UK’s Online Safety Act, which pressure U.S. tech firms to implement global content moderation changes. These regulations force platforms to censor speech on COVID-19, migration, and elections, directly undermining First Amendment protections for Americans communicating online.
House Report Reveals Decade of Foreign Pressure
A House interim report released February 3, 2026, documents the European Commission’s systematic campaign to coerce American tech companies into censoring content. Subpoenaed documents from Big Tech reveal over 100 closed-door meetings since at least 2020 where EU officials pressured platforms to alter moderation policies worldwide. Former EU Commissioner Thierry Breton exemplified this overreach by warning Elon Musk in August 2025 about Digital Services Act risks for hosting a U.S. election livestream on X, demonstrating foreign interference in American political discourse.
Victims Testify to Personal Costs of European Censorship
The hearing features compelling testimony from individuals harmed by European speech laws. Dr. Päivi Räsänen, a Finnish Parliament Member, describes prosecution under EU-aligned regulations for expressing traditional beliefs. Graham Linehan, a journalist and comedy writer, details personal impacts of UK Online Safety Act and DSA enforcement. Lorcán Price, barrister with Alliance Defending Freedom International, provides legal analysis demonstrating how these foreign laws create compliance burdens that chill American innovation and prioritize European regulatory demands over constitutional free speech protections.
The economic weaponization against American companies intensified in December 2025 when the EU fined X nearly six percent of global revenue for maintaining speech protections. This financial assault forces U.S. tech firms into an impossible position between complying with European censorship mandates and upholding American constitutional values. Small tech companies face disproportionate regulatory burdens from requirements like the Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive and Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence Directive, stifling innovation that built America’s technological leadership while empowering foreign bureaucrats to control what Americans can say online.
Long-Term Threats to Innovation and Constitutional Rights
The extraterritorial reach of European regulations creates a dangerous precedent where foreign powers dictate acceptable speech for American citizens. Morgan Reed of ACT|The App Association warns EU regulations stifle small tech innovation compared to U.S. entrepreneurs operating under constitutional protections. The enforcement model risks fragmenting the global internet as companies implement compliance walls, potentially forcing American platforms to self-censor worldwide to avoid punitive European fines. This hearing represents critical congressional oversight protecting constitutional rights from foreign erosion, as unelected EU bureaucrats export censorship models targeting conservative viewpoints on family values and political discourse.
This investigation follows September 2025’s Part I hearing featuring Nigel Farage, establishing a pattern of European regulatory overreach. While EU officials and some Democrats claim the Digital Services Act merely advances user rights without mandating censorship, the documented evidence of coercive pressure and massive fines against American companies tells a different story. The fundamental conflict pits limited government and individual liberty against expansive foreign regulatory control, with American free speech hanging in the balance as unaccountable European bureaucrats wield economic weapons to silence constitutionally protected expression.
Sources:
Europe’s Threat to American Speech and Innovation: Part II – House Judiciary Committee
Europe’s Threat to American Speech and Innovation: Part II – Congress.gov
Graham Linehan to Speak at Congressional Hearing on European Big Tech Regulation – The Irish Times
The Foreign Censorship Threat Part II – House Judiciary Committee Report
