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House Republicans' formation of the new Select Subcommittee on the Weaponization of the Federal Government is being hailed by a free market think tank as a more productive effort aimed at protecting Americans' First Amendment rights than passing laws cracking down on the tech industry.
The new panel led by Rep. Jim Jordan, R-Ohio, who will also chair the full Judiciary Committee, is charged in part with investigating the federal government's alleged collusion with Big Tech firms to stifle Americans' speech.
Rep. Jim Jordan (R-Ohio) speaks during an on-camera interview near the House Chambers during a series of votes in the U.S. Capitol Building on Jan. 9, 2023 in Washington, D.C. (Photo by Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images / Getty Images)
"This oversight is an infinitely better use of Congress’ time than past anti-Big Tech efforts," said Jessica Melugin, director of the Competitive Enterprise Institute's Center for Technology and Innovation.
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"U.S. tech companies provide jobs, convenience and innovation to Americans," Melugin continued. "The only real threat all along has been the use of government coercion to pressure these companies to make politically-motivated decisions they might not otherwise have made. The sputtering U.S. economy needs government to get out of the way, not tell the country’s most successful industry how to do business."
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Melugin told FOX Business Congress better serves the American consumer by doing its constitutional duty for oversight rather than both Democrats and Republicans "beating up on Big Tech." She sees the formation of the new subcommittee as a positive shift that will allow lawmakers to investigate the government's role in pressuring social media companies to take down certain content or remove certain users from their platforms.
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The formulation of the new subcommittee comes after new Twitter owner Elon Musk released a series of reports known as the "Twitter Files," providing internal correspondence from the platform purportedly showing that the U.S. government pressured the social media giant to censor Americans.
Melugin says Congress should be going after the government for allegedly violating citizens' right to free speech, not private companies.
Rep. Jim Jordan (R-OH) gives an opening statement at a House Judiciary Committee hearing at the U.S. Capitol on Oct. 21, 2021 in Washington, D.C. (Photo by Greg Nash-Pool/Getty Images / Getty Images)
She also expressed optimism over Jordan leading the panel, saying he has done a better job than other House Republicans of keeping traditional instincts intact and expressing skepticism of using antitrust against Big Tech to accomplish content moderation goals.
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"I think there is careful, thoughtful work to be done here," Melugin says. "I hope that's what happens."
FOX News' Brooke Singman and Sarah Rumpf contributed to this report.